This has to be my favorite set of wheels to build. Chris wanted to upgrade his wheels on his road bike but needed something special. Being a full time student (and part time retail employee) Chris need some good race wheels on a reasonable budget. When you have the cash to roll on $2500 carbon fiber race wheels you may as well do it but not everyone has that kind of loot. I’m a big believer that when it comes to wheels, if you can’t afford to replace the rim should you crash, don’t buy them to begin with.

So Chris wanted some light and fast wheels that would still be durable enough to ride every day and not break the bank should they have to be repaired. When it comes to picking a rim for racing and training duties there is really only one option out there in my opinion. The Belgium rim from HED is pretty much a perfect design for this use. It’s light yet strong and thanks to their C2 profile (that’s HED’s jargon for a bit wider) it rides incredibly well and actually improves cornering grip but altering the profile of whatever tire is mounted to them.

Chris had been saving up a bit and wanted to invest in something a bit nicer than average for the hubs. He certainly could have gone with the old tried and true Shimano Ultegra but he wanted something lighter and nicer overall. Enter the Chris King R45 road hubs. Price wise they certainly come in higher than Ultegras but compared to other premium hubs like Dura Ace or DT Swiss they are reasonable. Chris King’s ring drive ratchet system and custom made bearings make for an incredibly smooth hub. Not to mention they come in cool colors and are made in the USA.

So with hubs and rims picked out all that was left was to pick spokes and build them. For all my premium wheel builds I use Sapim CX-Ray bladed spokes. While they are obviously more aero than a round spoke what I like best about them is that when the cross the flat aero profile of the spoke allows each spoke to bend less when the cross over one another, which builds a stronger wheel.

Several CBC customers have been lucky enough to get rolling on this same build and with HED offering the Belgium rim in 24, 28, and 32 spoke drilling I can customize each wheel build to each rider’s weight and intended use.

I like this set up so much I ride on the exact same thing. I did geek out and go with the pink hubs though.