Shimano R500 on a commuter

[apb]

Hi all

I have a pretty worn wheel on my commuter. It is a Alex rim R450 with a shimano RM30 hub, with 32 spokes. the rim is on its last leg, the hub needs a service and i'm now braking a spoke every so often even after getting a local shop to true it properly to stop that from happening. so i'm considering replacing the whole wheel and using the hub on a different bike.

i quite like the look of the Shimano r500 wheel. But with only 24 spokes would this wheel be ok with a panniers? Or should i just be looking at 32 - 36 spoked wheels?

any advice would be helpful.

apb

 

[cyberknight]

Depends on how much you want to spend and the weight you want, i got a 36 spoke rear wheel from wollyhatshop.com for less than £40 that does the job perfectly well.
Not the lighest wheel for sure but when i normally commute with 2 panniers fairly full a few grammes on the wheel makes not odds to me.

 

[martint235]

Personally I don't feel comfortable on my own on a 24 spoke wheel (I weigh a touch over 14 stone) so I don't think I'd use one with panniers. I've got a 36 on my commute and a 32 on my road/long distance bike.

 

[apb]

Hi both

Thanks for the advice. Cyberknight they look like the wheels i should be getting. Thanks for the link.

cheers

 

[PaulSecteur]

I had soem R500 as standard on my roubaix. They were removed and some better wheels fitted, but the r500 are on my secteur that I use for commuting.

I have to say that for such a cheap wheelset Im impressed with them. They seem as robust as the mavic cxp22 with alot more spokes and I would recommend them as a budget wheel. Incidentally, Im 15 stone and my commuter usually has my gym stuff on the rack. I think the wheelset is only about £70 from merlin.

 

[Scilly Suffolk]

I've been reading-up on the spoke count arguments recently.

Whether wheels with a low spoke count are as strong as 32/36 spoke wheels is still hotly debated; however with modern materials and provided they are correctly built, there is more reason to think that they are.

What is agreed, is that if you have a low spoke count and you break just one of them, then you're walking home. With 32/36 spoke wheels you can break three or four and still ride it back (I've tried it with two).

 

[Manonabike]

Personally I don't feel comfortable on my own on a 24 spoke wheel (I weigh a touch over 14 stone) so I don't think I'd use one with panniers. I've got a 36 on my commute and a 32 on my road/long distance bike.

I remember using my road bike with a set of R550 which have 24 spoke at the back and 20 in the front. I did a few over 50 miles ride and even my first 100 miles ride.... the interesting thing is that when I started with these wheels I was above 17 stones but even at my lightest I've never been below 14 stones after my 30s. So, I think Shimano makes stronger wheels than people give them credit for

 

[martint235]

What is agreed, is that if you have a low spoke count and you break just one of them, then you're walking home. With 32/36 spoke wheels you can break three or four and still ride it back (I've tried it with two).

This hits the nail on the head. I'm not criticising Shimano's build quality at all or the relative strength of 24 spoke to 36 spoke wheels. I regularly ride over 100 miles with rides planned for this year of 250 and 300 miles. I just can't be comfortable that far away from home knowing that a spoke failure means I'm well and truly stuffed.

 

[apb]

thanks all for the comments.

What is agreed, is that if you have a low spoke count and you break just one of them, then you're walking home. With 32/36 spoke wheels you can break three or four and still ride it back (I've tried it with two).

This is a good point. I usually carry a spoke key, but never a spare spoke.

for £70 they're still tempting.

 

[jowwy]

ive got the r500's on my road bike - for £70 they are a good set of wheels - i weigh 220lbs, if they break, they break.......but as yet they are still running very true and the roads are not the best around here....but the cycle tracks are mint for the commute to work.

 

[Pennine-Paul]

Just replaced the r500 front wheel on my fixed gear,
Done about 6000 miles on it,never had to touch the cones
or tighten a spoke in all the time I had it.Only replaced
due to the braking surface being concave.

Not the lightest but tough as old boots

 

[daSmirnov]

R500 here, done a couple of thousand miles on em. Still going OK. I ain't exactly light-weight at 90kgs and the roads around here aren't great. But they're still running good despite hitting a few pot holes on some downhills, arrrgh. One of which I though today was game over, but alas the wheel is fine. :-) Just my arms that suffered!

 

[PaulSecteur]

£62 at ribble. Any cheaper and they would be disposable!

http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/ro...-R500-Tiagra-Clincher-Wheels-Pair/SHIMWHFR200

 

[Scilly Suffolk]

£62 at ribble. Any cheaper and they would be disposable!

http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/ro...-R500-Tiagra-Clincher-Wheels-Pair/SHIMWHFR200

But out of stock.

Some places are showing them as "discontinued" (which is backed-up by the prices currently being charged), so it's doubtful they'll be back in stock I think.

 

[172traindriver]

Got a set on my winter training bike and put around 3,000 miles on them over the last couple of winters. Broke one spoke and had to have wheel trued, but apart from that they have lasted really well.
Braking surfaces on rims have about had it, so I bought a new set of the same wheels for next winter.
Don't reckon they owe me anything and the back will become a permanent wheel for one of my good bikes on the turbo throough the winter.
Merlin were selling them with a 10% discount over easter, but there is a delivery charge.
Value for money as far as I am concerned.