Saturday, August 3, 2013

Wide carbon clincher rims

Captain Ahab: Moby Dick
Me: wide carbon rims

The sin of omission is commonly practiced by purveyors of carbon bicycle goods. It manifests when describing carbon rims and wheels. Taller was the old trend; wider is the new trend. WIDE CARBON CLINCHER RIMS! They'll tell you 23 mm wide. The problem is that is the measurement at the brake track. The measurement that counts is the internal bead-to-bead dimension. That is the dimension that will change your tire's profile from a lightbulb to a rounder and wider profile. Once you get over 17 mm for the internal dimension, you can legitimately claim wide rim status.

I recently received a 25 mm wide U shaped carbon rim from a new supplier in China. I put the calipers on it and--holy shit--truth in advertising. Outer: 25 mm; inner: 18 mm. It is 38 mm in depth with a 12k cosmetic weave. The set is, of course, 20/24 hole. It even has a u-shaped profile, which should add some stability in cross winds.

This will be a Powertap G3 wheelset for my road bike.
Scheduled build: in two weeks.