Zipp has written a lot about their hubs, but let's face it--there hasn't really been much besides 'saves up to one watt' in terms of a quantifiable benefit. I'm really curious about the testing protocol which determined this, so if you have a link, I'd love to see it--seriously.
That said, while I don't doubt that a brand new Zipp hub may save 'up to one watt'(OK, I do doubt it actually) over competing hubs, I'm pretty curious about how a 3 month old Zipp hub ridden in varying conditions would compare? I know that the bearings feel pretty crunchy after that, and there's so much play in my hubs that the rim is actually rubbing the brake pads during hard accelerations--on the FRONT wheel (as well as the back), and there's no provision to adjust out the play (besides replacing the bearings). There goes my one watt savings... (I'll save you the keystrokes-I know they've addressed these issues for '09).
I agree with you that their engineering costs and manufacturing costs are higher than HED, and this drives up their prices. I never got the 'marketing thing', as it appears to me that as a % of sales, it appears at least that HED spends at least as much as Zipp.
I have no pig in this luau, I have wheels from both companies and I like them both--but claming that the hubs are 'faster' seems a little specious. Personally, I think the Dura Ace hubs put them both to shame.
That said, while I don't doubt that a brand new Zipp hub may save 'up to one watt'(OK, I do doubt it actually) over competing hubs, I'm pretty curious about how a 3 month old Zipp hub ridden in varying conditions would compare? I know that the bearings feel pretty crunchy after that, and there's so much play in my hubs that the rim is actually rubbing the brake pads during hard accelerations--on the FRONT wheel (as well as the back), and there's no provision to adjust out the play (besides replacing the bearings). There goes my one watt savings... (I'll save you the keystrokes-I know they've addressed these issues for '09).
I agree with you that their engineering costs and manufacturing costs are higher than HED, and this drives up their prices. I never got the 'marketing thing', as it appears to me that as a % of sales, it appears at least that HED spends at least as much as Zipp.
I have no pig in this luau, I have wheels from both companies and I like them both--but claming that the hubs are 'faster' seems a little specious. Personally, I think the Dura Ace hubs put them both to shame.