Prior to purchasing these carbon fiber wheels I tried to research how other people’s experience was purchasing “un-branded” carbon fiber wheels from China. I found a lot of people asking the same questions I had, but I didn’t find a lot of answers from people who actually purchased wheels.
So here is my review based on actually purchasing $500 carbon wheels from Kwinster.com
My expectations
I was not expecting to buy wheels of comparable quality to $1,500+ Zipps or HED wheels. I was expecting lightweight wheels that performed well, felt sturdy and held up during my training rides and races. Did I get this? The answer is YES.
I’ve ridden my friends Zipp and Reynolds wheelsets and the biggest difference to me was the hubs. Overall the high-end wheels do feel a smoother than my chinese wheels, it is only noticeable during full force efforts on flats. That being said my wheels from Kwinster are significant upgrades from the stock wheels that came on my CAAD10. I’d say the difference between the stock aluminum wheels and the chinese carbon wheels is significant and the different between the chinese wheels and the Zipps and Reynolds was less so..albeit having Zipps on your bike gets serious style points. On a side note the weight between the Zipps and the chinese wheels were comparable and much lighter than the aluminums that came with my bike. That said it was the deeper V that made the biggest impact since I ride mostly flat terrain (I noticed the difference even in slight wind)
How long have I had the wheels?
The latter half of the 2015 season. Put about 600 miles on them. Ridding them on my commute and group rides.
How did I choose a vendor?
I had read mixed reviews about a lot of chinese vendors, but I was still determined to test the waters myself. I had originally planned to order off of ebay until a friend told me about PlanetX. PlanetX imports wheels from China and gives them their own brand. I figured there was probably more quality control through PlanetX than on ebay. Unfortunately, PlanetX is based in the UK and after shipping it was going to cost around $1,000. That is when I found Kwinster, which basically does the same thing out of Southern California, they also sell other cycling related items, but wheel imports appear to be their focus. I was very happy with them. Shipping did take around 3 weeks, but they are very upfront about this, so I was expecting it to take awhile.
So here is my review based on actually purchasing $500 carbon wheels from Kwinster.com
My expectations
I was not expecting to buy wheels of comparable quality to $1,500+ Zipps or HED wheels. I was expecting lightweight wheels that performed well, felt sturdy and held up during my training rides and races. Did I get this? The answer is YES.
I’ve ridden my friends Zipp and Reynolds wheelsets and the biggest difference to me was the hubs. Overall the high-end wheels do feel a smoother than my chinese wheels, it is only noticeable during full force efforts on flats. That being said my wheels from Kwinster are significant upgrades from the stock wheels that came on my CAAD10. I’d say the difference between the stock aluminum wheels and the chinese carbon wheels is significant and the different between the chinese wheels and the Zipps and Reynolds was less so..albeit having Zipps on your bike gets serious style points. On a side note the weight between the Zipps and the chinese wheels were comparable and much lighter than the aluminums that came with my bike. That said it was the deeper V that made the biggest impact since I ride mostly flat terrain (I noticed the difference even in slight wind)
How long have I had the wheels?
The latter half of the 2015 season. Put about 600 miles on them. Ridding them on my commute and group rides.
How did I choose a vendor?
I had read mixed reviews about a lot of chinese vendors, but I was still determined to test the waters myself. I had originally planned to order off of ebay until a friend told me about PlanetX. PlanetX imports wheels from China and gives them their own brand. I figured there was probably more quality control through PlanetX than on ebay. Unfortunately, PlanetX is based in the UK and after shipping it was going to cost around $1,000. That is when I found Kwinster, which basically does the same thing out of Southern California, they also sell other cycling related items, but wheel imports appear to be their focus. I was very happy with them. Shipping did take around 3 weeks, but they are very upfront about this, so I was expecting it to take awhile.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram