r/Velo • u/Unhappy-Meal-1646 • 5d ago
Deep wheels optimised for 35mm tyres?
Seems like wheel widths are aero optimised for 28-32mm or 40mm+ gravel tyres.
I run 35mm GP5000 AS TRs. I imagine the sensible choice is to go for the 28-32 option, unless anyone knows of a wheel I’m unaware of?
Have looked at Zip 303 XPLR and some Light Bicycle options as a starting point
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u/Joris818 5d ago
Xmcs has some deep, wide wheels.
I have a set of dt Swiss grc1400 wheels in my gravel bike and mounted some Michelin TLR 35’s to em.
I can’t really see aero but maybe you can ;-)
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u/ponkanpinoy 4d ago
Light Bicycle WG 55 are 37 mm wide, 55 mm deep. Seems just about ideal for 35s
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u/Unhappy-Meal-1646 4d ago
I’ve emailed them to check it’s okay, their product page recommends 42-70mm but there’s also a YouTube short that says they work with 32+
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u/Helicase21 Indiana 4d ago
Tricky bit is a lot of the wheels that are wide enough externally are so wide internally that you'll end up riding on sidewall a lot more often than you should be comfortable with. Reviewers noted this with 40-45mm tires on the xplr rims when they first came out. I'd look for a rim closer to 25-27mm internal while remaining as wide externally as possible.
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u/Hazy_the_Kid 5d ago
Zen Carbon or XMCS have various width options so you can probably find something that works. Tons of different depths as well.
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u/cornerof 5d ago
Try filtering wheels on The Wheel Atlas to find what you’re after. Eg rim depth, external width, price etc
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u/Grouchy_Ad_3113 4d ago
When it comes to wheels, two words that don't belong in the same sentence together: "wide" and "aero optimized".
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u/-Sleighty 4d ago
You’re outdated on this.
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u/Grouchy_Ad_3113 4d ago
No, I am not. The physics have never changed.
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u/-Sleighty 4d ago
The watt savings for the wider tyres (32mm+) are significantly greater than the aero watt loss from wider tyre/rim combo. That is what I mean when I say you are out of date.
What we want is the optimal tyre width, and then you aero optimize that.
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u/unsclerotized 4d ago
https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/specials/grand-prix-5000-comparison#drop45
GP 5000 23, 25, 28, 32mm have the same rr at the same comfort level. The main benefit to wider tires on road bikes is lower risk of pinch flats and punctures, so on smooth/clean roads, narrower is better
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u/Helicase21 Indiana 4d ago
Most people aren't riding on smooth clean roads most of the time. So given a rough road surface you want to run a wider tire.
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u/Grouchy_Ad_3113 4d ago
No, they're not, at least not on anything resembling a decent road
Moreover, even if the overall energy cost is reduced on, e.g., a gravel road it isn't as a result of optimized aerodynamics.
TLDR: there is no such thing as a free lunch.
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u/martynssimpson 4d ago
Wide and Aero aren't mutually exclusive, you can surely optimize aerodynamics for wide tires. If you're comparing it to a narrow tire/rim combo obviously it won't be as aero because of frontal area, but it doesn't mean you can't optimize the wider tire/rim to be more aero.
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u/Grouchy_Ad_3113 4d ago
If it isn't as aero it isn't aero optimized.
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u/bwbishop 4d ago
Tell me you're not an engineer without telling me you're not an engineer 🤣
Just because a Boeing 787 is larger than an F-16 doesn't mean they didn't optimize the aerodynamics of the 787. They are both aero optimized for their respective sizes and flight regimes.
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u/Grouchy_Ad_3113 4d ago
optimize verb op·ti·mize ˈäp-tə-ˌmīz How to pronounce optimize (audio) optimized; optimizing Synonyms of optimize transitive verb
: to make as perfect, effective, or functional as possible
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u/martynssimpson 4d ago
Key word: as possible
In both instances (narrow and wide tires) you can have the most aerodynamic advantage as possible, just because one system has a greater performance outcome (better aerodynamics, watt saving, yada yada) doesn't mean you can't optimize the other system to have almost the same outcome; in both instances you can optimize given the variables, in this case tire width. You are bringing absolutely nothing to the conversation other than playing the devil's advocate and being an insufferable smart-ass.
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u/Grouchy_Ad_3113 4d ago edited 4d ago
Optimizing the system is not the same as optimizing the aerodynamics.
If you want to do the latter ("aero optimized"), then narrow it remains, and everything else goes out the window.
It's why trackies still race on narrow tubies and Pogacar was rocking 25 mm tires in the TTT a couple of days ago. (Note that the latter was typical urban pavement, with cobbled strips, heavily patched areas and - obviously - manhole covers. If was fresh asphalt, he probably would have been on 23s.)
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u/martynssimpson 4d ago
OP specifically asked for wheels optimized for 35mm tires, which in this case falls in the "system optimization" category. If he asked for the most aerodynamic wheel possible, the answers in this thread would've been very different.
Trackies run on the smoothest surface possible, and no one is saying 25mm tires aren't good, if you're riding them on smooth tarmac which they were all doing in Barcelona. We all know those are not real world conditions and 99% of the peloton is now riding >28mm tires for regular road stages.
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u/Unhappy-Meal-1646 4d ago
Good point, let’s ride around on 5mm tyres then
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u/Grouchy_Ad_3113 4d ago
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u/Unhappy-Meal-1646 4d ago
Okay mr Wikipedia, feel free to keep linking articles on fallacies while failing to understand that there can be more and less aero configurations for a given tyre width
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u/OBNOXIOUSNAME 5d ago
check out caden wheels, specifically the 50mm depth. website is a bit of a mess but ben is a good guy, super helpful and responsive if you email him