msu2001la

I "notice" a significant difference in how my bike handles and feels when swapping between 1500g carbon wheels and stock 2000g alloy wheels. The lighter wheels feel much more lively, responsive, quick. I love that feeling.

A flat road at a steady pace feels the same on both. Everything else? Definitely a difference. Also they look cool and make a pleasant thrum, and you can't put a price on that.

SoSmellyAir

Amen! Exactly what I am hoping for when I ordered the wheels pictured above.

Sy Reene

Cue up the arguments about the fallacy of rotational weight differences, inertia etc... Ready? Go!!

Seattle Forrest

Now I have to buy light wheels if I want to have my phone with me?

urbanknight

Larry would suggest lighter wheels (preferably tubular Spinergys) AND leaving the phone behind... while you ride on the sidewalk... oh, and that shirts are about 200g too.

SoSmellyAir

Physics tell us that lighter wheels are easier to accelerate (and decelerate), but generally have little effect on ultimate steady-state speed.

Another nice aspect with newer wheels is that they are generally wider, so you can have more tire volume even with the same tire, which provide better cushioning and maybe even a marginal reduction in rolling resistance.

Seattle Forrest

Lighter wheels accelerate faster, which can be noticable. Unless you're riding up steep hills and nothing else it won't make much difference in terms of overall speed. It depends what you value and why you're riding the bike. If it's for fun and pleasure, pushing down on the pedal and feeling the bike move more immediately is satisfying.

SoSmellyAir

That is what Larry would suggest for you and me. For himself, the low aero position he achieves with a U-shaped copper pipe "aerobar" zip-tied to a flat handlebar reduces the need for lightweight wheels.

7tbikewheels

If wheels weight is important, try the front light version, rear stronger version carbon fiber.

PeteHski

As you say the physics is clear enough, but people tend to over-state the difference it actually makes.

I'm totally with you on the wider internal width. That really does make a significant difference. I just went from 17-22 mm internal width rims and the latter are much more comfortable and 30 mm wide tyres feel more stable in cornering when mounted on a wider rim.

msu2001la

A guy on my group ride this past weekend had a pair of these Hunt Aero Wide 34s. I can confirm that the rear hub is quite loud. They sounded pretty sweet to me, but I know this drives some people nuts.

Sy Reene

Just curious, but you rode with the same tires on the 22mm rim as you were using on the 17mm rim, or you changed both at the same time?

SoSmellyAir

The same 25 mm tires are noticeably wider going from 17C alloy wheels to 19C carbon fiber wheels; I also looked at a newer 21C model by FFWD but was concerned whether those would fit within my brake calipers.

PeteHski

Not actually the exact same tyres, but very similar type. I was using 30mm Pirelli PZero Race TLR on 17 mm rims (Giant SLR1) and 30 mm Conti GP5000S TR on 22 mm rims (DT Swiss ERC 1400). The wider rims match the wider tyre profile much better. 30 mm tyres have a distinct "light-bulb" profile when mounted on 17 mm rims and feel a bit less stable in cornering. Some of the difference in feel could be down to the tyres, but I think the effect of the wider rims is prety obvious in this case. The tyre sidewall has so much more support on the the 22 mm rims. That alone would be worth a wheel upgrade for me if planning to run modern wide road tyres.

smashndash

Yeah I have a 23mm rim and a 17mm rim. A 25mm corsa feels significantly different between them. Not necessarily better or worse. I think the tire feels a bit more playful on the narrow rim. I also feel like I can lean a bit deeper.

aliasfox

I have (claimed) 1700g Mavic Ksyrium Equipes on my old Bianchi, and 1920g (claimed) Vision Team 30s on my Lynskey. Both bikes come in at just under 21 lbs overall (with cages and pedals). The Bianchi is rim brake and steel, the Lynskey is disc and Ti.

I definitely feel the ~200g difference accelerating from a stop. The Bianchi feels more lively and eager to get up to speed. However, once at speed, the Lynskey feels like it cruises with a little less effort - don’t know if it’s the slightly better aero, the heavier rotating mass acting like a bigger flywheel, or both, but that’s the general impression. It may even be the difference in tires - older Victoria Rubinos vs newer Continentals.

I’m considering getting carbon wheels for the Lynskey, but more for that feel in acceleration and ‘flickability,’ rather than thinking it will make a meaningful difference in my speed. As a poster said above - it’s a lot of money for probably not a lot of gain in performance, but if it’s fun and enjoyment you’re after, then it’s probably worth it.

Sy Reene

So the obvious answer is to get a light wheel (drive wheel) for the back and a heavy wheel for the front (to increase your flywheel effect).

aliasfox

Perfect solution!

Actually, I'll deal with less flywheel effect if it means more liveliness in acceleration. And who knows, if it's the aero that's causing the effect rather than the 500-100g extra weight on each rim, then a 45mm rim should help, even if it's carbon.