I have a set of HED Jet Blak 9/disc that are my everyday wheels on my TT bike. I do most of my training on a trainer, so those wheels usually only see non-race outside action a few outdoor rides ahead of my races. But, I would pick those again every time, if I could only have one set.

Most of my outdoor riding is on my road bike with very regular, non-deep wheels.

What do you use on the trainer? I've been running a set of Flo 60's on my road rides and throw on an aerojacket for races. That won't be an option moving forward.

Doh, good question. I have a direct drive trainer, so it is kind of moot for me. However, my front trainer wheel is an old junk wheel that came with my TT bike. I guess if I had a wheel-on trainer, I guess I would technically have 2 sets of wheels. My original bike junk wheels for the trainer and then the race wheels.

What you suggest (deep a rear as you want plus shallower front) is probably the most versatile option. We know discs are faster and more stable but if you get caught out by a wayward race director who bans discs then it makes life more difficult.

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AeroCoach UK
http://www.aero-coach.co.uk

I've been using a set of Zipp 303's as my only set of wheels since 2013. I've got a cover for the back but haven't used it since 2015 (my last tri).

I'm with you there, and so far I've narrowed my choices down to ENVE 4.5 or Zipp 404...Or just wheels that are around 48-55mm rim depth. Now I'm just keeping an eye on so many websites that offer used bike gear, and waiting for the right price as well as the wheel condition.

If it were me, I would be looking very seriously at ENVE SES 7.8 or 5.6. The only slight drawback that I see with ENVE wheels is that they sell them in matched pairs (ie both the front and rear are 7.8). Some manufacturers allow you to mix rim depths when you buy.

Have you looked at Vision 55's? I've always thought the sweet spot for training was 45-55mm front and 55-65mm rear. Racing 55-65mm front and 80mm-full disc rear. This basically means two wheelsets. Hmm...

My everyday wheels are Jet 6s. For a rim brake bike these are great wheels. For a disc bike I would be open to a full carbon rim. I am a big HED fan, so the Vanquish would be a wheel I would look at.

There seem to be a ton of options coming out and I don't think you can go wrong. The one thing you might consider is tire choice. The tubeless standard is unsettled so not all tires work on all rims.

For his trainer use he would not even have to have a disk, as he would have no need to brake, so it would be easy to find something cheap used, even if was rim brake.

I depends...

If you’re a solid bike handler and/or weigh a bit more then I’d go deep. I use Enve 7.8 discs for training and then throw on a disc wheel cover for racing. I’m 5’8 and 150# for reference.

If you’re not the greatest at bike handling and/or lighter then go mid depth like the Enve 5.6 or mix and match the HEDs with a 60 front and 80/90 rear. I just bought some HED Vanquish 60s for a road bike build but haven’t built the bike yet.

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Brett Z

“Livin’ in a van down by the river”

I've got rim brakes and have been looking at HED Jets as well. The hidden nipples have an aero advantage over my current 50mm deep rims, but I'm also doing a lot more climbing than before so weight is now a consideration for my next set. 6/8 might work for me since I am about 175-180lbs, but I've got my eye an another set of wheels that simply look gorgeous, but finding aero data on it too compare against the HEDs, Enves and others is a PITA.

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The more people I encounter the more I love my cats.