Published by Tristan on 12 Mar 2010 at 03:26 pm
Red DT Swiss 240s hubs laced to Velocity A23 rims 1467g
The Velocity A23 rims are a 23mm wide clincher rim designed to open up the tyre and improve handling and comfort by increasing air volume in the tire, as well as improve aerodynamics. Most clincher rims are 19 – 20mm which is narrower than a standard 23mm tyre.
Velocity arn’t the only people trying this wide rim concept: HED have the Ardennes, C-4 have the VT-22 and the new Zipp 303 clincher and tubular are 23mm wide. Stan’s also have a wide, tubeless-ready road and cyclocross rim in the works.
There has been quite a bit of online debate about whether a wide rim will do what is claimed so I wanted to build a pair for myself and for customers to try.
The Velocity rims are both below 430g which is light for such a wide rim.
I used red DT Swiss 240s hubs and laced the front wheel 24×2 using DT Swiss Revolution spokes and alloy nipples. The rear wheel uses DT Swiss competition spokes on the driveside and Revolutions on the non-driveside. As I was unsure about how stiff the rims would be considering their light weight so I opted for the stiffer Competition spokes on the driveside but I was impressed with the stiffness of the rims so in future I know what type of spoke will suit different riders.
The wheels built up really well and at 1467 grams are very light. I’ve managed a few hundred km on them and they feel very nice on the road. Road ‘feel’ is very good but the thing that impressed me the most was how well the wheels turn-in to a corner. Gary had a quick ride and was impressed and the wheels are off to Hamish for a few weeks while I’m away.
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Andy on 11 Aug 2010 at 1:49 am #
Hi Tristan,
Just wondering how these wheels are going? Curious to know how you would rate the durability of the relatively light A23 compared to the C-4 V22 or HED C2?
Cheers,
Andy
Tristan on 11 Aug 2010 at 9:01 am #
Hi Andy. I keep offering to lend out these wheels to others but I like how they ride so much that I’ve yet to to take them off my bike :-D
The stiffness was a bit surprising considering their light weight – I’d expected them to be flexier. They are comfortable wheels to ride and the corner really well with the wider, rounder tire.
I don’t have first-hand experience with other rims but the durability of the A23 has been very good. I’d imaging the C-4 V22 would have great durability as it looks to be based off the Kinlin XR-270 / XR-300.
Velocity announced a tubular version called the Major Tom this week – good for cyclocross tyres.