Old 05-11-20, 09:44 PM
  #6  
brawlo
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I think it's worth pointing out the part that the rim has to play in all of this. While a 20/24 wheelset can work, the strength (=weight) that must be built into the rim can make that wheelset a less enjoyable experience to ride than a 32 spoke wheelset with a lighter rim. Another big consideration is that a spoke breaking on a 24 or less spoke wheel can render them unrideable. 32 and up can usually stay true enough or be mended on the road to make it home. I'm also not a big fan of ultralight hubs and soft light spline materials being used in wheels to bring their advertised weight down. That non-rotational mass doesn't really mean much to a big rider but can make a world of difference to longevity as we give them a pounding

FWIW I've never been a fanboy of Mavic wheels. They do look nice, but seeing riders in the bunches I've rode with over the years break one of their proprietary spokes and have a mountain of trouble sourcing new ones turned me off. Mavics came stock on my current bike and I sold them immediately.

I had a dream fatboy race wheelset made a few years ago. Kinlin XC279 rims 28/32 to CXray spokes and Dura Ace hubs. They cost me around $1k when I got them from Prowheelbuilder. They needed a true after the first few rides but have stayed true ever since (~5000km). I've since gotten into wheel building and built up my current MTB rims. I'll build up something to replace my wheels when they start getting old. Likely though, they will last a lot longer yet and I'll keep the hubs and just rebuild to new spokes and rim. If I get a new bike though, it will be a whole new wheelset as I'll be going to discs next.

Buy whatever floats your boat. There's good and bad points for every option that can be thrown at you. Another option to look at are Fulcrum wheels. I've seen a lot of them over the years and under a few 100-120kg riders and they've never failed aside from bearings needing replacement due to high mileage.
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