How long might you expect entry level wheels on road bike to last before replacement.
I have done 20,000km+ over about 3 years on all road surfaces (plenty of gnarly potholes).
Of course check for misaligment and buckling and spoke trueness regularly and replace when problems occur. But recently, 100km from any town in central vietnam a back wheel spoke snapped and the wheel assumed a buckled countenance, which got me thinking about wheel longevity in general.
The bike shop owner, a good cyclist, gave the impression spokes and wheels lose their flex a little over long periods of time and need replacement over the years (but then again he was speaking vietnamese so i am not 100%)
Wow. That’s impressive. And at the same time that made me feel bad…
As for longevity, those things could last forever… while losing shape progressively. I don’t think that the material (metal) should undergo dramatic changes in terms of flexibility or anything like that, I don’t think it’s that organic, but I don’t have a masters in material science.
Congrats on being such a strong rider.
I’m in the same category as @mad_masala , I don’t have a degree in materials science…or anything related to that, maybe @urodacus can give a more scientific approach. However, here’s my experience with aging wheels.
A friend has a set of Mavic Ksyrium SL (https://www.bikeinn.com/bike/mavic-2012-ksyrium-sl-pair/26839/p) that he’s ridden the hell out of since 2012-2013. He hasn’t had any spokes breaking like you have, but he said compared to some of his newer wheels in similar material/weight/stiffness category, he says they are a bit more flexy than when he bought them.
I’ve also had friends ride the same wheel over a few thousand KM and have different broken spokes multiple times. Sometimes it could just be the build of that specific wheel was faulty. Other friends have had the same wheels, but have never had any issues. Nonetheless, factors like how the person rides, conditions the wheels go through and maintenance, go into play here.
All in all, personally, I would consider buying a new set, it’d certainly put my mind at ease. Whether you bought those entry level wheels for 10,000NT or 1,000NT, you definitely got your money’s worth if you put 20k KM in them.
Carbon fiber wheels and bike frames are all the rage now. Lots of used carbon wheels on the market.Hope I can try out lightweight, Reynolds, zipp, borla, shimano dura ace wheels and pick one for my budget .
Dropping 1kg on a road bike costs serious money . 8kg to 7kg , 7 kg to 6kg costs exponential . Losing weight from my belly is the most economical and drastical method
Ain’t that the truth. But if you’ve already dropped some weight, losing more becomes hard as hell. I’m going down 1 more kg in July. Won’t be easy.