BlueRaspberry

I'm looking to put together a wheelset to be used as a daily driver set which will see roughly 80%/20% road/light gravel usage and am considering getting some 700x32c Gravelking SS tires for the job but I'm having trouble deciding on the wheels to pair with.

Looking at some big-name brands I see that DT Swiss GRC 1400, ENVE SES 3.4 AR, or Zipp 303 Firecrest are very similarly spec'ed at: 25mm inner, 32mm outer, ~40mm depth, hookless. These all provide aero benefit but does the aero benefit work with a 32mm tire? Or am I better off getting something smaller and lighter without aero, such as a 22mm inner, 27mm outer, 25mm depth, hookless wheel if I were to use 32mm tires?

Thanks for the feedback.

Seattle Forrest

The Enves are most aero with a 28 mm tire, but because of the internal width it'll be about 33 mm on the ground. Can't say about the others, but in general rims are at their best with a specific tire size in terms of air resistance.

Edit to add: if you're looking at the 3.4 ARs, the 4.5 are real nice too.

Iride01 

A daily driver for riding all out for racing or fitness? Or a daily driver for going to the store or work?

BlueRaspberry

Daily for going to store/work and "fitness" during lunch breaks (which is pretty much just a repeat of commute loop). I don't race, but when I have the time I go out for mountain rides on the weekend.

Dean V

How much aero benefit do you think there is to be had with a perfectly matched tyre on these wheels?
What difference would it make for your intended use?

BlueRaspberry

I have no idea which is why I'm asking. From what I've read though aero wheels weigh more than non-aero (more material is needed to make deeper wheels) they provide more benefit from the reduced air resistance than the added weight (which also doesn't matter much once you get rolling, though this may not be as true on climbs?).

However, I'm concerned to know if the tire/wheel combination I'm thinking of will even result in any aero benefit because if not, why pay more for a heavier, deeper wheel that will be affected by crosswinds?

Seattle Forrest

My 4.5 ARs are deeper than you're looking at, they're more well behaved in cross winds than the box section rims that came with the bike. The 3.4s should be even less of a problem.

For what it's worth, deeper rims also make for stronger and stiffer wheels. If you're not having a lot of trouble on those fronts $3k is a lot to spend for that reason.

I would call Zipp and Enve and ask them about your tire concerns. Their reputations are important to both companies and I would think they would want to not have unhappy customers enough to be honest with you.

Iride01 

For what you are doing, just buy what looks nice and not worry about whether they are the ultimate wheel that defines wheel for everyone.

If that is an aero look or not. Aluminum or carbon, you can find a decent wheel from a lot of different manufacturers that won't bust the bank and won't be more than 400 grams heavier for the wheelset than the lightest most expensive you can find.

But I suppose if you are really serious and taking it to the competition level in your training, then maybe you will benefit from the ultimate wheel set, what ever that is.

BlueRaspberry

I agree, at a certain point it's just min/maxing. I'm not at a competitive level, but if I'm going to spend the money I should do the research and make sure I'm not blowing money for nothing.