Dirt Farmer

I'm looking to shave a few grams from an old Fuji I have. The bike currently has old and new 27 inch wheels (36 spoke) - Weinmann concave on the front (laced to what appears to be Campy Nuovo Tipo), and Sun M13II (assuming a generic hub) on the rear.

Weinmann concaves are known to be bombproof, but heavy, anchors. I am pondering upgrading to something more modern and light.

I cannot find any Sun M13II locally, but I can find a front Sun CR18, reasonably priced.

But I see here, the CR18's weigh 620 grams:

https://www.modernbike.com/sun-cr-18...0-iso-polished

And I see here, the Weinmann's weigh 525 grams!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/stronglight/3818780026

Granted, the Sun's are double walled, but can these weights really be correct? (I've no time to actually weigh the Weinmann rim myself). I guess the Weinmann's are not as "boat anchor-ish" as I'd thought!

Perhaps I can shed some grams elsewhere.

RiddleOfSteel

What year is your Sagres? That would help, but first, I think there probably needs to be some expectations set... A Sagres is at the lower end of the Fuji range (if we're talking '80s, at least), thus, it would be good to know what you want out of this bike. Effort and money spent towards trying to upgrade a bike of this rank versus something else considerably lighter to begin with (500g+ out of a frame makes a big difference) is prudent to consider. Granted, I think Fujis tend to ride better than their market/component position indicates (a great thing), but still.

H+Son TB14s are beautifully and sturdily constructed, build up easily and very true, and weigh about 505g each. The Sun M13II rims apparently weigh 500g. I bought one a long time ago to replace a Rigida 1320 and it built up well enough. I think the TB14 will be a better rim to build with, IMO, given a mix between people's experiences with both. CR18s are built for heavy duty use/battle and weigh (and cost) appropriately.

Do you have a budget in mind? I had a look around Madison, WI Craigslist and found a bunch of Sante parts, including wheels (importantly). You could resell the components and end up with a $100 wheelset or so--great deal on a pair of light, smooth spinning hubs laced (with not boat anchor spokes) to lighter rims (likely in the 440g range). Pair those with lighter tires...or at least tires that aren't Kenda 27x1 1/4"s or similar, and the bike will feel considerably lighter and livelier. We don't know your setup presently, so that plus photos would be of great assistance.

Salamandrine 

There were several variations of Weinmann concave rims over the years, notably a narrower nominally one inch version.
Here's the velobase page.

525g sounds about right for the narrow one. At 580g, even the more common wider version is going to be lighter than a Sun CR18, which is meant to be a heavy duty rim.

If you want to save a little weight in the rim itself, trying to find a Sun M13II would be more effective, and your rims would match. FYI you can by a complete replacement wheel very inexpensively.

Practically speaking it makes much more sense to upgrade your tires. You will feel better tires. A few grams saved on rims is a subtle difference at most.

Dirt Farmer

Thanks, I am leaning towards keeping the Weinmann. Perhaps it's just the Panaracer Pasela Protite's that feel sluggish, although they claim very low weight for a 27 inch tire. (The Fuji quad butted VAlite tubing probably does not help, either. I'd always assumed that stuff was slightly nearer the Cro-Mo end of the spectrum, rather than HiTen, in regards weight).

randyjawa 

For a vintage rider, not a wall hanger, my go to hoops are the Weinmann concave offering. They come in 27" and two 700c widths. I recently dropped the 27 inch wheels on my Legnano for a set of 700c concaves and I love them. The best advice I can give is switch to the 700c version. The hoops are a bit heavier but make up for it in the durability arena. By going to the 700c version, you will have a wider variety of tires to choose from and you can achieve a bit of weight savings in that area.