[dw67]

I am 6’5” 200lbs and participate in fairly high pace club rides as well as circuit and road races in South Florida.

I am currently riding a Madone and I was having issues with the flex in my wheelset. (Powertap 24 hole hub, Sapim Cx-ray spokes, and DT swiss 1.2 rim). I recently started using a set of Ksyrium ES wheels and absolutely love the improved stiffness. They feel so much stiffer than my powertap setup.

With that said, I am in the market for an aero wheelset that will have the stiffness on par with the Mavic wheels I am riding. Can anyone point me in the right direction? Thanks

 

[Kerry Irons]

Siffness perception

I am currently riding a Madone and I was having issues with the flex in my wheelset. (Powertap 24 hole hub, Sapim Cx-ray spokes, and DT swiss 1.2 rim). I recently started using a set of Ksyrium ES wheels and absolutely love the improved stiffness. They feel so much stiffer than my powertap setup.

Interesting given that objective testing has shown the Ksyriums to be one of the most flexible wheels. Of course, MAVIC did a number of blind tests with riders and concluded that people could not reliably determine how stiff a wheel was by riding it.

Most aero wheels will be stiffer than a normal wheel, just because of the rim section. However, the two things that determine wheel stiffness (given the same rim) are spoke count and bracing angle.

 

[FAST2U]

These Are Strong

I have had much success with IRD Cadence Aero's or Kinlin XR300 rims laced to either White Industries or another quality hubset with Sapim CX-Ray spokes. A 28/32 or 32/32 2X, 3X will suit you just fine. At least from my experience.

 

[krisdrum]

24 hole rear seems on the low end for a 200lb rider. I like the suggestion of the Kinlin xr300 and I'd suggest upping your spoke count. Probably also a good idea to look for hubs with the widest spaced flanges you can afford (Alchemy Wheelworks, Tune, White Industries, etc.).

 

[Zen Cyclery]

The reason that your wheels seem so flexy is because of your Powertap hub. The way that the Powertap works is by measuring the amount of flex between the axle and hubshell. The more flex, the more power. And this doesn't seem to affect smaller guys, but at your weight your torquing that rear wheel quite a bit. I think that if you were to change rear hubs and get an SRM crank you would be much happier with a more power efficient wheel.