I'm looking at upgrading my wheels. Anyone actually riden the new Zipp 303 NSW Disc or newly released Enve M525G?
I had a set of Enve m50s that I moved over to my previous gravel bike from the MTB, The worked well. I got a new bike last fall that will allow wider tires.
Zipp's have served me well on my road bikes. I'm not seeing many reviews on the Zipps from gravel riders.
Enve, work great on the MTBs and were solid on my gravel with the m50.
The new m525 with an internal width of 25mm, the Zipps and the factory Roval have 21 and 207 internal widths, respectively. The Zipps are the heaviest of the three (180g)
I typically run 38-40mm as my wider set of tires. This allows for a nice ride/traction and clearance from the frame.
Stick with Enve. They are by far the best out of anything you mentioned. I've built tons and owned a couple of the original XC, and M50's over the last several years for gravel. They are the benchmark for everybody else. I think Zipp doesn't get much gravel cred because their rims are too soft, which in turn makes for soft builds, poor QC, dimples are a gimmick, questionable hubs, and they were awfully late to wide and tubeless.
Best to choose a rim based on the tires you intend to run. Enve's internal width is 25mm. Humm, that's a bit wide for anyone running a tire 38mm or smaller. Also, if you are willing to roll smaller name brand or direct sales Chinese there are plenty more affordable carbon rim options with internal widths of 21-23mm. Have a look at what Mavic has to say about rim width and tire size.
Mavic's analysis doesn't take into account the largest effect on rolling speed: impacts.
Rolling resistance tests are only applicable to a smooth surface like a velodrome. Out on the road, or on rough tracks, every little bump and impact will slow you down, even more so on a narrow hard tyre. A wider tyre at a lower pressure will deform over these bumps will much less effect on forward motion.
Also I believe the industry is pushing narrow widths as there's so much stock out there. In a few years sub 23mm rims will be like sub 23mm tyres are today.
I thought I'd post an update. I got the Enve 525g and mounted up Kenda Flintridge Pro 35mm tires with no issue. They are holding air well. Enve claims you can mount a 32c or larger. 32 seems a little narrow with a 25mm internal, but maybe that is just me.
Anyway, I have about 500-600mi on them so far. They are solid and have taken a beating on some rough Indiana gravel roads as well as some Michigan ones. No issues at all.
Side note, Since the time of this photo I've removed the dropper and lowered the stem. Dropper was nice on a gravel ride that involved about 10-12 miles of single track on an 80mi ride. But I just didn't find useful for my riding - that often.
meenanm wrote:I thought I'd post an update. I got the Enve 525g and mounted up Kenda Flintridge Pro 35mm tires with no issue. They are holding air well. Enve claims you can mount a 32c or larger. 32 seems a little narrow with a 25mm internal, but maybe that is just me.
Anyway, I have about 500-600mi on them so far. They are solid and have taken a beating on some rough Indiana gravel roads as well as some Michigan ones. No issues at all.
Side note, Since the time of this photo I've removed the dropper and lowered the stem. Dropper was nice on a gravel ride that involved about 10-12 miles of single track on an 80mi ride. But I just didn't find useful for my riding - that often.
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\nSir I really want to know how much wide flintridge on that rim...
