Road Bike Wheels

If you live in a region with less hills and like to ride fast, choose aero over light weight. For many riders a mix aero and light weight is ideal.

Keep the rim braking surface clean, remove flint / grit from brake blocks, particularly after wet rides.

No. Road bike wheels for disc brake road bikes are not compatible with rim brake bikes. Also, some disc road bikes which came out before through axles became standard used quick release hubs. Some modern wide rim wheels might not fit on older bikes with less clearance.

Keeping wheels clean and running true will help them perform to their best. Make sure tyre pressures are kept at manufacturer recommended levels. Fitting lighter tyres and inner tubes can be a budget way to increase performance from a wheelset.

Watch out for anything in the road which could cause damage to your wheels. Avoiding holes, rough patches, grates and traffic debris can also prevent damage to your bike and yourself. However! Always check traffic around you iif you are pulling out to avoid something. Using slightly lower tyre pressures on rougher roads and gravel tracks can help smooth the pathway for your wheels and give them (and you) an easier ride.

Usually yes, imperfections can be trued out using a spoke key tool – get a mechanic to true them if you are unsure. More serious damage to the rim can be too bad to straighten out.

Disc brakes offer more powerful braking and smooth modulation. Disc brake bikes feature through axle mounting for the wheels, this provides a more solid connection between the wheels and frameset. However! Many riders don't need powerful braking and don't want the extra weight of hydraulic bisc brakes, in addition riders with rim brake race wheels might want to keep using them.

No. Tubeless tyres take a bit of effort for setting up, they also need regular top ups of sealant. How often and how much sealant for the top-ups depends on the tyre volume and the temperature where you live.

Yes, either use with an inner tube, or there are tubeless conversion kits available, they work better on some rims than others. The best option with tubeless tyres is to use tubeless ready rims.

Because tyres have flexible side walls, it is possible to use wider tyres on narrower rims. However using 2.8” tyres on a narrow rim, for example, would result in a lightbulb shaped tyre which would negatively affect cornering and the feel of the tyre. It is best broadly speaking, to stick to manufacturers recommended guidelines to get the best performance. If you are planning on using wider tyres, also make sure they will fit your frameset before purchasing.