Hand Built Commuting Wheel Advice

[Buster77]

I recently made the foray into road cycling from Mountain Biking. I'm an amateur who loves biking and bikes. I spent much time researching what bike to buy. 90% of my cycling is around my city in the Pacific Northwest but there will be a few occasions when I am on gravel, dirt paths or abandoned railway trestles. I don’t care about speed - what I care about is enjoying long pleasurable and comfortable rides.

The bike I purchased and that I am enjoying tweaking and setting up still is a 2017 Kona Rove ST. The Rove ST has an Alex Rims CDX4 wheel set. Im running tubeless Clement X'Plor MSO Tubeless 700x36c tires - 40 psi in the front and around 45-50 psi in the rear.

I have the upgrade bug and everyone suggests that if I want spend $$ on upgrades that I should consider hand built wheels.

Here is my question: How much will I have to spend on hand built wheels to see a noticeable increase in ride quality and efficiency, keeping in mind that my riding for now is just fun/commuting...cycling around 100 miles a week. This will increase when the rains go away.

Local bike stores have suggested CK hubs with Velocity Aleron Rims and I keep my existing tires. Im thinking of going to a slightly narrower tire that is less knobby. Others have advised not to go with CK but to go with WI or DT Swiss Hubs. I hear theCK hubs are loud and I would not like that. I appreciate feedback and advice on my considerations for a wheel upgrade. Other have said my wheels are great and going to a hand built set wont make much a noticeable difference .

Thanks for your advice!

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Unless your current wheels are square, there will be no improvement in ride quality, no matter how much you spend on your wheels.
If there is nothing wrong with your current wheels, there's no need for new wheels.

 

[Globalti]

Good advice above. If you're desperate to spend money, spend it on decent cycle clothing, which will flatter you and make the experience a lot more comfortable in all weathers. Snug fitting clothing will give you a bigger speed boost than fancy wheels thanks to aerodynamics, especially if you're riding in loose fitting mountain bike kit.

 

[TheJDog]

Those like like nearly full on MTB tyres. If you got down to 32, or even 30 if they fit the wheels, with a smooth tread you'd notice a big difference on roads, but your gravel and dirt riding would suffer. I'd think about tyres if you were doing different rides at different times, and could switch out, but if it's a one fits all scenario, you've probably got the best kit for the job right now.

 

[si_c]

I'd think that a new set of wheels isn't really going to make much, if any difference. A quick google of those rims shows that they aren't exactly cheap to start with. If you've really got upgrade-itis and really want to get something, try a power meter.

 

[Paulus]

As above, maybe try some slightly narrower tyres, and some decent clothing.

 

[Globalti]

Yes, a narrower smoother tyre will make the bike faster on tarmac and won't really make much difference on gravel; there's a lot of nonsense talked about tyre treads and compounds when in fact you can ride all but mud on something like a commuter tyre with minimal tread. We used to do two day mountain bike trailquest events on quite narrow commuter tyres with a central ridge on which the bike rode on a hard surface, they were the perfect compromise for mixed riding and they were fine in almost all conditions. In fact in snow and shallow mud a narrower tyre will have higher ground pressure and will dig down deeper to find grip.

 

[Elybazza61]

Schwalbe S-Ones* are what you need or even G-Ones if the paths are a bit rougher.

*Actually I think these are now called S-One speed;anyhow I have these on my cross commuter and they are good on tarmac(or paved across the pond I believe!) and loose surfaced cycle paths.

 

[Buster77]

Update: I purchased some Bon Jon Pass 35c tires and had them installed tubeless to replace my Clement X'Plor MSO Tubeless 36c. The difference is remarkable. The new tires are much lighter and have a smooth thread unlike the knobby Clements. Going up hills is dramatically easier and the ride is much smoother. I don't know to what degree of the easier climbing is due to the smooth thread or the lighter weight of the tire? This makes me now want to really think about replacing the rims and hubs and get an overall lighter wheel set. I'm thinking of Shimano Ultegra or XT hubs but others suggest to invest in higher end hubs that will last much longer. I welcome hub suggestions. Im happy to pay for longevity but only f I have to.

 

[raleighnut]

I'd be looking at new wheels in the spring, with all the muck/salt on the road in winter it's a bit of a waste to subject new bits to it.

 

[Elybazza61]

Update: I purchased some Bon Jon Pass 35c tires and had them installed tubeless to replace my Clement X'Plor MSO Tubeless 36c. The difference is remarkable. The new tires are much lighter and have a smooth thread unlike the knobby Clements. Going up hills is dramatically easier and the ride is much smoother. I don't know to what degree of the easier climbing is due to the smooth thread or the lighter weight of the tire? This makes me now want to really think about replacing the rims and hubs and get an overall lighter wheel set. I'm thinking of Shimano Ultegra or XT hubs but others suggest to invest in higher end hubs that will last much longer. I welcome hub suggestions. Im happy to pay for longevity but only f I have to.

Something like these I would think;

http://thecycleclinic.co.uk/collect...s/borg22-disc-road-cx-wheelset-front-and-rear

And keep the original wheels for 'off-road' and winter duties.