to me, stiff, light, comfy, gorgeous

Price is relativ but I can see how people will think these r expensive

Spending over $1000 for a set of wheels is just silly. I am heavy at 5'8" coming in at 187 lb. I have always used aluminum wheels because I need the stopping power and I don't race. I also like tubeless.

I have used Fulcrum Racing 0 (tubeless) B4 but they don't spin as well or as comfy as my Shimano C24 TL. All my bikes uses C24 TL wheels; Scott R2, Colnago C59. I find them on eBay and the C24 are just fine.

Then I picked up a set of Lightweight Standard 3 (LWs3); first foray into tubular and went for the gusto. A whole new world opened up. Amazing wheels! But I can't help but feel they are a bit fragile. Friend recommended the Mavic Cosmic Carbone Ultimate (MCCU).

The MCCU's are amazing. Lists cheaper but in my opinion, better than LWs3's. The MCCU's are stiffer, spin beautifully and there is sense of solid-ness that seems to be missing in the LWs3's.

Braking on both are on par with the C24 aluminum rims but I will never ride the carbon wheels in the rain. No way.

However, it must be said that I found something interesting. the best combination of frame/wheels seems to be Colnago/LWs3 and Scott/MCCU. The other way around just don't gel very well.

Colnago/LWs3 combo has a super "sophisticated" ride that the C24's just can't hope to compete. Colnago with the C24 just feels lumber-some and made the Colnago feel like a cruiser; ok, it feels heavy. with the LWs3, the bike becomes super focused and sharpens up every aspect of the bike. This set up will require me to be drop another 15 lb at least to truly bring out the "BAM".

Scott/MCCU combo makes the whole thing very light and strangely NOT twitchy. Spins super fast and climbs strongly. Just a pleasure! I know this is an old frame but it just strikes a cord in me that makes me feel right! Love this frame! This set up is like a loyal dog who is ready to go anytime, anywhere.

I will still use the C24 TL with the Scott in the rain or riding a century but the the MCCU's will only go with the Scott.

Maybe the LW Mileinstein will be the ultimate (no pun intended) for the Colnago C59?

Spending $6k + for a set of wheels seems quite reasonable now. I heard you really only need 1 kidney.

Similar Products Used:

Shimano C24 TL/CL, Fulcrum Racing 0 2-way, Lightweight standard 3.

Light and stiff. Comfortable to ride in spite of the stiffness. Not too tall so don't get blown about as much as 404FC.

If you crash (like I did on my third ride!), repair is not an option.

Similar weight to Zipp 404FC, but much stiffer. Maybe not as aero, but that's splitting hairs. I spend more time slogging up hills at 10-20km/h than bombing along the flat at 40. A stiff wheel makes a huge difference under high torque (hills and acceleration in town).

Not as light as Lightweights, but refer to my previous comment about stiffness.

Maybe not as comfy as the Zipps. But hey, if I wanted comfort I'd have a Brooks saddle!

These wheels are crazy fast. I was riding Aksiums, then tried the 404FC, but settled on the CCUs. Don't get me wrong, I like the Zipps, but these appear to do much better. I've only had them a few weeks and am in an unfit phase due to work. But I'm still getting some of my best times, particularly when climbing. Acceleration is ballistic, cornering feels like you're on rails. This inspires confidence in bucket loads. I find myself barrelling into corners on bumpy and cracked concrete roads at speeds I wouldn't normally consider. I look at the speedo, realise I'm too fast, but it's too late to brake so just commit. I come out of the corner amazed that I'm still alive!

Braking in the dry is good. The power is quite immediate, requiring less force than on my alloy rims. However I don't think there's as much "emergency stop" potential. As for braking in the wet - this can be scary, particularly for the first couple of revolutions of the wheel before it dries off! But this is the case with all carbon rims.

My only problem has been that you can't repair them. Because the whole wheel is pretty much one unit, if anything breaks, you're screwed. I slipped in the rain on my third ride on the new wheels. The bike skidded off and a van ran over the rear wheel. The rim cracked, but it was still probably strong enough to ride (did I say they are stiff?) Unfortunately the only parts that could be salvaged were a few nik naks from the hub. I basically had to buy a new wheel. On the plus side, the Mavic dealer here in HK took pity on me and gave me an excellent deal, replacing the wheel very quickly. Testament to Mavic's customer service.

