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19 Dec

Cycling Weekly Editors Choice 2020

Posted by Bold Apps

The BORG31 made it. £380 without tyres and £490 with. Rim brakes are not dead yet. What makes these wheels special is the details.

Alloy nipples save a bit of weight but ha e a bad reputation. Yet alloy nipples failures are practically unheard of for me. I use Sapim HM washers so the nipple is easier to turn, Sapim nipple freeze stops galavanic corrosion or slows it to a crawl and thirdly my spokes are the correct length. Do all three and alloy nipes last. 

Another detail is the spokes

 Sapim CX-rays are used on the front wheel (nothing u usual there) but Sapim CX Force are used on the rear. This is a triple utted aero spoke. It not listed on the Sapim website as it's an OEM spoke. Its 2.18mm at the elbow and 2.2mmx1.3mm for the aero mid section. 

Next are the hubs. Flange to flange distance is an overlooked miche hubs have 55mm flange to flange distance for the rear hubs. DT swiss have 50mm for comparison. That 5mm makes a big difference. 

To improve tension balance a rim with a 3mm offset is used. Tension balance is therefore 53% which is not bad for an 11 speed hub. This mean even with tubeless tyres which cause a big tension drop (250N on the drive side) spokes will never go slack. Using A DT Swiss hub would result in  high tension balance but a wheel that is less stiff laterally. So not only will the wheel feel less responsive but it wont be any more relaible because more spoke tension does not improve reliability. Spokes tension/lenght changes are the cause of fatigue when a wheel experiences load. A wheel that is less stiff experiences larger changes in spoke tension/length when the wheel is loaded. So just because DT Swiss or other hubs with a strong brand name does not mean it better. 

Miche hubs also use big 6001C3 bearings with 2RS seals. They well sealed from the elements.

This makes for a very stiff wheelset with  small aero advantage

 They handle well and are comfortable. They also offer proper tubeless compatibility. By this I mean, tubeless tyres inflate easily and seat but they stay seated without air which is a critical feature. This makes selant top up easy and fix flats easier with a plug. 

I try and think all this through so you dont ha e to and can enjoy the ride. 


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