Monday, August 16, 2010

Madfiber Wheels - 1st in Canada?

Fellow Roadies,

Picked up an early set of Madfiber wheels while I was in Oregon this weekend.
Serial number 000149 - fresh off the press!!

I've taken a very quick spin on an unglued front wheel, and I can say they seem very stiff and pretty smooth.
Considering they weigh less, and are more aero than a set of Mavic CCU's, these could be the real deal!

Details to follow, but here is the visual evidence:

Still unglued - 1 Vittoria, and 1 Challenge Seta...now which one to choose?
Very clean surface, with cutting-edge spoke to rim bonding technique.
Finish quality of the rims seems right up there with Mavic and Lightweight...
Front wheel hub/spoke interface looks like something from the future.
Spokes have a bit of flex to them when given the hand-clamp test.





































Rear wheel is a bit rougher in terms of finish.
Madfiber Prez Rik Hjertberg claims things will be cleaned up as production moves along:





































Stickers are simple, and easily removeable.
Downside is they seem prone to peeling:
Awesome new wheels on a pile of FMB tubulars...am I in heaven?

Update - 08/17/10: MORE PICS ADDED BELOW

Just a quick pic to show how they look on a bike.
With my Ridley Damocles Pi Pozzato edition...

I've had many questions about the rim design, so here is a pic and some thoughts.
The shape is a pretty sharp "V" with a slight bulge raising from just above the bottom edge.
Can't really say if they've gone the extra wide route, like Zipp and Hed, but the rim/tire interface seems pretty smooth.
I do know they have done a fair amount of aerodynamic testing.
Brake track has a slightly raised profile, in the same matte finish as the rest of the rim, only with a UD finish...

Ok, now the important stuff...weight!
Front: 440 grams
Rear: 640 grams
Total: 1080 grams
This comes in slightly above Madfiber claims, and a bit higher than other reported weights.
Perhaps it is the Campy configuration that adds a few grams.

Wheelset weighs 1160 grams WITH SKEWERS.

As far as other impressions...
Threw some FMB's on them last night and went for a quick spin.

So far I am very impressed by their stiffness, solidity and wind-up.
These feel a lot like my old Mavic CCUs, only a bit lighter, and a bit more aero.
Much more substantial feeling that the light weight would suggest.
Perhaps a minimal step down in stiffness compared to LW Gen III's, but I can't say for sure just yet.

Braking seems very solid, yet silent, a slight improvement over the Edge 1.68s I was riding previously.
No brake judder, as has been reported with LW's...very impressive.
If you go up the mountain, you need to come back down, and these seem to be up to the job!

Thursday night should allow time for a longer ride, so check back on Friday for more details!!

Also, to make room for these babies, I'm selling some other wheelsets.
See the link below for a list of available wheels:

Feel free to inquire at mikesbikeparts@gmail.com

UPDATE 8/18/10 - WITH RIDE REPORT

I threw on some sexy FMB 22's last night (which went on very easily, btw).
Went for a night-time spin through the empty streets of Toronto.
Here are my initial impressions:
- Even though these were slightly above claimed weight, the wind-up is non-existent...extremely light wheels tend to have this effect.
- Stiffness is pretty awesome. I was cranking the watts to my max, and felt no flex whatsoever...on par with Lightweights, and perhaps even a step above my old Mavic CCUs. At my height and weight (6'2" / 175 lbs) I can usually detect even minimal flex.
- Ride quality is actually pretty good...I'd say slightly smoother than most deep aero wheelsets, though the FMB's may account for some of that. In any event, these are not what I would characterize as super-harsh...they seem capable of deflecting a bit of vibration without losing stiffness.
- A major compliment to the White Industries rear hub as well...very smooth and TOTALLY SILENT. No freewheeling noise whatsoever, which is just damn cool.
- Braking was very solid, and pretty silent.  I'd say about an 8/10 on both fronts.  Impressive.


- At this point, I have only two small complaints:
1. Front hub does not seem to spin all that smoothly. I've had other wheelsets that lose friction as they break in, so I'm hoping the same happens in this case, though any tips are appreciated.
2. The stickers are of somewhat dubious quality - already a bit of peeling going on, though I will almost certainly remove them anyways, so maybe this point should in fact be a positive!

Here are some crappy pics...I'll get some better photos up eventually...

Passoni Ray Carb with Madfiber wheels...coming off was a set of Edge 1.68s, so no slouch, but these felt stiffer and lighter.

FMB tires seem very supple to the touch...ride quality was superb, and they surely helped on that front.

Sticker quality leaves a lot to be desired...they'll probably be removed soon.

Thanks for checking in, and look for more details, pictures and a further ride report soon.

Best,
Mike

8 comments:

  1. Very nice, now go ride them!!!!!!

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  2. Will do!!!
    Busy week, but I should have a follow-up report in a few days.

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  3. One thing that strikes me about the latests Heds and Zipps is how wide the rim is, so that thee's a smooth interface to a 23 mm tire, rather than having the tire bulge out beyond the edge of the rim and compromise aerodynamics. These look similar from your second photo. Is this true?

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  4. Nice! Looking forward to the report.

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  5. those look nice... but not as polished as i would like... PLEASE post ride impressions ASAP!

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  6. Super nice Mike.. I am actually waiting for delivery of mine for my Cento Uno this Wednesday.. I am the same size as you, so if you are interested I'd like to compare impressions and wheel finish/quality.. Enjoy the ride!!

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  7. Sounds good!
    Feel free to email me at mikesbikeparts@gmail.com

    Best,
    Mike

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  8. I'll bet they are in the garbage now.

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