Classtime 

I’m looking at a 2016 bike with Ksyrium Elite wheels for a friend. The bike looks to be in great shape but I have no experience with proprietary wheel parts. Anything to consider regarding future spoke/nipple replacements or other issues?

kcjc

Depending on your luck and the condition of the wheels, a few replacement spokes? Parts seem still available, although there are not many vendors. https://technicalmanual.mavic.com/te...subfamily=1050. I've been lucky. I never broke a spoke without the wheel being tossed. Mine is still fairly new, only a few thousand miles (<5k?). My Mavic Aksium wheels were a tank and had probably 25k(?) before they were destroyed by a minivan (rear, front is rusting away on trainer duty). The only service needed was a slight true/round after hitting a utility trench cut in the pavement at ~20mph (descending, slight dent on the front; noticed too late for a hop, slammed on the brakes, and only had time to shift weights) and yearly lubrication of the freewheel body (preventive in nature). Good luck.

Crankycrank

Here's a handy link to have. Never purchased anything from them but seem to have a fair amount of old spares available. Shop by Wheel - RogueMechanic (mavicparts.com)

cpach

They're OK wheels, though not especially light or aerodynamic. They tend to hold up OK. Replacement spokes are a PITA to source, but it's possible. There are online sources, and a lot shops will have some spares. The freehubs also benefit from a clean/oil more often than most.

Barry2 

Mavic has recently (re)opened a new USA office and warehouse.
Try mavic support directly. I needed a replacement wheel, nobody had stock, but their US warehouse did.

Barry

Bob Ross

qft

Kimmo

The freehubs are stupid with the nylon bushing which needs frequent cleaning and lubing, otherwise the chain goes slack when coasting at speed and the cranks turn when you walk the bike.

If the spokes are those silly oversize things with the captive nipples which screw into the rim, they're probably all seized by now. Dunno WTF was the point of those ally spokes; they seem more than three times the size of steel spokes, so I can't see how they're any lighter, and they're certainly not aero.

hidetaka

From my experience the Mavic 'tech' mostly exists to push you into their warm embrace when you need a $10 spoke or a truing. I took my Ksyrium SLS to a local shop and they sent me to the official Mavic one since they didn't want to touch the weird alloy spokes... The stupid plastic bushing is gonna cost me a mint one day too, assuming I don't just bin the wheels instead.

blacknbluebikes 

I'm riding on 2005 Ksyrium SL Elites and they have never asked for one damned thing. When the bike was in for service last year, I asked the guys to "true 'em up," and they only charged me for one, saying even that one needed almost nothing.

Barry2 

I find it funny that people have troubles h the nylon bushing in the Mavic freehub.

Always makes me wonder.... Wow, just how much do you guys freewheel, maybe try more pedaling!



Barry

BTW... Have you see the freehub rebuild kits?

icemilkcoffee 

The freehub is dead easy to pull out and lubricate with mineral oil (which is what Mavic recommends). The spokes are proprietary but you can find used spokes on Ebay all day long. I've had no issues with my set of Ksyrium Elites.

icemilkcoffee 

You are probably thinking of the Mavic CrossRoc wheel, which uses the oversized nut, along with a conventional nipple. The fundamental problem is that the square corners of the nipple would dig into the nut, and causing indents in the nut.
The Mavic Kysyrium has no conventional nipple. The spoke is bulged on both ends, and has no threaded end. On the rim side the oversized nut acts as a collar for the spoke bulge.

Kimmo

I have no idea why you're assuming this. I'm speaking explicitly about the oversized ally spokes with the oversized splined captive nipples with an external thread which gets seized in the internal thread of the rims. Seen it on three pairs of Ksyrium ES (every spoke, front and rear), starting about ten years ago when they were less than ten years old.

Another stupid Mavic invention was the wheel system around those carbon spokes... Can't remember the exact details, but I seem to remember a similar seizing issue which I had even less scope to address because it meant putting a lot of torsional load through the spoke before it could break free...