h2. Topolino Wheelset
Topolino Tech. I’m a crazy dope with too much craziness for lightness. In any case, I just got these wheels. A great deal from “Bethel Cycles”:http://bethelcycles.com that includes tires, rim strip and tubes. I finally got these and mounted them with a set of Veloflex Pave 700×22 tires. Here’s a review of them after about a month:
* My buddy has a pair of Campagnolo Nucleons. Now, those look like delicate wheels. The spokes must be 14 gauge at most. These are much thicker and there are 36 spokes. The idea is that if the spokes are light why not put more on. They are about as stiff as my Mavic Ksyriums. This surprised me. Such a light wheelset (1400 grams about, but this doesn’t include rim tape or skewers) is amazingly light. They haven’t gone out of true yet. Something else that I had expected for such a light set. Only about 300 miles on them so far, but have hit things unexpectedly.
* I used nylon rim tape that Bethel sent me. Very light, but switched to Velox in the front. Got lots of flats. In fact, my super light 50 gram Performance ultralight tubes ended up with 6 flats on the inside because of spoke intrusion I think. Made a 20 mile ride awful long. I’m used to Mavic Ksyriums which don’t need rim tape. Switching to Velox (what Topolino recommends) and also going to the Michelin A1 tubes at 70 grams seems to have helped. Haven’t flatted yet.
* Of course, these aren’t the sensible wheels that will last a lifetime. I’m 165 pounds, so not super light. I’ve had good success with Mavic Ksyriums. Riding them for 2 years now and haven’t wrecked them. I did have to true them slightly at 2,000 miles, but given the potholes I’ve hit in the winter, this is pretty amazing.
* They certainly aren’t as stiff as my long ride wheelset. These are Mavic CXP-33 semi-aero rims with 14/15 gauge butted spokes on Campagnolo Record hubs. The spokes are put in 2-cross.Now that’s a durable rim set.
h2. Veloflex Pave Reviews
I’ve been using the Veloflex Pave’s now for a little bit. They are 700x22c and I’m at 110psi (so breaking all the rules below). Nice tires. Theoretical an ounce light (180g) than the Michelins. Main difference is they are very squirrelly at high speed (above 35 mph) and also in the rain. So they are fast fair weather tires. Probably not a good choice for all weather use, but terrific for the summer.
Also, they don’t take kindly to glass, my first set of Pave’s ended up getting a casing tear after 200 miles because of glass and junk on the road.
I’ve use the 700x23C Continental 3000GP. Got a true 1,500 miles out of the rear tire and still going on the front. The idea is to do a rotation because the fronts don’t really wear out. Decent rain performance.
Tried also the Michelin Axial Pros. Had the same problem with a tear in the casing due to road debris. Probably a fluke. Thought they were very nice. Similar to the Continentals.
h2. Sane Tire Recommendations
“Road Bike Rider”:http://roadbikerider.com. Here is the conservative recommentation from folks who are riding 15,000 miles per year. I’m not kidding and what to recommend to ordinary, non crazy folks.
* For tires, use either Michelin Pro Race or Axial Carbon 700x25C tires, or Continental Ultra GatorSkin 700x25C or 28C. An added bonus is that all of these have puncture protection built in. I know there are other good brands of tires, but the Michelins and Conti’s are my all-time favorites.
* For tubes, I recommend latex, which is more resistant than butyl to punctures and pinch flats.
* For inflation, run no more than 100 psi. I weigh 210, ride on crappy, potholed roads and run 87-90 psi front, 95-98 psi rear. I never pinch flat, not even with butyl tubes.

I’m Rich & Co.

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