- Right, there was a lot of demand for this one,
and I promised I would do it.
It is time to test the homemade disc wheel cover.
(tranquil synthesizer music)
Yeah, this disc wheel here is, in fact,
a homemade creation by myself.
And I've put it onto a set of ENVE 5.6 wheels,
which, I know, are a fairly plush set of wheels.
But I guess this is the kind of scenario
that a lot of people find themselves in.
They invest a lot of money
into a good set of versatile wheels
that work well for a number of races,
but the thought of investing a lot of money
into an additional wheel, a disc wheel,
for that occasional race is just that step too far.
I mean, disc wheels are not cheap things.
So, there are a number of companies out there
that make these disc wheel covers
that come in at a fraction of the cost,
somewhere within 50 to 100 pounds
rather than the hundreds or thousands of pounds
that you might spend on a disc wheel.
But, I thought, why buy one when you can make one?
Or at least, that's what I thought anyway.
So, I had a lot of fun making this,
and I have, actually, done
a step-by-step guide on how to make your own,
and you can watch that by the link on the screen, right now.
But do make sure you come back to watch this test
because, today, I'm going to be doing a number of tests
to find out whether this does really work.
So, the first and most obvious is a TT.
I'm going to do two different TTs, actually, a flat TT,
and because I'm so impressed with how light this thing is,
I'm going to do a hilly TT as well.
And then I guess we should do some quality control testing,
so I'm going to put it through its paces
over some rough terrain,
and maybe throw some water in the mix, too.
But in case it does all fall apart,
let's start with the TTs.
(tranquil synthesizer music)
OK, so I've got a nice flat 5K stretch here ahead of me.
I'm going to start off non-disc
to set the time for both the runs.
All right, let's do this.
Let's go.
(tranquil synthesizer and percussion music)
Whew, that was fun.
It was painful.
But now, time to get that disc wheel on.
(tranquil synthesizer music)
OK, now that's both tests done on the flat TT.
I've had a chance to check over the times.
So, for the non-disc,
I went five minutes and 22 seconds.
With the disc, I went five minutes and 15 seconds,
so seven seconds quicker over a flat five kilometer course.
So, actually, quite a big portion of time
for such a short time trail.
Now, if I actually project that over 180K distance
for an Ironman, for instance,
that would be four minutes and 12 seconds,
which is pretty huge.
But you've got to take into account the fact
that this was a perfectly flat TT,
so that could differentiate, ever so slightly,
if you throw some hills in there,
which we're going to go and check out in a minute.
(tranquil synthesizer music)
OK, it's the next one.
It's a bit of a silly one, really,
but disc wheels do get a fair amount of stick
for being a bit heavier
and, therefore, not so good over hilly courses.
But this homemade disc wheel,
it's literally made out of one-millimeter ABS plastic,
so it's really not all that heavy.
In fact, without a disc, it weighs 1.39 kilograms
and, with the disc, just 2.1 kilograms,
so just 71 grams more.
Yeah, it really is a fair amount lighter
than most disc wheels.
So how does it fare over a hilly course?
Well, right now, I'm heading on over
to a pretty cheeky hill that I know of around here,
just a couple of kilometers down the road
from that flat TT.
It's only 0.7 kilometers long or 0.8 kilometers long, sorry,
and it's got an average grade of 7.7%,
but it does kick up to a staggering 30% towards the end.
Yeah, welcome to Bath.
Now, I'm going to be starting off non-disc wheel.
I'm going to try and hold 250 watts up the climb.
I might have to push on a little bit,
as it kicks up towards the end.
Then I'm going to replicate
exactly the same effort on the disc wheel.
(tranquil synthesizer music)
Oh, yeah, that was tough.
Now, I'll have time to put the disc wheel on.
Same again.
(tranquil synthesizer music)
OK, so that is both hilly TTs done,
and I've got the times.
Without the disc, it was a time
of two minutes and 31 seconds.
And then with the disc, two minutes and 32 seconds,
so literally one second in it,
which I'm not all that surprised about, really,
because the disc is adding such little weight to the wheel.
But if you are a bit of of a weight-weenie,
maybe you've got a super-hilly course coming up
or some extended long climbs,
a lot longer than mine, not 0.8 kilometer climb there,
then it may be something you might want to consider.
But I'd say, personally, the amount that you're gaining
on the flat, which we proved in the previous TT,
versus how much you're losing on the hill,
it's a no-brainer, really.
But that was really interesting, anyway.
But, now, we need to check the build quality of the wheel
because I know a few of you are a little bit skeptical
as to how well it's made and how well it will last,
so time for some quality control testing.
(tranquil synthesizer music)
(motor rumbling)
OK, now, for some quality control,
I am going to send this bike and the disc wheel
through some potholes, which pains me saying that,
but I guess these things happen.
You can't always avoid them.
So whilst I'm not looking forward to this, here we go.
(upbeat guitar music)
Oh!
This is so unnatural,
actually pointing it toward the potholes.
One more big one.
Let's have a little look at him.
Pretty solid.
No tape coming off.
Still nice and firm.
(knocking echoing)
Quality control done.
Now, to get it wet, I guess.
That's the next test.
Conveniently, I do have a nice jug of water, here.
So it's very dry here today,
but I'm going to chuck all this over here.
Get it on both sides, just to make sure.
Right, best give this a little ride
and see how it holds out.
See you in a while.
(pedals clicking)
(gears ticking)
(metal screeching)
Well, it has survived to tell the tale.
All the tape, here, is still intact.
I've got to say, I'm pretty happy
with my little homemade creation here.
Obviously, it's not going to rival
a full disc wheel production model,
but it's not bad, really, for under 30 pounds.
If you would like to make your own,
don't forget, you can watch the video for that,
a little step-by-step guide, by clicking just down here.
And if you did like today's video,
please do hit that Thumb's Up button.
And don't forget, you can watch
all our other videos at GTN by just clicking on the globe
and subscribing to the channel.