NetworkMan wrote: As I'm very light I've been looking for light, inexpensive wheels for the 35/37 mm Hypers on my steel Spa Touring. I've just found Mavic Aksium:-
https://www.sigmasports.com/item/Mavic/ ... -2018/F1AE
These are really light, inexpensive, and perhaps surprisingly are 17mm internal width. Mavic only recommend them for up to 32mm tyres but using the rule of 2.2 times internal width they should be OK for up to 37+mm. Any reason why I shouldn't use them with my Hypers? I, bike, and luggage are far, far less than the quoted 120 kg.
With 35mm tyres you should lower the pressure from the maximum suggested for 28mm tyres. ~80psi might be the maximum before the rim is overstressed.
The main problem with these wheels is that they are cheap for several reasons;
1) the freehub body rides on a plastic bushing at one end, to save weight. This is noticeably more draggy when freewheeling and requires occasionally greasing so as not to wear out.
2) they don't have very many spokes in
3) when the rims wear out they are 'uneconomic to repair'
4) the quality of the spokes and nipples is perhaps not all it might be.
On the latter point I was looking at a set of used Aksiums yesterday. The rear wheel was scrap because the rim (which had hardly any wear BTW) had bent. The wheel couldn't even be trued because the nipples were seized. The wheel had seen some winter use; judging from the appearance of the nipples they are steel not brass (they were coated on the outside with brown rust) and the spokes are (I think) meant to be stainless steel but had evidently started to corrode at the spoke crossings.
If you are going to buy cheap factory wheels then the base model shimano ones seem like the best value to me. They use conventional spokes which means that you are not in the poop so badly when they start breaking. The slightly higher weight than many other wheelsets is mostly in the hubs (which means they don't wear out so quickly, given a little TLC) and this means the ride feel is no different to notionally lighter wheelsets; the rims etc are a very similar weight.
When comparing weights there is plenty of scope for error, since some manufacturers are, er, 'optimistic' shall we say and others weigh their wheels without QRs or rim tapes.
If you are in it for the long haul then I'd still favour a set of handbuilt wheels over anything else; choose well and you can have a light weight, durability and repairability.
cheers