[asudevilrider]

Trying to decide which wheel set to buy. I know the Open Pro are strong, durable and semi light and will last for quite some time. The M28's also have a decent reputation from what I've read. Which wheelset? Thanks for the help.

 

[Kerry Irons]

Who's building

Trying to decide which wheel set to buy. I know the Open Pro are strong, durable and semi light and will last for quite some time. The M28's also have a decent reputation from what I've read. Which wheelset? Thanks for the help.

The wheels based on the Open Pros would be just as good as the M28s IF they are built by someone who is well skilled in the art. It's all about the build.

 

[asudevilrider]

The open pros I am looking at are sold @ Performance and are 32 hole laced to Ultegra Hubs.

 

[eggshell]

I've got both...

Just mounted the M28's about 1K ago and like them. They "feel" a bit heavier than my OP's but a good, solid training wheel. I'm rebuilding the OP's to have as a back up or race in/out wheel. John at Neuvation was very helpful and produced a good build. They sent two front qr's and he sent the rear, with no questions, immediately the next day. I had 12K on the Ultegra/OP's and never trued the wheels(Wheelsmith).As K.I. stated, go with a reputable builder which ever way you go.IMHO, go with the M28's.

 

[rruff]

The M28's also have a decent reputation from what I've read

Beware of people praising wheels who have less than 10k miles on them... unless you think that a short life is ok...?

The M28 wheel design (a small # of fat steel spokes) does not lend itself to durability or longevity. An OP/Ultegra with 32 butted spokes (make sure they are butted!), does. A good build will be essential. Either get them from a reputable source or learn how to "tune" (ie stress relieve and true) them yourself

BTW, the Performance Titan wheelset is a clone of the M28... though probably a step down in QC. Last I checked they were on sale for $130.

 

[dpar]

I'm in the same boat shopping for those wheelsets. Two further questions. Hope I'm not hijacking.

Everyone says to look for a reputable wheel builder. Are the wheelsets such as the open pros from Performance considered to be good, if not, how would you rate their builds?

What is the difference between the Shimano Ultegra/Mavic Open Pro CD Wheelset
and the Open Pro without the CD? What's the CD mean to me in laymans terms?

Does anyone have the weights for the Ultegra Open Pros with and without the CD from Performance?

thanks
Dave

 

[Dereck]

The open pros I am looking at are sold @ Performance and are 32 hole laced to Ultegra Hubs.

I'd be wary of them - but I bet they are a little cheaper than most others would price that combo.

I bought two pairs of the same wheels at 'bargain' prices a couple of years ago, when I was starting to get keen on riding again.

One rear was almost impossible to keep trued up, ended up cutting out the hub and getting it rebuilt with another OP rim by Colorado Cycles - it's been fine ever since...

The others of my 'bargain' wheels - well, the front rims aren't really centred that accurately on the hubs, and I constantly keep having to tweek them. Experience being a good teacher, I would never buy wheels built like those again. I've since come to realise that the spokes are basically from C & N (Cheap and Nasty) and the wheel assembly lacks in many respects.

I don't have too many miles on those wheels - my dear wife bought me a set of Ksyriums , so I have to ride them instead. Those hubs are way smoother than the Ultegras too.

Hope that helps

Dereck

 

[cmg]

cd= Ceramic braking surface provides superior control in wet conditions. go to excel sports build a set of wheels page see how much it costs and how much it weighs. it will get you in the ball park.
http://www.excelsports.com/wheel.asp

 

[Mark McM]

CD = Couche Dure (not Ceramic)

cd= Ceramic braking surface provides superior control in wet conditions. go to excel sports build a set of wheels page see how much it costs and how much it weighs. it will get you in the ball park.
http://www.excelsports.com/wheel.asp

CD treatment stands for Couche Dure (Mavic's term for hard anodized finish). This is different from a Mavic's ceramic coating (which Mavic refers to as Ceramic).

As mentioned previously, the CD hard anodizing coating creates a more scratch and corrosion resistant finish, but that comes at the expense of increase brittleness (CD rims are more prone to cracking) and decreased brake performance (the CD finish has a lower coefficient of friction, especially when wet).

If Mavic's CD finish is so good, why has Mavic never used it on any of their pre-built wheels?

 

[dhtucker4]

Open Pro laced with Ultegra 9 hubs (32 14-gauge spokes!) are fine as a training wheel, but I would rather have a offset rear rim (Velocity Aerohead OC, Ritchey Aero OCR, IRD Cadence) - my preference is the Ritchey Aero OCR - off-center rim). These off-center rims have minimum dish and less stress on the spokes.

I have trashed two Open Pro rims - hit a small deep pothole at speed and the other one had a hop that I couldn't true out. The Mavic Cosmos wheelset uses Open Pro rims (24-spoke front, 28-spoke rear), but Open Pros aren't cheap - better buy them on the Internet (no tax, but watch out for the shipping cost). Mavic makes great rims - but the lightest of aluminum rims is the Open Pro (low profile) - 425 grams..