Fastest front wheel with a twist!

Triathlon Forum
1

The twist is that I am broke and only race one type of course, flat and windy!! I live in florida so that is all i see. I have a disc for the back already but it looks stupid matched up with a box wheel up front. The broke part means I can spend in the neighborhood of 200 for a used wheel. Amybe a little more so please dont recomend the new 80mm zipp wheels. From what i see on ebay it looks like my choices are hed h3, deep (similar to jet 90 i think), hed 60mm, specialized tri spoke, rev x, or a zipp 400. From hed’s website the 90mm and h3 are about the same with a slight drag benifit to the 90mm. They do have a .15 advantage over the 60mm at a few angles. can i assume the specialized and h3 will be the same? I know they are the same design but did hed change anything significant like bearings or such?

I have heard horror stories about the rev x’s and told never to buy one sight unseen. Also how do they compare to say the h3? The zipp 400 i have reservations along the same lines due tot the fact that it is an old wheel and it seems the deeper wheels give a better advantage.

what about the little things with these wheels? Do they have other issues that would be a negitive towards them? Remeber this is for a flat windy (ussually) course and i am a good bike handler. thanks

2

Hed has a close-out section on their site – wheels that were used for one race or something like that. Worth checking out.

3

There was a guy selling a Cane Creek Ti aero wheel in the buy and sell forum - i believe its on ebay now - basically a Zipp 404 rim with a cane creek hub laced with Ti spokes…

I believe he was asking for around 200 bucks?

4

Thanks, i know where to find wheels. Basically i am looking into which wheel is better for my situation. I know this topic has been discussed before, but it seems it was always for a all around race wheel for hills and such.

5

If you ride in windy conditions I wouldn’t recommend a Hed Dep up front. I have one on the back and it is a great wheel but I was getting blown around quite a bit with a jet 60 on the front in Kona last fall (I think Stadler was the only one that seemed to not be blown around!) so a 90 in the wind might be pretty hard to control. I would recommend a jet 60 as a great all round wheel that is not too costly and even less so when purchased used. I had a Rev-x rear wheel that I liked and had no problems with but got a good deal on the deep a few seasons ago so I sold it but would go with a jet front over the rev-x anyway. I’ve noticed a few older Hed CX wheels on EBay as well and one of those would be a good option too.

6

There are multiple versions of the Specialized Trispoke. The earliest versions were painted black and heavier. The later versions were nude carbon.

I’ve gotten a used Hed 60 for 150. YMMV.

7

Would that be the only difference between a specialized and h3, the weight? Should i be worried about getting an older trispoke, or would there be any performance difference

8

eBay a Shamal
.

9

I’m still trying to figure out why you would want to twist a front wheel. Is it something artistic?

10

As for recommendations - for a windy flat course - since you’re a “good bike handler” - I would lean towards a mid depth 50-60mm rim for the front - possibly a trispoke (but I’ve never been on one). The added aero benefit of going any deeper would be offset each time you’re in a cross wind and you fight to keep the bike from sailing out from underneath you - especially if you use a disc in the rear…

Even with my Easton Tempest IIs (which have a 30mm rim) in heavy cross winds I can feel the wind pushing on the wheel…