De Rosa Team Track

@rodolfo i got confused as to who was replying! tracked back now!

@thrust sweet, speak later :)

a23's are crap. Don't bother with them.

I don't understand the A23 crapness chat that people have embarked upon recently. I've had a pair for ~2 years and they've been solid as a rock, and very comfortable.

How much do you weigh?

They are the softest rim I have ever used (comfortable as a result, but sooo bendy), with crappy tiny braking surfaces. They're also pretty poorly made.

Really? I'm about 78kg and dropped tons of curbs when I had mine, rode them on the Brooklyn daily for a while and only managed to get the front out of true when I hit a wooden stump in Richmond park.

Them on chub hubs with CX rays was as strong as any wheelset I've ridden.

From what I've heard, they're not the stiffest out there but that can attributed to their profile and weight, qc and brake track issues seemed to be only on the earlier ones.

Heh, I'm 103 kg. Might be an issue then?

Was going to put this together today but ended up with two mangled lockring splines on the left cup, as it was tighter than a nuns twat to fit.

Will go down to the local co-op to see if they got the Shimano TL-FC31 tool that is needed to engage more of the splines or just bite the bullet and buy the tool.

Also, a bearing was missing on the campa hiddenset so I have to buy a bearing for it to fit it proper. I did however cut the steerer and fitted the stem. 1 out of 3 is tosh though and gutted I couldn't get it together :(

Yeah, no offense but strong and stiff are not the same thing - you can build a soft rim up strongly, given the right spoke count and tension. Doing sprint efforts on them is something else - rub rub rub rub. Definitely not a rim I would ever consider for a track bike.
Also 78kg is not that heavy - if Thrust is 103kg he will definitely make them move. A worse rim than an Open Sport IMO.

Is this bike for the track, or tarck? If track - don't bother with wide rims (unless you can afford 404's), you're not going to be dropping the pressure for comfort anyway. You just want them to be a stiff as possible.

brake tracks are still crap and small. They are also less widely available than an archetype - which are stiffer. I see no reason at all to opt for them over the H plus rim.

Speaking or archetypes. I'm going to be selling mine soon. Built on to system ex track hubs with CX Ray spokes, both 32 hole 3 cross. All black.

Ahh sorry I guess I really didn't get what you meant by soft.

Good input Dan.

This will run both track and tarck with the same wheels so the A23s are kinda out. Would the TB14 be good enough then or should I go with carbon or arches?

Deeper rims are generally stiffer but I guess TB14s will be fine. Make sure you get decent spoke count.

My go-to track wheels are DA hubs on Mavic reflex rims (tb14's have a similar profile) - 36h and as stiff as anything I've ridden.

On the advice of one of London's best wheel-builders (Not me)... Archetypes would be the best choice.

Aesthetically... I'm not the biggest fan of the decals however.

TB14's are heavy.

Here's an interesting read on wheel stiffness http://www.slowtwitch.com/Tech/Debunking_Wheel_Stiffness_3449.html

My go-to track wheels are DA hubs on Mavic reflex rims (tb14's have a similar profile) - 36h and as stiff as anything I've ridden.

I'm in the 32h camp after owning a couple of sets of 36h and I must admit, there's too many spokes on them damned things. 32h looks far better aesthetically. I do however share your point regarding DA. Best track hubs imo.

Aesthetically... I'm not the biggest fan of the decals however.

Yeah, not a fan either.

^^yeah archetypes would be a nice choice too. are the decals not peelable? otherwise, getting a bit fatter lettering vinyled in black would make nice understated branding. would need to get the font right

Some are easily peeled off, mine aren't.

Loads of work for something that can be sorted with a Uni Posca ;)

This is what DCR Wheels told me on TB14 vs Archetype: "The TB14 is a more classic looking rim than the Archetype, with a thicker sidewall. However, it also doesn't have the same stiffness and isn't as tolerate of spoke tension. It is also slightly heavier."

A23s seem to polarise opinion - either awesome or complete shite.*

• as you've discovered with the continuation of the thread that microcosm seems to have hidden from me.
  

Hiddenset bearing ordered.

Gutted to pay 30 squids for it though as it was complete when sent according to J.

Just waiting for that to complete this.