Similar Products Used:

Zipp 404FC

Stiff, light, aerodynamic, durable, great looks

expensive

I used to ride tubulars for ~ 10 years. Then I switched to clinchers for another ~ 10 years and last Fall I decided to go back to tubulars due to the lower weight of the carbon wheels. The Mavic CCUs have so far fulfilled my expectations. They roll smoothly and seem to efficiently cut through the air. Riding above 30 km/h definitely feels easier than with Mavic Ksyriums (great wheels themselves, too!). The Mavic CCUs help climbing, expecially when accelerating or riding out of the saddle. The braking is different and, at first, feels worse than with aluminum rims. However, after some break in period, I just got used to the difference and now I feel as confident as before. I had just to replace the yellow Swissstop brake pads that went with the wheels with Shimano brake pads for carbon rims as the former did not allow for sensitive modulation of the stoping power (and left ugly yellow marks on the braking surface). I use the Tufo gluing tape and Continental Competition tubulars and this combination works great. As a spare, I have a lighweight Tufo tubular (150 g only!). In summary, great wheels that make every ride a joy (although do not expect them to turn you into a Cancellara or Nibali).

Similar Products Used:

Mavic Ksyrium Premium SL, Bontrager Race Lite

Stiff, light, ride quality, sound

Expensive (but they're worth it)

Couldn't agree more with Slegros (below). These wheels makes such a difference in ride quality and speed. I did a 30 km A/B test with CCU and my old Ksyrium SR (which is a great wheel too).

The test was made the same day and round 1 was follow up instantly with round 2. So weather, wind and everything was the same. The test track is a roundtrip and and is quite flat with some hard small climps. Wind was 7-10 m/s.

The result is a shocking 1:32 faster on round 2 riding on CCU's!

What amazed me the most, is the stability with these babies. Going 60-70 km/h down the hills is so easy and stable, that you can even drink from your bottle if you like!

These babies will never come off my bike again

See review......

Carbon braking in the rain?

Awesome. Period. Light and stiff as hell, low maintenance, 40mm profile is both aero, and manageable in crosswinds. Excel in any conceivable situation.... Incredible. Seemingly very tough so far. I have been training and racing on them for 3 months with absolutely no worries. After riding these I just cant bring myself to put my Ksyriums back on.

Similar Products Used:

I have probably ridden at least 40 sets of wheels in 25 years of cycling....

Light, Stiff, aerodynamic, roll fast and easy while coasting. Strong.

Price

Without a doubt the best wheel I have ever ridden and owned. I have owned pretty much every wheel from Shimano carbons, Zipp carbons, Bontragers, Reynolds all except for Lightweight wheels. The Ultimates do everything well climb, stiff for attacks, so light when responding to attacks on hills and crits. Aero enough that I cant tell the difference when pulling with these vs the new Firecrest Zipp 404s. Minimal side wind affects like other deeper 50mm plus wheels. Durable and strong. These wheels are so stiff they can beat you up a bit so I ride with about 125 psi which is perfect. I love these wheels so much I went out and bought a second set so I can have them full time without worries of down time if I flat or damage one for racing. These wheels are my primary wheels.

Similar Products Used:

Rolfs, Shimano, Reynolds, Zipp, Bontrager

Accelerations, stiffness.

Braking at higher speeds. Some say these are expensive, but it is truly a wheel that will excel at many different aspects of cycling. I'd buy them again!

I've had this wheel for a few weeks and I've put about 300 miles on them so I cannot comment on durability yet. But the ride is awesome, smooth, stiff accelerations, and damn light. It has helped my climbing immensely in the mountains and the accelerations are GREAT. They don't feel as aero as my Bontrager Aeolus 5.0 but it's not a huge difference. My only gripe with the wheels is braking performance at higher speeds of over 30mph. It's not near as good as my Bontragers. I started off with the swissstop yellow pads and they were ok, and then went to cork pads and it got better. Just be attentive on technical descents and all will be good. I'm 6ft 190 pounds so lighter riders my have ZERO problems with the braking.

Similar Products Used:

DA 7859 TL, Bontrager Aeolus 5.0, mavic ES

Strength. Stiffness. Weight. Toughness. Reliability.

None

I'm a believer! I purchased these wheels relying on reviews on this site. I haven't been disappointed. These are tough wheels that roll extremely well and are as stiff as everyone says they are. They inspire confidence, even on rough roads, Texas chipseal, potholes, etc. When I first got them I thought I'd save these wheels for special occasions. I also own a set of Cosmic Carbone SLR clinchers, so figured I'd mostly use those and save the Ultimates for those special rides. The problem is that I like these wheels so much I can't take them off. My SLR's haven't seen one mile of action since I put these Ultimates on my bike. I think they beg for everyday riding. I've got about 1300 miles on them in the 2 months I've had them and they are as true as the day I put them on. Also, braking has not been a problem. I have ridden them in heavy rain and have had no problems braking. Yes, you have to anticipate stopping but that's true of any wheel in the rain. I've ridden them in serious hills, and they have made me a better climber. I've ridden them on 45+ mph descents with much more confidence than with other wheels I've ridden. That word confidence comes up again. I'm more confident with these wheels on my bike, pure and simple.

Similar Products Used:

Mavic Cosmic Carbone SLR's. Dura-Ace 7800's.