Juan Foote

What do you think of your wheels?

I am test riding a set of the demo wheels. I really like the way they feel and ride. I must need kicked in the head to even be considering what they go for....Did I mention I really like them?

Down the road, after the new had worn off, were you still happy with them?

back4more

I am riding a set of the 101s and are very happy with them. They are smooth, fast, and very confident inspiring in corners. I ride them for my everyday wheels and run the Zipp 23 tires on them and will be hard pressed to run any other wheelset for everyday all around wheels.

NWS Alpine

They are great wheels. If you can get a nice discount on them then why not. If you are paying retail I would stay away. I would go with a set of Boyd Vitesse or a custom built set of HED C2 rims with whatever hubs you want.

d8168055

solid wheels. I also have 404's and im constantly running the the 101's in windy conditions. I have crashed them once (head on at about 20 mph, where i did a rear-wheel over front 180°!!), broke 3 spokes, scratched it for life, but still riding as smooth as ever!

Commodus

I rode a set for 15 minutes one time. Felt really nice, a lot like my Shimano RS80s. But...yeah, 15 minutes.

Juan Foote

The only reason I am considering them at all is the discounted price, and even at that are well more expensive than some other wheel sets I was/am considering. The width of the rim does wonders for feel and cornering, as another poster noted. The fact that they are (apparently) made in the US of A is a good selling point to me at well....or at least they make it seem that way.
The other wheels I am considering would be Mavic, which I have liked for many years and have a hard time discounting as a solid choice, Fulcrum Racing, and a set of Shimano Dura Ace. Price wise, these are the most expensive in the bunch for me, but ride just a bit different than all the others. I dropped one ounce short of a pound from my bike installing these, which actually confuses me a bit. By the numbers, they should only be 1/2 pound lighter than the Aksiums I currently ride. I am hoping that they didn't pull some tricky-trick with the weight of the Demo wheels.

arok 

love mine, had them built with dt swiss spokes and 240 hub front and powertap in the rear. put like 2k miles on em and still love them.

back4more

My bike (Cannondale SuperSix) came with RS80s and I replaced them with the 101s. I have never looked back. The short story - love them. Zipps are expensive for a reason - they are worth it. Hope to see a set opf 404 Firecrest under the Christmas tree to complement these wheels. Currently looking at replacing the bearings with ceramics (from Zipp) just for giggles.

khill

I have just over 5000 miles on mine and am pretty happy with them...They are stiff and roll fast. I have a had few issues though....out of true more than I would expect, have to adjust bearing play once a month and my freewheel stopped freewheeling a few times. I was able to get it to work, but it's doing it again. I just sent the wheels in for service and a new freeewheel/hub. I put my Williams 30s back on and quite honestly, they felt really good after not riding them since March. Would I buy them again...probably not.

Ken

tcwayne

The hubs suck IMO. I rode mine for over a year and if I kept them I would have changed the hubs. Instead, sold them and bought an inexpensive carbon wheel with more spokes and stronger hubs.

grwoolf

I've got the same setup and about the same mileage on mine, bought them this past summer. I got a great deal from wheelbuilder, not much more than DTSwiss 465 rims. They are my everyday wheel and have become my race wheels as well (mostly because I'm too lazy to switch out to my 404's, which stay on my TT bike). I think the wide profile makes for a smoother ride. Unless you are really light, I would go with a custom rather than Zipp-built to get a higher spoke count. I went 20/24 on mine, I think Zipp builds them in 16/20.

NWS Alpine

Skewers/rim tape might not be included in the specs for weight. YOu definately want to go with a wide rim which is why the Vitesse and the Hed C2 builds I mentioned are both wide rims like the Zipps. The only thing people don't agree with on the 101s are the price and the hubs. The wheelbuilder option with 101 rims and alchemy hubs would be awesome.

Juan Foote

In the few days I have ridden them I have noted the rear bearing becoming loose, which as other posters have mentioned is a fairly common occurrence apparently. I REALLY like the width of the wheel, it lends to a feel that seems to be lacking in the (few) other wheels I have ridden. Right now it looks as if the price I may have to pay for them is well in the air, and a very WIDE difference. If I can pay the lower of the two, I will feel like I got a decent deal. The other, and I wouldn't purchase them. I really think the manufacturer has priced themselves out of the market on these, to be honest. The retail price, even the wholesale price, when they are aluminum wheels is quite impractical. I cannot even imagine what I would do if I actually crashed one of these.

Edit-After looking at the suggested HED C2 "custom" builds, I don't think the price is so out of line any more....

IDK, overall I am VERY impressed with the wheel. It concerns me that my inexperience with good wheels is clouding my judgement and I certainly may need to look into some other options.

khill

An update on my 101s..I sent them back for warranty service and they were rebuilt...New spokes, rebuilt hubs and new a freewheel body...Excellent customer service and they addressed all the issues I had with them...I'll be racking up a bunch of miles in the next few months and report how they hold up..

Ken

bermanfb28

Ive been riding Zipp 101s for about 4 months and I love them. Ive got probably 5000 miles on them.

Juan Foote

I actually went ahead and purchased the wheels. I only got a short time actually riding the demo set before I got sick and was unable to ride for the next two weeks. I was impressed enough that I went ahead and pulled the trigger and have been riding them for several weeks now. I am VERY happy that I did so, these wheels ride really well. As I mentioned before, the added width of the wheel adds a level of stability and cornering assurance that I just didn't have on my Mavic wheels. The only drawback that I have found thus far is that with the added rim depth for aero riding with these in a stiff crosswind can be a bit hairy. I am sure this issue is common to any aero wheel, and certainly would be worse with a deeper wheel. I expect that with the winds I rode in down in FL as Sandy went by will be the worst I will ever ride in and only did there due to how flat it was and the fact that I was on vacation.

So far they are holding up great, roll out really well, smooth as can be. I have not noted the bearing play I did in the demo wheel although with the manuals I see how easy an issue that is to resolve, actually easier than needing the thin spanner for the "regular" hub. The look spectacular on my bike as well. I had considered getting the blackout sticker kit but after installing with the white it just goes with my Felt decals too well to change.

Have any of you noted faster tire wear using these? I feel like my back tire is wearing a flat spot quicker. It may well be my imagination, it could be that I am riding harder, it could even be that the extra width is just making the previously worn flat area more noticeable....

neospazzy

Congrats on the 101's. I have them on my Colnago and I love them. I converted mine to tubeless and they are even better in terms of compliance and flat protection in my opinion.

NWS Alpine

Glad you are enjoying them. The winds are always like that down here in FL near the ocean during the winter

Flo cycling just announced a new rim called the Flo 30 that is almost just like the Zipp 101 rim but a fraction of the price. Would be a good option for people who want a similar rim but can't pay 1K+