Summer/Winter Wheels

I know traditionally people have winter wheels and summer wheels.
With the winters being clinchers and the summers these days being deep carbon tubs that double up as a race set...

I'm in the market for some nice summer/race wheels, but am thinking:
now carbon clinchers are readily available could a 32-38mm depth act as an all year round solution?

Being a general skinflint has provoked this idea, but there must be a reason why people don't do this...
Maybe the braking in the wet? Or 30something mm isn't enough aero for a competitive advantage?

Any thoughts?

Show me a reliable, full carbon clincher for anywhere near the price of PX tubs and I'll agree with you.

IMO summer/winter is all about the bike not the wheels :)

If you're rolling fast enough for aero to make difference the gap between tubs and clinchers is shrinking rapidly as rim technology begins to make more of a difference than the tyres/tubes.

Next gen of Shimano wheels will be interesting if there are clincher versions of the fat tubular prototype rims being ridden at the moment. Proper affordable aero biznizz.

You could swap your Competitions to Sprinter Gatorskins for winter, however the grinding paste that winter throws at your bike would be quite rude to the braking surface I think.

What happens if you ride your winter wheels in the summer? Does your head explode?

You make it rain

Oh right, it's all *my *fault, is it?

You did ask

Next gen of Shimano wheels will be interesting if there are clincher versions of the fat tubular prototype rims being ridden at the moment. Proper affordable aero biznizz.

As long as they don't fuck them up with straight pull spokes / proprietary hub or flange design / deeper rim sections / stupidly low spoke counts / hidden nipples / incongruous flashes of red.

What happens if you ride your summer wheels in the winter? Does your head implode?

What are people using as their autumn rim depth and material these days?

Do spring rims have a springier ride quality than the other seasonal variants?

Is 40mm the new 30mm?

Scherrit shamed me into promising to start racing next year, so I changed course with my "spare" carbon rims, instead of building them onto my spare road hubs I've decided to build them onto track hubs.

This will end up with the Langer* having aero bars, and 60mm front and 88mm rear wheels in an attempt to capture some of these aero's that people talk of.

For maximum comedy, this bike will also be commuted on, and used through the winter, albeit with drop bars on.

*Fixed TT'ing

Show me a reliable, full carbon clincher for anywhere near the price of PX tubs and I'll agree with you.

Albeit they're 2nd hand and a lot of people don't consider them reliable: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/221004544085?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2648#ht_500wt_1287

IMO summer/winter is all about the bike not the wheels :)

That's not good news for a skinflint.

You could swap your Competitions to Sprinter Gatorskins for winter, however the grinding paste that winter throws at your bike would be quite rude to the braking surface I think.

I fear you speak sense, I imagine it's not a such a big deal if you've got carbon wheels and know what they're be like in the wet.
Just the price makes you think twice.

For something around the 30mm depth I'd not bother with carbon, I'd go for something like CXP30's.

I don't know how my carbon rims would behave in the wet as I don't take that bike out in the rain- I use the cross bike, and that has disc brakes. Anecdotally carbon in the wet will kill you with fire, but I don't have personal experience of that.

I'd come down on the side of 50mm summer wheels for looks aero, and something like A23's for winter use, if using the same bike for both.

I'd come down on the side of 50mm summer wheels for looks aero, and something like A23's for winter use, if using the same bike for both.

I had been thinking of summer/winter wheels and that's exactly what I settled on (somehow ended up with another bike instead of new wheels tho).

For something around the 30mm depth I'd not bother with carbon, I'd go for something like CXP30's

When you said that before I wasn't quite sure, but if the other option is dying in the rain all for less benefit then I tend to agree with you now.

Why would you necessarily pick wheels with completely different riding characteristics based on the season in which they'll predominantly be used? I can understand the desire to avoid fragility in the winter, so no ultra-thin braking surfaces, but beyond that, this all sounds like fashion talk.

this all sounds like fashion talk.

That was the primary basis for my decision.

As long as I look fast.

EDIT it tends to be gustier, with higher winds in winter.

At least it was in my experience, I remember one ride in the pissing rain when the wind seemed to always be coming at me sideways, when I was particularly happy that I didn't have my 50mm tubs on.

This was riding parallel to the coast from Eastbourne to Brighton, that said.

This is quite funny. Back in 2007 this thread would be battle of the DeepVs. And which colour was best.

Jambon use the wheels you have until they die, then get some good reliable, mendable all-round wheels.

If you get into racing you might want a posh wheelset but you certainly don't need it.

^Lies, damnable lies

All wrong:

All right:

I know traditionally people have winter wheels and summer wheels.
With the winters being clinchers and the summers these days being deep carbon tubs that double up as a race set...

I'm in the market for some nice summer/race wheels, but am thinking:
now carbon clinchers are readily available could a 32-38mm depth act as an all year round solution?

Being a general skinflint has provoked this idea, but there must be a reason why people don't do this...
Maybe the braking in the wet? Or 30something mm isn't enough aero for a competitive advantage?

Any thoughts?

You'd want alu braking surfaces for winter. This adds weight so is a compromise for summer wheels. You may also not want to be riding deep section wheels in bad weather. But thats dependant on climate. The worst of the wind comes autumm and spring here. I still ride my 48mm wheels. Just sometimes sideways.

I'd look at something the PX carbon clinchers with alu braking surface (sold out?), if you want 50mm depth on a budget.

For something around the 30mm depth I'd not bother with carbon, I'd go for something like CXP30's.
.

+1
You'd want the braking surface to be alu anyway. a carbon fairing is just going to weigh more than a deep section alu extrusion. If you dont want the depth for stiffness, and spoke count (ie. youre not that heavy). A medium depth alu rim is probably your fastest option anyway.

These....

http://www.zipp.com/wheels/101-clincher/#

I wager those Zipps would out perform a budget 50mm in all conditions.