Biketough Product Reviews

Below are some product reviews of products we've used in the real world of daily training and weekend racing. Some are high tech, others are daily use items. Happy reading!

Wheels

Bontrager Race Xtra Lite clincher wheelset

We got these wheels from Trek as a result of the hub failure on a set of Rolf Vector Pros. I'm happy to say that we definitely traded up!

These wheels are really fantastic - light and really strong. I'm usually not very happy with light wheels, but these feel firmly planted under the bike and don't move at all during hard efforts. I like them so much it is going to be difficult to hand them over to Julia to use as her climbing wheels for this season.

With a nice set of Vittoria Open Corsas these wheels should fly up the hills, and be durable enough to handle some rough courses. More later as we use them for some races coming up.

Shimano Dura Ace clincher wheelset

If you've ever tried to fit a new tire to these rims, you won't need to read any further. As I was walking in my socks after a recent puncture and 2 pinched tubes, I swore I wouldn't use these rims again.

For some reason, the rim is just too large in diameter. It feels like you're trying to pry a 650 tire onto a 700 rim. (I even looked at the side of the tire to make sure that's not what I'd been attempting to do)

Only the most expensive tires will go on with a minimal amount of fuss, and even then the rims don't seem to be very stable under high torque when exiting fast turns. I've had the back end chattering under me on numerous occasions just as I was powering up for a sprint - that does not inspire confidence in the wheels.

I've given up on them completely for training, and they seem a little soft for my style of racing.

Mavic Ksyrium clincher wheelset

This is a very nice wheelset. I only wish I had gone the extra mile and purchased the tubular wheels for the ultimate race set up.

The hubs are silky smooth and seem to roll forever. The wheel is VERY strong and reliable. It may be a little on the stiff side for the lighter folks, but I LOVE 'EM. I think there may be some lighter wheels out there, but I'm not sure the weight difference affects the overall performance of these wheels at all.

The next time you are at a race, look around at how many racers choose Ksyriums - theses wheels are fast!

One of the most important features of these fairly exotic wheels is they are used almost everywhere. That translates to you being able to get them fixed if they happen to get damaged almost anywhere on earth. That's nice to know if you plan to travel with your bike. (Personally, if I am not racing a nice set of 32 spoke regular wheels is the best thing to travel with)

Specialized Tri spoke clincher wheel (front)


ZIPP 950 Disc (rear)


Tires

Vittoria Zaffiro clincher tires

These tires rule! Now i can't decide which tires I prefer for training, the Zaffiro or the awesome tires from Serfas. Both Julia and I have been using these tires throughout the winter. I'm not sure how many miles/kilometers are on them now, but they've held up great. We just got our first flat on them a few days ago, and there was a pretty good sized splinter of glass that had skewered the tire.

Click to read a thorough Willi Product review on this product.