str8jakett

A few months ago, I had decided I was going to dive into the world of Chinese carbon wheels for my second bike. After a lot of reading and going back and forth on details, I decided on a set of Superteam wheels from Kingbike on eBay. The specifications had to be 38mm deep by 25mm wide and 10/11spd compatible. I ended up with the Powerway R36 hubs. I also flip flopped on the aesthetics but I really wanted a 12k twill matte simply for the bling.

I had 20 miles on the rollers but got a chance to test them on some country roads yesterday. My initial impression is good. They roll smooth and feel good. Performance is close to my Zipp 404 Firecrest and Reynolds Solitude wheelsets. We shall see how they hold up over the long run.

Kimmo 

$?
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str8jakett

I paid $440 for the set. I bugged Ellie with Kingbike so much while nailing down the details, if it had been food I was ordering, they probably would have spit in it.

Kimmo 

Holy crap O_O

tagaproject6

That bike is sexy!
What is the weight of the wheels?

whitemax

Very sharp looking bike but did it not come with stickers on the downtube?

str8jakett

Thanks! Claimed weight is 1526g+-30g. I can't verify yet, no scale available.

Thank you! This model of the propel did not have downtube stickers. A much cleaner look than the later years.

BonkonFleet

Those are some sharp looking wheels. Do they offer that wheel for a disc brake bike?

shoota 

That's a hell of a second bike! Sick!

topflightpro

How have you measured this?

str8jakett

I believe they offer pretty much any combination you'd like. I wrote kingbike888 many, many messages on eBay.

They go round and round and round and haven't exploded yet.

It's the first ride on them so I'm not getting too technical here, but the Zipps have been my daily wheels for almost three years and I didn't notice a whole lot of difference. I'm sure time will tell.

exmechanic89

Very nice bike, and it sounds like a very good deal for wheels with those specs. If they hold up it seems like they were a bargain.

Campag4life

They look very cool. What is your body weight?
Please come back and provide an extended mileage review if you would.
One has to wonder where Chinese mfr's will take carbon wheel pricing..aka when Chinese branding reaches Zipp status...if this will increase their wheel cost to consumers. Only thing holding them back...and perhaps a big factor for many...is what level of due diligence is performed to ensure near 0 failure rate.

TrojanHorse

I imagine all they really need is a US-based sales and warranty service presence, and maybe a track record that can be verified. The connection between factory and trading company is misty over there.

Kimmo 

I bought some Chinese carbon bars, for AU$40 delivered. Toseek brand Aeronova copy weighing about 225g.

Tried to break them before fitting, and I heard a few fibres give, so it appears they don't test them. They've held up though.

Mind you, the wheels in question are gee that's cheap, while the bars are holy crap that's cheap. Also available in holy crap that's cheap, carbon seats from $20, which are actually pretty nice.

str8jakett

I am at 160 right now.

Thanks for all the comments. I did 32 more miles today on them. I will certainly try to update this thread as mileage hits extended levels.

harrisonk

Really nice. Looking forward to hearing more about these.

str8jakett

320 mile/1 month update.

I find myself riding this bike 90% of the time now. In fact, I had shared a 2.5 mile TT KOM with a friend for two years now set on this bike in it's original setup (SRAM Red 22 and Zipp Firecrest 404) and beat it on the current setup (SRAM Rival and Superteams) by 10 seconds riding solo. The bike rides very comfortable and feels stable on Conti GP4k2 25mm tires. My comparisons are between this bike and a two year newer Propel with the Red 22 and Zipps, major differences being an aero carbon bar and Prologo vs. Toupe saddle.

exmechanic89

Nice. Looks like the wheels are working out well.

fried bake

thanks for the update--do you do much climbing/descending/ if so, how are they on braking? noisy? modulation?

str8jakett

A typical 30 mile loop is between 2k-3k in any number of route combinations. I also tend to bomb out on descents, but this most recent ride was the first long, smooth down hill with a turn onto another road at the bottom. I rode it fast, and I braked hard at the bottom. I was actually surprised at the braking performance in both ability and minimum noise since I'm still feeling out the nuances of these wheels. Brake pads are stock carbon pads that came with the Propel. They ride smooth, and are still true so far, and haven't started showing any signs of wear on the brake track yet. I'll continue to update as they age.

fried bake

02Giant 

Sharp looking wheels!
Very good looking combination overall, especially with the SRAM group!

Seattle Forrest

I must be the only person on earth who doesn't prefer the glossy weave. Very distinctive looking, but not my taste. Otherwise they sound like great wheels. Thanks for posting and for the follow up review.

str8jakett

Thanks for all the compliments. The finish is actually matte but they are still a bit more glossy than I expected.