Budget wheels; Elite, LightCarbon, XMC?

[andymoreno]

Hi all,

I'm planning my build and will get slightly wider carbon rims with steel spokes; as far as I understand pretty basic budget wheels.

I have found these at a quite similar pricepoints and would like to understand if any of them are better than the others in all of your opinions;

• https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004574763198.html
• https://www.xmcarbonspeed.cc/products/carbon-speed-700c-tubeless-50mm-depth-26-mm-internal-width-disc-brake-gravel-bike-carbon-wheelset
• https://www.lightcarbon.com/lightcarbon-gravel-rims-widened-26mm-inner-width-700c-carbon-rims-for-gravel-bike_p263.html

The LightCarbon rims built up with the middle-range LC hubs etc...

Thank you for any input,
/Andy

[jfcb]

For budget wheels all 3 are good options.
When it comes to wheels XMC has my preference above LightCarbon and Elite. I have good experience with Peter from XMC for many wheels with fast response (incl aftersales) and never had quality issues. 

[cycloholic]

Hi all,

I'm planning my build and will get slightly wider carbon rims with steel spokes; as far as I understand pretty basic budget wheels.

I have found these at a quite similar pricepoints and would like to understand if any of them are better than the others in all of your opinions;

• https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004574763198.html
• https://www.xmcarbonspeed.cc/products/carbon-speed-700c-tubeless-50mm-depth-26-mm-internal-width-disc-brake-gravel-bike-carbon-wheelset
• https://www.lightcarbon.com/lightcarbon-gravel-rims-widened-26mm-inner-width-700c-carbon-rims-for-gravel-bike_p263.html

The LightCarbon rims built up with the middle-range LC hubs etc...

Thank you for any input,
/Andy

It's hard to pick a 'winner' out of those three options. I would suspect that the 36tooth ratchet hubs on all three are of the same origin and perhaps lables differently. All the rims from China seem very good. Probably best to go with the ones that that would offer you the best aftersales service in the event of a problem.

I know there is a thread on here about ProX wheels (Light Carbon) where there was a problem and the after sales service replaced the wheels - that seems good!

https://chinertown.com/index.php?topic=4048.0

[Cnasta]

Hi all,

I'm planning my build and will get slightly wider carbon rims with steel spokes; as far as I understand pretty basic budget wheels.

I have found these at a quite similar pricepoints and would like to understand if any of them are better than the others in all of your opinions;

• https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004574763198.html
• https://www.xmcarbonspeed.cc/products/carbon-speed-700c-tubeless-50mm-depth-26-mm-internal-width-disc-brake-gravel-bike-carbon-wheelset
• https://www.lightcarbon.com/lightcarbon-gravel-rims-widened-26mm-inner-width-700c-carbon-rims-for-gravel-bike_p263.html

The LightCarbon rims built up with the middle-range LC hubs etc...

Thank you for any input,
/Andy

I have both wheel from Elite and XMC. Both preform well, but the contacts with Peter (XMC) have always been stellar. He always replies (normally really fast as well) and it is possible to ask questions and have the wheels build to your whishes. Furthermore, for me it's a big pre that he's active on this forum.

That being said, probably all the wheels you mentioned are not going to be bad (unless you have a lot of bad luck, in which case I'd rather deal with Peter than the other companies). When I order with Peter, I will always get some extra stuff (shipping costs are paid anyway) like bottle cages, a MTB-stem, whatever. Not sure you could do this with the other 2 companies.

[BikeLab]

You can also contact with Speeder Cycling - i love those wheels.

[andymoreno]

I'm planning to get the LCR018 frame from LightCarbon, so I might get their wheels as well to save some money on shipping...

[Hainesy]

I’m just about to order an LCR018 from LightCarbon as well - what’s size rim and tyre are you planning to fit yours out with?

[cLs_elite]

What about these ones? Any reviews / feedback from anyone?
RYET 2024 SuperLight Road Carbon
https://de.aliexpress.com/item/1005006261409296.html?pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000036512100174%22%7D&sourceType=1&spm=a2g0o.wish-manage-home.0.0&gatewayAdapt=glo2deu

[andymoreno]

I’m just about to order an LCR018 from LightCarbon as well - what’s size rim and tyre are you planning to fit yours out with?

Most likely these are the ones I will go for, fitted with 35mm Gravelking slicks:
- https://www.proxcarbon.com/prox-mid-range-widened-carbon-gravel-wheel-ratchet-system-700c-gravel-bike-wheels_p127.html

[MALIBA]

Hi, look for ZEN WHEELs here in this forum!

[cycloholic]

I'm planning to get the LCR018 frame from LightCarbon, so I might get their wheels as well to save some money on shipping...

I ordered wheels from Light Carbon and added this to my LC018-D frame which is already on order. There were no savings on shipping costs - still $88 per set. I think the shipping price was the same regardless.

I went for these rims...

https://www.lightcarbon.com/700c-undulating-gravel-carbon-rims-tubeless-ready-rims-off-road_p228.html

I will be fitting with 700c x 36 road/light gravel tyres.

[carboncal]

What about these ones? Any reviews / feedback from anyone?
RYET 2024 SuperLight Road Carbon
https://de.aliexpress.com/item/1005006261409296.html?pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000036512100174%22%7D&sourceType=1&spm=a2g0o.wish-manage-home.0.0&gatewayAdapt=glo2deu

RYET's scare me after watching this CADE video:

[cLs_elite]

RYET's scare me after watching this CADE video:

Yeah, fair point — I heard about those exploded rims etc. too, but that was like 2–3 years ago. It’s not unusual for Western brands to have recalls either, but at least you get proper warranty support with them. A lot has changed in the industry since then anyway, even for brands like elite wheels etc.

I haven’t owned any Ryet wheels myself, so I can’t really say much about them. They’re definitely in the budget category, but spec-wise they look pretty solid for the price these days. I get why people are still a bit cautious about the quality though. Need some decent up to date reviews about their products/wheelsets.