banerjek

Not just the occasional rain ride, but ongoing bona fide rainy, mucky weather. Where do you draw the line?

I get 18 months max out of wheels that I use regularly before I lose too much rim material for them to be safe.

Riding crappy wheels and tires is just less fun, and there's a lot to be said for riding what you love if you spend much time out there. With that in mind, I replaced the Forte Titans with some Rolf Aspins. Replacing those is going to sting later, but I'm thinking it might be worth it.

Dean V

Disc brakes. Then ride whatever bling wheels you want without wearing them out.

banerjek

Discs are what I really need. But at the time I got my bikes, road discs weren't quite there.

Though the costs of even cheaper wheels really adds up over time.

Darth Lefty 

Swapping a rim instead of the whole wheel is pretty easy if you are the sort of person who enjoys that sort of thing, or know such a person. Easier than building a whole wheel from parts, anyhow. Tape old rim to new one, let all the tension out and move the spokes over one by one without taking them out of cross, then re-tension

Maybe you could make a fortune inventing a zero friction brake track wiper.

caloso

I would just get some entry level wheels from a good manufacturer. You'll often see them on discount on the UK sites. Something like this: https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/.../rp-prod187190

colnago62

I had a disc bike built for me with full fenders and long mud flaps. I figured the same thing. The side walls on my rim brake wheels wear out before the wheels are in need of a true. I now ride carbon wheels on my rain bike and they are fine.

banerjek

This is what I normally do.

And BTW, thanks for that specific link. Excellent price for a reasonable set of commuting wheels -- especially since I managed to get another $20 off for a total of $88 delivered.

But I'll be enjoying those Rolfs until fall.

caloso

That’s great. I’ve spent more on tires!

Wilmingtech

These are my slop wheels -
HED Ardennes Plus GP

Great pair of disc brake wheels with 25mm aluminum rims that can take a wide tire and a beating. Decent hubs and light.

-Sesn

fietsbob

On the cyclo cross bike? Spending your money? : hand made cotton sew ups Dugast ?

eja_ bottecchia

Ambrosio Excellence. Not long ago they were the wheel of choice for Paris-Roubeaix.

Kimmo

Nanotech hydrophobic brake surface treatment

KevinF

18 months? How much are you riding?

f4rrest

How much is he stopping?

banerjek

I ride daily, but my commute has about 1000' feet of climbing.

Not a problem by itself, but traffic is slow so I have to use my brakes a lot more than I'd like. Riding in dry really doesn't wear things out that bad. However, we have a long rainy season and that works like grinding paste on both the rims and brakes. Tranny components don't like it either.

Wilmingtech

Time to go disc brakes, eh? Way cheaper to replace discs/pads than a wheelset or rebuilding with rims. Plus now you have a great excuse for N+1.

I'm in the PNW as well and had to get a winter bike for the weather. Lots of hills here, fortunately where I am at there is no need to use the brakes for most of my ride.

-Sean

banerjek

Believe me, I think about it a lot.


The biggest thing holding me back is that my workhorse was custom built for a 44 mile RT commute I had for years. It's fast, light, and aero. The custom built steel rack weighs only 10oz including bolts and it's just enough to carry my small panniers.


It's the bike for what I built it for, and it would be perfect for what I have now if it weren't for the discs. I've looked at a few, but my tastes are expensive and most stuff I see seems too heavy. If I got a new bike, I'd most likely get a race bike, forego the panniers, and wear a light pack.

Carbonfiberboy 

18 months is about right IME. Back in the day . . . Mavic made a version of Open Pros with ceramic coated rims. They also made a cheaper version, a CD rim but it's not the same thing. My rain bike still has a set of those rims, probably put on in '05. They need special pads (probably also no longer made) because they shred a normal pad to start with. After the sharp wears down some, normal pads work. I think there are still some ceramic rims being made in the UK but they were or are heavy.

Carbonfiberboy 

OK, here they are: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Royce-Titan...-/323778499887
The title says CD but the text says that's mistaken and they really are Ceramic. Buy them, this instant.