Cantrackie

Haven't seen any real comparisons out there, any one have experience with both of these wheelsets?
I have owned Mavic as well as Corima, looking at new wheels and am wondering about these,
I am specifically concerned as to experiences with the FFWD wheels in sprint conditions, with a 200lb + rider.

Cheers

gtrob

There is some (possibly outdated) data out there on the stiffness of the IO, not sure if the FFWD is on there but the IO was much stiffer than the HED3.

I've been thinking of getting the FFWD 5 front myself, mainly due to the price. I run a zipp disc in the rear and don't plan to change it.

Quinn8it

i have the FFWD Disc and 5-Spoke combo. I like it a lot- zero complaints. I think its a great set and a good deal. i find the axle and nuts on the disc to be very solid, which is a complaint i have had about other disc.

I dont have much experience with the Comete- except at some point in riding through the sprint rounds at Masters Nats at Indy- i noticed i had worn through my Sonderclasse II to the belts.. a buddy threw on his Comete for my last couple rides.. i couldn't tell any difference.. at that point i was like 10 rides into a 9hr day of sprinting.. so i may not of been totally in tune.

the FFWD are great wheels.. IMHO

Hermes

I have a FF rear disc and five spoke front. I do 500 meters, team sprint and pursuit. 170 pounds.

I like the wheels and prefer that combination to my Zipp 900 disc rear disc and front HED trispoke.

I have a Zipp 900 front disc as well and sometimes I use the FF rear disc and the Zipp front disc.

I suggest contacting Jon Davy of FF wheels in SoCal who is one of the US distributors. Jon is a 200+ guy super strong and rides the wheels all the time. Of course, he sells them but he is a great source of information and will share his impressions.

Racer Ex 

Interesting that they were running the 5 spoke outdoors.

Be interested to hear crosswind experiences...

Cantrackie

Have used an io in crosswinds before, no problem. Corima 4spoke, no problem. Trispoke, big problems.
It looks like the FFWD has about the same surface area as the io, so I would imagine it is similar .

Baby Puke

Quite a few were running front discs in the timed events! Must have been fun in the wind.

Racer Ex 

I tried that in Frisco (granted Tejas has real wind) and it was scary.

Baby Puke

'Back in the day' I saw a local cool guy doing the district 40k TT on a track funny bike with dual discs. It did not look "funny" when he was trying to ride it...

Cantrackie

Update,
So I finally got my hands on a set of FFWD wheels to try, I did a few turns in anger on them last night and can give some input.
Keep ion mind I was not in a race situation, but from what I gather the 5spoke feels like a dead ringer for an io very stable/fast feel, mind you there's no wind in a covered velodrome so no input on that aspect.
The rear disc felt somewhere between a Corima and a Comete, while not as "fragile" feeling as a Comete it still has the same aero profile.
They both felt very stable with my weight on them at speed on the steep tightly banked track.
The finish on the wheels in my opinion is better than the Mavics and Corimas
I will be purchasing these.

gtrob

Im planning to buy the 5 spoke this summer if there is budget for it, right now my most aero front is an 808 so it should be a bit better (especially indoors, I live 20mins from Milton).

Speaking of are you going to make the trip over for nationals? Going to be a great track

carleton

I don't think you'll gain much ( if anything at all) going from an 808 to a FFWD/Mavic 5 spoke.

I've owned 808 and Mavic Io and didn't notice much difference between the two in my events (up to 1KM).

Andy Coggan once wrote on FGF that in his track tests, the Io and 808 were pretty much the same. That was my anecdotal experience, too.

EDIT:

If you can make the switch without spending a lot of money, then maybe. But, don't expect the same crazy gains that you'd get from going from 32 spokes to a 5 spoke or 808 up front.

Cantrackie

Speaking of are you going to make the trip over for nationals? Going to be a great track [/QUOTE]

I'm debating the trip, just waiting to see what the CCA has for schedule.

gtrob

It was more for the 4km, but will do some more research. I can probably get my hands on a 1080 cheap/free so that might be a better option anyway for the cost. Im going to be a 1 hour drive from 2 indoor tracks soon so don't plan to ride on outside tracks much.


Re Nats, not sure what the schedule will be like but Im going to try and find out if its not posted soon. There is supposed to be a UCI international event around the same time too, hoping they do a full schedule of everything. Spare bedroom is up for grabs still (so far)

Bulldogsprinter

Carleton, what would you suggest? Just got a zipp super 9 for my track bike(got it super cheap, new from shop with warranty sub 1000 dollars) and now looking for a good front wheel. Sprint events up to 1k. Zipp 808, Pro 5 spoke or ffwd 5 spoke?

carleton

As far as performace, they'd all be about the same. I'd go for the Zipp 808 Track front to match the disc. Also, you can remove the stickers from the Zipp 808. You can't do that with the Pro or FFWD wheels.

Bulldogsprinter

Thanks Carleton, I'll go with the 808 if I don't happen to find a 5-spoke stupid cheap somewhere.

treborm

Can you remove the stickers from a Zipp 900 Disc, the ones on my disc look like they would come off, but i seem to remember hearing that you cant take them off.

Rob

carleton

Some Zipp 900 discs (like the one I have) have the stickers under the clear coat. I think mine is from around 2007 or 2008. You may be able to remove stickers from newer 900s, but I don't know. To find out call a Triathlon shop that has one in stock and ask them to check for you.

A well equipped shop like Triathlon Gear | Triathlon Store | All3Sports.com or Podium Multisport would have some in stock.

Edit: Or contact Zipp directly: https://www.zipp.com/about/contact.php

Baby Puke

My 2014 900 had removable stickers.

gtrob

Mine came off easily as well, they are the 900 set I think from '09 or so (flat and dimpled)