fixed gear wheelset

[webber]

hi there been looking for a light set of wheels for my condor tempo and they seem to be quite a bit heavier then road like for like is there a reason for this ??? i would have though they would be lighter

[garygkn]

Front wheel should be a very similar weight to a road front. Although it may have a solid axle and nuts. I'm not sure if these weigh more than a quick release front road wheel? Perhaps more?

A quality rear fixed wheel should to my mind weigh less than a quality road rear wheel. Again a solid axle, fixed cog, ring will be in the equation and on the road side a free hub body, hollow axle, cassette, and quick release will be included.

I guess the only way of knowing for sure would be to weigh examples of each?

I'm a trendy consumer. Just look at my Moto G (4) using hovercraft full of eels.

[Brucey]

part of the reason is that fixed gear bikes are increasingly being used as knockabout bikes. They are light enough anyway (not bothering with gears or as many brakes as normal) and having cheap(ish) but strong rims is not a bad idea. Typical deep section rims as found on a lot of fixie wheels are heavier than the ones on my touring bike....

Typical fixed gear hubs are not especially lightweight; to accept conventional track nuts (not to mention chain loads which are usually far larger than normal) the axles are usually steel not alloy and they go for strength over weight even in the hubshells too. To cap it all most fixie wheels are built with PG spokes not DB ones.

Ambrosio cartridge bearing track hubs (which are sold under many different names in fact) are typical; they weigh 235g/ 285g F/R (complete with track nuts , but no sprocket or lockring). Compare that with (say) a novatec SF front QR hub (which costs about the same) and it weighs just 118g. Add 50g for a lightweight skewer and you are still only at 168g.

So looking at a typical modern fixie wheelset, you might be able to save weight as follows

Hubs - save about 150g/pr by choosing carefully and spending a bit more perhaps, (although you might have to use chain tugs to keep the rear wheel in place)

Spokes - use DB instead of PG, save about 120g
Nipples - use alloy instead of steel (bad for winter use BTW) - save about 40g

Rims- use something decent instead of cheaply made deep aero rims- save about 200-300g/pr

Total weight savings might be 510-610g for the bare wheels.

For some years my default fixed gear training wheels used 'normandy' LF hubs, PG spokes and Rigida AL1320 rims. Nothing special (dirt cheap in fact) but the rims were about 440g each, so the wheels rode well even though the hubs and spokes were nothing special (about the same weight as Ambrosio hubs and cheap modern spokes in fact). That wheelset would be 200-300g lighter than a typical fixie wheelset today, mainly because of the relatively lightweight rims.

cheers

[Samuel D]

And then there’s the tyres (if you’ve been lifting complete wheels to make this observation). Fixed-gear bicycles often have tough, heavy tyres, both for skid braking and puncture resistance on city streets … and because cheap tyres tend to be heavy.

[amediasatex]

If you're looking at 'off the peg' fixed wheelsets then 99% of what you will find online are exactly the kind of wheels Brucey mentions, cheap fixie wheels for urban runabouts and fashion fixies, not a 'proper' fixed wheelset aimed at either track use or fixed road riding (which I assume is what you want if they're for a Tempo).

I ride a fair bit of fixed/SS on the road and I normally go for a standard road front wheel with a QR hub, and only bother using a track/fixed hub on the rear. I then build with whatever rims I would have built my geared road wheels with, and same with spokes, so I essentially end up with whatever road wheels I would have been using but with a track hub at the rear instead. This produces a wheelset roughly the same weight or slightly lighter than the geared equivalent would be.

If you're not after a basic off-the-peg fixie wheelset then I suggest you find a wheel builder to put something bespoke together for you, it'll likely be a little more expensive that the myriad of £70-£120 basic fixed wheelsets out there but will give you exactly what you want and they will be able to advise on specific components if you're not sure.