AlexRims Race 28 Pro Test

AlexRims Race 28 Pro is a lowprice budget wheel set for those who needs a trainingwheel that can withstand torture, along with the user not caring about the weight or any fancy name of the wheelset.

Well, that is how it is on paper. It is a 28 mm profile, weighing in about 2 kg for a set, which.. Is a lot. And the name “AlexRims” is just something you don’t really wanna say, if there is a guy on some Lightweight or Zipp-wheels next to you. However, for wheels that costs less than filling your car’s fueltank, it is possible to look away from that. Nevertheless, will the weight and the dull name mean anything in the real world?

On the road
They came with my 2010 Scott Speedster S20, and I must admit, they are better than I expected. They are a bit heavy to accelerate up, but once they are up in speed, they roll well, thanks to the inertia of the wheels, which means they do not lose speed that fast, compared to lighter wheels. So if you are doing time trials, where you aren’t hitting high speeds, and cannot afford Zipp 808’s, or any other higher profile wheels, these wheels can do just fine. But if the speed gets high, you do feel that they could be more aerodynamic. 32 spokes and only 28 mm profile, isn’t going to be a great aero wheel, so if the speed goes above 45 km/h, you do feel the drag is greater, compared to some more aerodynamic wheels, like the Shimano C35 Dura Ace.

But they actually do roll really well. I tried comparing the hubs with the more expensive Mavic Cosmic Elite, and the AlexRims ended up rolling for a longer time than the Mavic’s. So you get some damn good hubs by buying these wheels!

They are strong too. They have been taking a lot of torture by me for 1½ years, and they are straight as new. However, of course with the 32 spokes, they are built to be punished. As a pair of training wheels, I can easily recommend them. In addition, if your weight is above 100 kg, they should be able to handle that too.

In sprints the many spokes also makes them very stiff. I do not feel any flex in them when sprinting, and I cannot hear the brakes scratching on the wheels, which can happen if the wheels are not stiff enough. Nevertheless, that is not the case here. The acceleration was as mentioned before, a bit bad, but I can’t feel much of a difference between these and some 200-300 grams lighter Mavic Cosmic Elite wheels.

The verdict

These wheels are not the fastest you can get, but for the price, I do not think you can get any better. The hubs are more than excellent for the price, and they are just as stiff and strong as you need any wheel to be. They may lack in aerodynamics and weight, but the price makes up for that. Therefore, if you have some fancy 1000-2000 euro tubular wheels used for racing; this would be a great buy for that price, ensuring you, that you have some training wheels you always can rely on. Especially when shifting back to the racingwheels, you will be feeling like you are flying. But as a pair of trainingwheels, these does the job perfectly.

Written by René

Read more: http://cyclingtipsonline.com/news/alexrims-race-28-pro-test/

Scott Speedster S20 Test

The Scott Speedster is the Swiss-based company Scott Sports aluminium frame for roadbikes. It has been in the market for quite some years, but is still known as one of the better aluminiumframes on the market. The tested model is the 2010 Speedster S20, with full Shimano 105, apart from the rear deraillur being Ultegra. The fork and seatpost are both made in carbon, so it is quite comfortable compared to the pure aluminiumbikes. The weight comes in at 8,9 kg wich doesn’t make it the lightestdefinitely not heaviest aluminiumbike out there. The tested model had a 34-49 crank and a 11-25 cassette.

First off, the frame is looking quite good in this 2010 silver layout. I paid roughly 1000 euro for it, and for that price, I got a pretty decent bike. The wheels are some lowbudget Alex Rims wheels, that weighs about 2kg per set, but they are, as stated before, rocksolid. I have been beating them up, and they are steady as new. In addition, they actually roll pretty well. I tried to compare them with some more expensive Mavic Cosmic Elite wheels, and the Alex Rims, were rolling better than the Mavics!
The Shimano 105/Ultegra combination makes it’s a good value for money too, and all around the bike, you can be sure, that they haven’t given it anything poor and cheap products, like some few other bikes at this pricerange sometimes get.

On the road

But how is it on the road? Well, you can feel it is an aluminiumframe, and not a carbonframe, by the comfort of it. It does not take bumps as good as a carbonframe, but as an aluminiumframe, it is doing the job decently. The Alex Rims are a pain to accelerate up, if you are used to some lighter wheels, but once they are up in speed, they maintain it better than the lighter wheels, because of the increased inertia. So for a time trial, they would actually do the job better than similar lowprofile wheels, that are lighter. But for any sprints or normal racing, they are just too heavy. But rocksolid, so as trainingwheels, they would be great, unless you of course wants just a little lighter wheels.

So The wheels makes the bike feel a bit heavy in accelerating, but else, it feels like a good ride. You are not tired after 100 km on it, and you do not feel sore in your butt or arms after such a trip, so the comfort is fine for me at least. The finish of the bike is great, and the paint does not have any flaws in it. The stiffness of the frame was not any problem neither. It did not seem to flex at least when I was sprinting, but I am a hiller/climber type, so I cannot speak for the heavier types, who can put more power in the pedals. Compared to a more expensive Scott Foil-carbonframe, it feels just as stiff when sprinting for me, and I guess anyone else would say the same.
The gears shifts fine. Shimano 105 and Ultegra are probably the best value for money you can get, when it comes to the Shimano-series, so I do not have anything bad to put on that either.

The verdict

Overall, we have to remember that this bike is a semi expensive entrylevel bike, and not ment for competitive racing. If you want to use it for racing, you will need new wheels at least. But as the standard bikerider who rides for fun and for the execercise, this bike will do the job absolutely fine. With different wheels, the frame is definitely good enough for racing. Not in the highest levels, but as for low- and mediumlevel racing, the frame is just decent enough for that. So, if I were gonna buy my first roadbike, or just wanted a new aluminiumracer, would I buy this one? Sure, it does not go down on quality anywhere and the weight of the wheels are more or less the only thing bad I can point out on it.

Written by René

Read more: http://cyclingtipsonline.com/news/scott-speedster-s20-review/