Which wheels to use

[Sonnybea]

I live in Fort lauderdale Fl. Which has no climbs at all other than bridges. My question is what wheels do you recommend, I have two sets for the V20c. One is a 50mm carbon wheelset the other a set of Hed Ardennes wheelset both have 28mm tires. Which set is the question

Thanks SONNYBEA

 

[vosadrian]

I would use the most aero wheelset that can that can take the tyres you like to use.

 

[Frito Bandito]

I would go with the deeper wheels for every day riding too.

I will say this though. I bought a set of 35mm deep wheels for training. They are heavier and have a slightly wider brake track than my 50mm set, so 28mm or possibly 30mm wide tires fit on them. Monokoting them would make them a sneaky fast wheel. But 1 thing I liked about them is that the bearings are sealed better than on my 50mm wheels meaning that once I have them set up how I liked then I wouldn't have to worry about them for a very long time.


I stuck Schwalbe Marathons on the 35mm wheels for a while, and the added weight and wind resistance helped improve my fitness, earning me some Strava PRs even on my biggest climb with that setup, as well as some KOMs and PRs on the flats when the wind conditions were perfect. I would have definitely been faster with tubeless GP 5000s or.... hell, damn near anything in the top 50 of this chart...

Road Bike Tires Test Results | Bicycle Rolling Resistance

An overview of all road bike tires which have been reviewed after being tested on our rolling resistance testing machine.

www.bicyclerollingresistance.com

But I am just saying that training with something like that setup once in a while will give your "motor" a boost.

Interestingly though, I found a pair of 700x30mm tubeless Conti GP 5000 with the brown sidewalls hidden in back of the other tires yesterday in my LBS. I'm worried about fit in the rear on my V20 because the 28mm Schwalbe Pro One I have back there is already tight.

 

[chicorider]

If ride quality is similar for both wheelsets, you'll benefit more from the deeper section wheels on mostly flat terrain. And even if you do find yourself climbing, you won't be at a big disadvantage. Lightweight climbing wheels only really shine when the road is steep and long, like if you lived in the Alps, where every ride is a climbing ride.

I'm running 48mm wheels on my V20c, I climb quite a bit, and they've been great. The 30mm Schwalbe Pro Ones have been ideal. (I did build these wheels to be flyweight. At a tick over 1400g for the set, they are lighter than the Ardennes, which is to say that if you want, you can have it both ways--mid-deep section climbing wheels).

 

[vosadrian]

I have spent a lot of time riding and racing DF bikes with different wheels. I like light wheels on a DF. I have a 1400g 50mm deep wheelset on my 7kg DF and I love that setup. I can feel the benefits of light weight.

On my V20, the benefits of light weight are much less. The bike itself is double the weight so the wheels are a much lower % of total weight. Also my acceleration power is half what I can do on the DF, so the dynamic effects of lower rotating mass are also much less. Of course it does make a difference, but I run a heavy deep wheelset on my V20 and am measurably faster than my light 50mm wheelset.