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- People often wonder what the difference is between
alloy wheels and carbon wheels.
But what wheely is the difference?
- What wheely is the difference?
(laughter)
- Don't ask.
- So most bikes come with alloy wheels as standard
and generally speaking only the most expensive
road bikes will come with carbon wheels.
That said, they're a very popular, sort of, upgrade
component for most people's bikes.
- Yes. And you can pick up a pair
of carbon wheels for around £500, €600
and if you're in the US, 700 bucks.
But they also range from about 1,000-2,000
euros, pounds, or dollars because of the costly
manufacturing process compared to the alloy wheels.
- In contrast to that, alloy wheels typically range
from about £100-£700 or dollars
For a good quality pair. So buying a pair
of carbon wheels could be a very considered purchase.
In this video, we're gonna tell you everything
you need to know about the differences
between the two so that you can make the best decision.
- Right should we get to it?
- Lets do it man.
- Lets do it.
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But other than price, what is the difference
I hear you ask.
And while the first one's obvious, the visuals.
Those carbon rims that Ollie's rocking,
they're absolutely phenomenal.
- They look mean don't they?
- Yeah they do
- You know I might not be the fastest rider
but, I can, I can still look fast
and that, is the most important thing.
- Ollie, looks aren't everything.
- What?
- But traditionally, alloy rims,
had an unpainted brake track, and that's because
the braking of that surface caused the paint to chip off.
So manufacturers just kept it there.
- Yeah, however this is changing and as proof of that
I've got exhibit A. On Hank's bike, there.
Disk brakes are becoming increasingly popular on
road bikes and crucially, more affordable too.
And if you have an aluminum disk brake wheel,
well, you can paint it whatever color you like
because the braking is done at the disk and therefore
it's not going to wear off the paint on the rim.
And so, that means you can have a relatively
entry level wheel such as this
Vision, TRIMAX 30, yet it can have this all black, sort of
almost carbon look to it, which is, well, really classy.
- Other than the looks carbon rims can also be made
lighter than the equivalent alloy rims.
And also more aerodynamic
because, the depth of the rim can be made much deeper.
If you had a super deep alloy rim
it would just be really heavy, and probably,
quite uncomfortable to ride.
This is where a carbon rim comes into its own.
- The next big difference is weight.
So an entry level aluminum wheel set typically
weighs around 2 kilograms for a pair, without tires.
Now if you compare that to a carbon clincher,
with a deep section rim, such as this, Vision Metron 55.
Well this weighs around 1500 grams
for a pair without tires.
So that's a savings of around, half a kilo.
But carbon wheels can be even lighter than that
so if you got som top of the range,
light weight carbon wheels, they can weigh as little
as just a kilogram per pair.
- That might not sound like a lot, but it is
actually really noticeable when out riding,
especially when accelerating, or attacking up a climb.
- The area of the wheel where weight
is most important is the rim.
And the reason for this is that the mass here
has a greater moment on the on the center axis of the wheel.
Which means, that if you're that if your going to be
doing say, a criterion where you've got to
accelerate out of lots of technical corners,
or ride up punchy climbs, then, the most advantageous
wheel is gonna be a lighter rim with lower inertia.
- Aluminum wheels can be great though.
And they can weigh as little as 1300 to 1400 grams,
which, well, it isn't a lot.
- Nice, not a lot, but, you can save a further 300 grams,
if you go for a wheel like the Vision Metron 30 Tubular.
Which we don't have here but, that's quite a big saving.
- Yeah, and that doesn't sound a lot but when you're,
stamping on the pedals, or smashing up a climb,
that is a real difference.
- Yeah, now interestingly, I'm riding carbon wheels,
and James is riding aluminum wheels,
mine are the Vision Metron 55s and
James is riding the Trimax 30s.
And they both weigh,
roughly the same ballpark, around 1500 grams.
But the crucial difference,
is that the added mass in mine, is functional.
It's aerodynamic, because they're deeper.
So, that brings us to our next difference, aerodynamics.
(upbeat music)
- The biggest advantage to carbon rims, is aerodynamics.
You can go of these deep section, aerodynamic wheels,
like Ollie's got on here.
In simple terms, you go faster, for the same effort,
and I mean, who wouldn't want that?
- Now how much faster, a deep section wheel is,
is, well either, loads, or not very much,
depending on your perspective.
So, this has been studied a lot by
many different independent sources.
And generally speaking, you can expect
to save around 30 seconds over 40 kilometers
at 40 kilometers an hour, by using a deeper
wheel, like this, over over a shallower wheel, like this.
- That sounds quite a lot.
So, if you are bothered about getting more
aerodynamic and faster, then carbon wheels
are the ones to go for.
(upbeat music)
- With regards to braking, if you're running
rim brakes, then aluminum rims are accepted as
having better braking performance than carbon rims.
And this is something that is particularly
exaggerated in the wet.
Aluminum rims also offer better heat dissipation
than a carbon rim.
And if you're a heavier rider,
or if you're dragging the brakes down a steep descent,
it is possible to delaminate a carbon rim.
- Yes, but, manufacturers have addressed this by
texturing the rim and improving the resin.
- But if you're running disc brakes then,
the material you're rim is made from doesn't matter
because all the braking is done at the disc.
And another advantage, is to do with rim wear.
So, using your rim brakes can wear your rim,
and this can be very expensive on a carbon rim
because, well it can't really be repaired.
But it's not a problem, if you're running discs.
- Sounds pretty good to me.
(upbeat music)
- Deep section wheels like this can be twitchier,
in cross winds, and this is a common
concern that people have.
Unfortunately, can't really show you today,
because, today is, the stillest day of the year.
But, I have ridden deep sections
in a wide variety of conditions.
And I can say, that it's not as bad an issue
as what lot of people think.
And it's something that has been,
greatly improved with more modern rim shapes.
- But, it can be more of an issue if you're a
smaller, lighter rider, like myself,
but, I would go for an all around wheel.
So, the 40 millimeter Vision I've got here, is perfect.
It's light, it's aerodynamic, and it just does everything.
- Yeah, and it's not going to be too
twitchy in the crosswinds.
- Which is ideal.
(upbeat music)
Right Ollie, we need to talk about stiffness.
- What?
- Of the wheels! (laughs)
- Of course, yeah.
- It's a really important attribute,
to have a stiff pair of wheels.
The last thing you want, is a flexy, inefficient,
and rather spongy feeling wheel set when
you're smashing it on the pedals.
And also, it's a lot nicer and and more confidence
boosting when having a stiff pair of wheels in the corners.
- But it's important to point out,
and it's a big but, that, you can make a really
stiff set of wheels out of aluminum or carbon.
The only difference will be that the aluminum wheels,
will probably be a little bit heavier.
- And we want to keep it light don't we?
(growls)
- So there you have it, armed with this knowledge,
hopefully now you can pick the wheel that
best suites your needs.
And if you found this useful, then please give it
thumbs up, as that will help others find it too.
- Yes and if you want to watch a video on the
difference between aluminum and carbon bikes,
then click down here.