I am looking at getting a front wheel for my new TT frame (the Louis Garneau TT frame is supposed to arrive in June). I will be using my existing components including HED rear disc.
I am 5’6" and about 140lb, average about 26-27mph when I do mainly shorter time trials as a part of stage races (12 miles or less) and the odd sprint triathlon.
I am considering getting the HED 3, but the Stinger 90 looks pretty good, I am not sure when or if they are planning on releasing the wheel.
search back, we had a thread on this a month or two ago, with some good info posted
dont get the 90 as a front wheel, that is HED’s suggestion
go with a shallower HED, or a 808
I went with 999’s
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Thanks Gary. I will do a search back. Sounds like the HED 3 is the deal. I can get a good deal on the HED 3 (Zipp is out of my pricerange).
dont get the 90 as a front wheel, that is HED’s suggestion
GASP!! I have a 90mm front! I am 5’6" 137 lbs. it’s a fun wheel… it pushes in the wind as much as a regular wheel does, at least in my experience. I think it was Andy from HED who told me, “unless you’re going through a mountain pass, the wheel is going to be fine.”
Hi Gary,
On another thread - I asked one of the guys at Hed about the 90 and he said it handles differently but no worse in the the wind than the H3 - It doesn’t try to steer in the wind but more like a gentle tipping over. He said he adjusted to it and had not had any probelms. I think one of the guys at the Tour of Georgia road one (unlabled) which it what the thread was about. I guess the 90 may be the perfect rear rim for Powertap users (other than perhaps disk covers). I guess though the proof of the pudding though will be in the eating 
If I recall correctly from studying the Hed website the drag numbers (if you buy into such things) are slightly lower on the Stinger 90 than the Hed 3. I’d rather have the stinger 90.
I do buy inot the “deep deep” philosophy and am racing on Zipp 999’s this year.
Would I be right in assuming the 999 is a disc with a 909 front?
Can I catch you for a quick pm response, Tom?
I don’t know you, but if you are racing USCF races as well as tris, I would go with the 404, Corima,or Alp type wheel as they are all lighter than the H3. Then you could use it in the uphill TTs as well as road racing. Thus said, I have a H3 and love it, but will probably get one of those other wheels for just that purpose. G
G, I guess your response would be for the flying wombat (Whom I guess is in Oz and not under USCF rules), however for the record I use Alps for my hillclimb TTs or a Nimble/Renn combo for those that do not go straight up. I chose the Crosswind over the HED 3 as (at 150lbs) I have trouble holding the front wheel with such a deep rim in crosswinds. I hope to be supplementing the Alps will a pair of American Classic 350s soon.
Actually I am transplanted to the US and race USCF. I already have road race wheels, I want a front specifically for time trials which are usually flat or with slight climbs. I dont do a lot of TT’s, but when I do they count a lot for GC. I am currently running a set of Spinergy Tiliums for flat courses (Spinergy is a team sponsor) and a set of delabeled Rolf Elan’s for the really steep stuff.
I usually run the Tilium on the front for TT’s but want a specific front wheel for those few precious extra seconds.
Ah, in that case I apologise for my assumption. Good luck in your hunt.
Here is Jaylew’s input: “I talked to the people at HED about this wheel months ago and they told me that the HED 3 is much less affected by crosswinds than the V 90. Strangely, the person at HED I spoke to did NOT recommend the V90 for front wheel use.”
I really like the old Deep 90 as a rear so expect the new 90 to be even better. The specs on the Hed site show the aeroness of the trispoke and 90 to be fairly close. I’ve always thought the 90 looks way cooler, but that’s obviously up for debate.
I couldn’t imagine using the 90 on the front though. Even my 60 Jet or Cx could feel the effects on a really windy day. It probably makes more sense to opt for the trispoke as a front because it’ll be more stable in the wind.
Would I be right in assuming the 999 is a disc with a 909 front?
999 is an 808 front and disc rear
I’d vote for the Stinger 90 over the H3…just according to the numbers on Hed’s website, and guessing about real world wind vectors…at your speeds, I believe the numbers say the Stinger 90 would be faster than the H3.
“I do buy inot the “deep deep” philosophy and am racing on Zipp 999’s this year.”
That doesn’t make sense. The 808/999 front wheel is the second deepest commercially available wheel and is only 1 cm shallower than a Hed 90.
What I’ve read is that the Hed 90 handles better than the Tri Spoke as the percentage of wheel surface area in front of and behind the fork is constant, unlike a Hed3.
Thanks, GM for clarifying that for me.
Thats interesting I asked Andy is impressions of the V90 on the ‘Levi’s wheel’ thread and this was his response -
"It rides pretty well, similar to an H3. I’ve been commuting on it for about 6 weeks. I got an odd sensation the first couple of days on it - when a crosswind hits it it does not try to steer the bike off course, instead, it is like someone is gently trying to tip you over. I got used to it in two days and it has been great ever since. I’ve ridden in 20mph wind with gusts to 35 and have not tipped over. Judging from how it is as a front wheel, it will make a great back wheel for sure, but right now there is only one. I can’t give any feedback on exackly how it is as a back wheel.
I have not ridden a Deep front and then turned around and gone right back out on an H3, so I can’t tell you any minute differences in handling between the two. My impression is that they handle about the same. If anything, I get the sensation of the wind trying a little more to steer an H3, and wind trying to tip me over with the deep front. I don’t think either is bad (on my traditional angled road bike).
I wonder which Lance will use too. Its not like he has a contract to use our wheels, and when he finds something he likes he tends to stick with it. "
Andy (at Hed)
Either way it one hell of acummuting wheel
It will be intresting to see what wheels the pro’s who currently ride the H3 will go for (and those who ride what they think is the fastest regardless of brand).
when a crosswind hits it it does not try to steer the bike off course, instead, it is like someone is gently trying to tip you over.
That observation matches my obeservation with using a hed deep 90 front wheel over the past month and a half. I think that I get shoved around more when I use my training wheels.