Globalti
Legendary Member
Worth posting some notes as I've seen quite a few complaints on the web about squealing brakes and wear to the braking surface.
This is an outstandingly good wheelset, stiff and light and a delight to ride, with excellent braking, the best you'll get on a rim-braked bike. However they do need a little more care and maintenance, but since you've probably got them on your best weekend bike, not your commuter, a few minutes a week of time spent on maintenance won't kill you, will it?
The rims are coated with aluminium oxide, which makes them very hard and gives a super grippy matt black finish. The brilliance is in the braking surfaces; most people don't realise that the fine grooves machined on the rims are actually a very fine spiral, exactly the same as a vinyl record, meaning that as the wheel rotates the brake pads are constantly being "wiped" downwards to remove debris as the ridges pass the brakes. The aluminium oxide finish requires a blue pad that is softer than the finish so as to prevent wear, meaning that the pads wear fast but the rims remain unworn. I'd rather spend £20 on a set of pads and see my rims remain unworn. The consequence of the faster pad wear is that dark blue dust accumulates on the pads and in the clearance grooves.
This dust MUST be cleared after every ride by opening the brake and pulling a damp micro-fibre cloth or towel through behind the pads and while you're at it, giving the braking surface of the rim a wipe as well. An accumulation of dust will cause the squealing that bothers careless owners, as well as weaker braking and hence faster wear as you squeeze the brake harder.
A second point is that these are not wet-weather wheels; the aluminium oxide finish will be ruined very quickly by water and grit. You wouldn't set out to ride your best bike in wet muddy conditions so leave it in the dry and use the winter bike with mudguards and even disc brakes.
"What? I can't ride these wheels in the wet?" Well if you can afford a set of wheels as good as these you probably have more than one bike and certainly a special bike for commuting.
This is an outstandingly good wheelset, stiff and light and a delight to ride, with excellent braking, the best you'll get on a rim-braked bike. However they do need a little more care and maintenance, but since you've probably got them on your best weekend bike, not your commuter, a few minutes a week of time spent on maintenance won't kill you, will it?
The rims are coated with aluminium oxide, which makes them very hard and gives a super grippy matt black finish. The brilliance is in the braking surfaces; most people don't realise that the fine grooves machined on the rims are actually a very fine spiral, exactly the same as a vinyl record, meaning that as the wheel rotates the brake pads are constantly being "wiped" downwards to remove debris as the ridges pass the brakes. The aluminium oxide finish requires a blue pad that is softer than the finish so as to prevent wear, meaning that the pads wear fast but the rims remain unworn. I'd rather spend £20 on a set of pads and see my rims remain unworn. The consequence of the faster pad wear is that dark blue dust accumulates on the pads and in the clearance grooves.
This dust MUST be cleared after every ride by opening the brake and pulling a damp micro-fibre cloth or towel through behind the pads and while you're at it, giving the braking surface of the rim a wipe as well. An accumulation of dust will cause the squealing that bothers careless owners, as well as weaker braking and hence faster wear as you squeeze the brake harder.
A second point is that these are not wet-weather wheels; the aluminium oxide finish will be ruined very quickly by water and grit. You wouldn't set out to ride your best bike in wet muddy conditions so leave it in the dry and use the winter bike with mudguards and even disc brakes.
"What? I can't ride these wheels in the wet?" Well if you can afford a set of wheels as good as these you probably have more than one bike and certainly a special bike for commuting.
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