Chinertown
Chinese Carbon Road Bikes => Cyclocross Frames, Wheels & Components => Topic started by: kenmc on August 17, 2025, 01:55:23 PM
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looking to order my first set of carbon wheels. seems that there are often 3 different depths eg 35/45/55 for a certain rim, and seem to be the same price.
I've only ever had alloy wheels before, currently running scribes which I love the sound of. but they were bought on a "I don't mind spending X on a set of wheels, they fit that price, they'll do" basis.
building a tideace/longteng/tantan g[rv]201 frame and might as well add a carbon wheelset while I'm at it. but bamboozled with the choices for dimensions (let's say I want to ru. tyres between 40 and 50, have 45s ready to go). how do I pick the depth and rim width?
likewise choice of spokes - sapim or something, titanium, other 4digit numbers.... never. been a factor before.
is it worth specifying spokes which add 75 usd to a wheelset over the "normal" ones?
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:'(
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Drum roll....
It depends :)
It really does X_x
It's mostly personal preference. Deeper rims are generally heavier, more stiff and more aero. Some people like more compliant, shallow wheels for gravel and stick with shallower rims. If your riding is on more flat and non-technical terrain, maybe something more aero and a tiny bit heavier is good. If you're doing a lot of climbing/descending, especially on technical or bumpy terrain, maybe you want something shallower + lighter for the climbs and with a little more compliance on the descents.
Inner width is probably more critical if you are trying to aero-optimize a road bike. For gravel, a wider rim will stretch your tire a little wider and probably be a little more aero. Less difference between your tire width and outer rim width = more aero. For gravel, anything from 21-27mm is probably fine. If you care about being more aero or making your tires wider, maybe aim for the higher end. If not, it doesn't really matter.
I like to squeeze as wide a tire onto my bike as possible. I had a set of 2.2" Race Kings that I moved them from a wheelset with a 22mm internal width to a wheelset with a 25mm internal width and they started rubbing on the fork because the wider rims stretched them out more... so there is that to consider. If you're not maxing out your tire clearance it shouldn't be an issue though.
I don't have a lot to say about spokes. If you live somewhere by the ocean or where they salt the roads in the winter, maybe stay away from aluminum spoke nipples because they'll corrode. Sapim spokes are sort of "industry standard," they're good. I hear Pillar spokes are fine too. IMO titanium spokes are kind of a gimmick and carbon spokes have no business on off-road wheels. Especially for gravel, I don't think you can really go wrong by just sticking to whatever steel spokes.
Aluminum wheelsets are often 1800g+. Moving to any <1500g carbon wheelset will probably make a noticeable difference.
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personal preference- something i don't have yet, due to not having ridden anything carbon. I guess I'm looking to minimize my climbing weight, so shallower probably better, maybe 35ish so?
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I don't know where you are riding, but I find anything above 50mm depth to really affect my handling during strong winds
Just another thing to consider...
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Ireland. it can be windy. its usually windy 😀
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On my gravel bike, these were the original wheels I installed on my gravel bike in 2019. Probably 15K to 20K mile on them to date without any issues. 28mm wide and 38mm deep. I run 40mm to 42mm wide tires.
ttps://www.aliexpress.us/item/2255799847268989.html
Over the past couple of years, I have purchased 4 of these 280 gram rims and built up 2 sets of wheels on 142 hubs, and a set on 148 hubs. These are 27mm wide, and 25mm deep. I run these rims on my Carbon Hardtail, and the wheelset weighs just under 1380grams, with sealing tape. On my Hardtail, I always run 2.0 / 50mm lightweight gravel/bikepacking tires. I have close to 3K of hard rough terrain miles on these wheels without issue. (I did check/re-tension the rear wheel once after a couple of years of riding.)
I built up a set of gravel wheels with 142 hubs that clocks in around 1300 grams with tape. I have a little over 1000 miles on this wheel set. I run 40mm on the back and 42mm tires on the front.
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2255800282655021.html
Note: Back when I researched rims, what I read was that in Carbon rims, 28mm outside width and 38mm depth was a favored sweet spot for gravel riding with some crossing over to singletrack/trails. (Rim width/depth/weight/durability versus typical gravel tires - 38 to 42mm wide.)
If you spend most or more time on paved roads, then 28mm to 30mm outside width with deeper rims up to 60mm deep show up more.
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personal preference- something i don't have yet, due to not having ridden anything carbon. I guess I'm looking to minimize my climbing weight, so shallower probably better, maybe 35ish so?
yeah, probably go shallow then, 35mm or less. Do you have a specific wheelset(s) you're considering?
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I don't go deeper than 45mm depth wheels and I prefer 25mm or wider internal width. Too many baby heads and other debris to scratch and damage wheels. If you have smooth rolling dirt and not-so-windy conditions, feel free to go deep depth. Also for gravel I actually prefer hookless. I found it harder to mount tires on a hookless rim, but easier to bead and I'm usually around 30-40psi on hookless far below the usual recommendation of around 65psi.
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yeah, probably go shallow then, 35mm or less. Do you have a specific wheelset(s) you're considering?
thinking of Peters xmcarbonspeed CS-RDW-35-33 at the moment. else perhaps elitewheels or winspace