Road Bike Online

A very light pair of wheels indeed, though feeling in side winds can be a little on the scary side, especially group riding on longer rides – if you’re on the nervous side in groups then you might be best avoiding these.

The rims can be prone to brake rub quite easily though they do hold onto speed well with a comfortable ride, apart from the side winds they are a good wheel, good braking and quality of ride.  £1700.

Ritchey Superlogic Carbon 46mm Clincher Wheelset Specification:

• Weight, 20 spoke front 614g, 24 spoke rear 801g.
• Rim depth, 46mm
• Braking surface, Carbon

These are very similar to the Shimano RS80 C50s, smooth Shimano Ultegra hubs laced with nice and tight Sapim spokes; they perform well in gusts of wind. The weight of the Pro RC50′s are noticeable on the climbs, gyroscopic affect is increased when at speed when makes the RC50 feel really quite stable on the descents.

Rather than uni-directional carbon they are made with coarse weave 12k, a very steady wheel.  RRP £899.98.

PRO RC50 Road Wheels Specification:

• Weight, 24 spoke front 915g, 24 spoke rear 1108g.
• Rim depth, 50mm.
• Braking surface, Alloy

The FFWD Fast Forward F6R Wheels are 58mm deep and seemingly similar to the likes of some Zipp and HED sections though the scale is narrower.

FFWD calls its rim shape Darc, this is the narrowness from the inner spoke section to the braking surface, and claims to reduce wind drag.  The hubs are very smooth and sealed well; they are laced with the brilliant CX-Ray spokes from Sapim, these wheels are very straight, they performed well on climbs. On even the steeper climbs they don’t actually feel as heavy as they are, dealt well with the side winds an all round good ride.  RRP £1014.99.

FFWD Fast Forward F6R Wheels Specification;

•  Weight, 20 spoke front 843g, 24 spoke rear 1010g.
• Rim depth, 58mm.
• Braking surface, Alloy

Best used with 23mm tyres these carbon clincher wheels can certainly help you improve on times, compared to light standard wheels they can feel a little sticky on the climbs but descending feels very controlled and smooth.

The overall ride is good, the 50mm deep sectioned rims performed well in gusts of wind.  Working well together Hed and Bontrager’s aim to create a decent clincher aero wheel combined with the 23mm tyre seems to have worked,  the Aeolus 5.0 is a worthy investment of £1649.98.

 BONTRAGER AEOLUS 5.0 Road Wheels Specification:

• Weight, 16 spoke front 696g, 16 spoke rear 939g.
• Rim depth, 50.5mm.
• Braking surface, Carbon.

If you have £1099.98 to spare then SRAM fail to offer anything special with these S40’s, they feel somewhat on the sluggish side, climbing and sprinting felt laboured whereas handling did not feel altogether controlled or comfortable, with rim depth at 39mm they are not the deepest or even lightest of Aero wheels, the S40’s just seem to be left wanting.  It does seem unusual for SRAM, they are not terrifically disappointing wheels but for the price you can do better.

SRAM S40 Road Wheels Specification;

• Weight, 18 spoke front 821g, 20 spoke rear 1001g.
• Rim depth, 39mm.
• Braking surface, Alloy

At 725g including the bottom bracket, Shimano’s alloy Hollowtech II can put most carbon chainsets to shame.

By using the Shimano Dura-Ace chain shifting is as smooth as it gets, and by using the hollow but very rigid outer chainring combined with cold forged hollow arms design gives a very stiff structure.  RRP £439.99

Campagnolo Neutron Ultra Wheels have asymmetrically drilled holes in the rear wheel and all the spokes enter the non-drive side, (though the drive side spokes are thicker), achieving lateral rigidity for those hugely energetic sprints and uphill accelerations.

The carbon and aluminium hub bodies are laced with straight pull spokes giving a total weight of 1529g, the fitting of tyres can be a little tricky but the end result is a very firm but full on responsive wheel.  Coming with maintenance booklet and wheelbags, at £649.99 the Neutron ultras are worth every penny.

Looking like carbon fibre, it’s only when close up you realise the Audacio 400D frame is Alloy. For quite sometime Lapierre has been a popular sight with French professional squads, this curved, smooth welded frame has neatly place internal cable routing, and is on a par with the weight of cheaper carbon frames.

The tight feel of this 7005 alloy frame is evident when giving out-of-the-saddle efforts, the power transfer from your upper body through your legs, shoes, pedals, bottom bracket through to the wheels is a joy, acceleration feels somewhat effortless, great for climbing and cornering.  For an alloy bike you can cruise in comfort, the thin seat stays, big down-tube and flatter curved top-tube do give a more comforting ride than other alloy frames.  Though a little ‘clattering’ is felt from the frame the carbon bladed fork takes a lot of the rumble out of the tarmac.

The frame has a replaceable gear hanger, gearing is Shimano Tiagra with compact 50/34 chainset, 9-speed 13-25 cassette, with a good feel of the STi shifters, brakes are Shimano Tiagra, wheels are Shimano WHR500, you might like to consider a change of brake pads as the feel of the all rubber pads against the rims lacked some braking power, invest in metal backed rubber pads.  Finishing kit is Ritchey.  Weighing in at a very respectable 8.95kg (19.69Ibs) the Audacio looks great and is a very pleasant and smooth ride.  RRP £999.99.

LAPIERRE Audacio 400 DB Specification:

•  Frame, 7005 alloy.
• Fork, Carbon/alloy.
• Gears, Shimano Tiagra.
• Brakes, Shimano Tiagra.
• Wheels, Shimano WHR500
• Pedals, Look.
• Finishing, Ritchey logic bars, stem, and seatpost.

If you have problems with your knees and have struggled to find suitable pedals then the I-Clic Carbon Titanium could just be for you, these have a great amount of adjustment offering a float of +/- 5 degrees, not only that but they also offer 2.5mm of offset adjustment.

An oversized platform is Time’s decision on the I-Clic, 52mm is the narrower width but the cleat bed is 75mm long, this can cause a slight problem when the cleats have worn in, they are subject to a little rocking, with the three cleat extensions – on the front and either side – the engagement points avoid damage when walking, you are able to walk without covers, the cleats can wear pretty quickly but the system is very easy to use.

Something else that is knee friendly, you don’t need to push on the pedal to clamp in, simply place your foot on the pedal, it opens and then clamps you in, no jolting involved, first of its kind – an amazing system.  The axle is titanium and together the pair weighs 182g and cost £274.99

Some of the lightest shoes on the market the S-Works weigh in at about 300g, the Body Geometry shoe has dial closures in the form of BOA with fantastic tuneable fit and comfort, sole is lightweight carbon.

A superb shoe.  £199.99 availabe from Evans Cycles