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Q. Dear Mr. Hedtech, please explain the difference between Stingers, Jets, and Alps. Can I train on them?
A. Stingers are tubular only, and jets can be ordered tubular or clincher. This may be all the information you need to make up your mind.
Beyond that, the wheels have different construction: Stingers are bladder molded in one step. They have a carbon brake surface. Jets are made in two steps. The carbon aero section is molded first. The second step is bonding it to the alloy substrate. Alps are made using RTM. The carbon, alloy, and foam substrate are molded in one step. Because Alps only use one layer of carbon (there are 2-6 in jets and stingers, depending on model) they need to have a foam substrate to make the wheel strong and stiff.
We don't offer a carbon clincher because they don't offer any clear advantage to an alloy one. The cost is durability is not as good, weight savings are negligible, and the cost is several times more. Either wheelset will stand up to hard training and racing, but I would give the edge to the Jet. On a 1-10 scale Jets are 10, equal to a hand built 32 hole traditional wheelset. Stingers would be a 9. I have commuted extensively and cyclocrossed on them without issue. Alps would rate about 8, they are stiff and strong, but need fairly regular attention to keep dead true.
Q. Is it true that you have to be riding above 20 mph for aero wheels to make a difference?
A. The faster you go, the more power you produce. Efficient use of this power depends on how good your aerodynamics are. The time savings provided by aero wheels are always going to be proportional to the power of the rider. It doesn't matter whether you produce 300 watts or 150 watts. In fact, slower riders may not be going at the same speed as faster ones, but aero wheels actually save them an even greater amount of time over the same distance. The only exception is on hills with a grade of more than 6%.
Q. Can certain wind angles push a rider along?
A. Think of a guy in a rowing boat, using X amount of power to move along. Then erect a sail the size of a disc wheel. The surface area of this sail isn't enough to propel him without rowing as well, but it will make the rowing feel easier. This is how a disc wheel works at beneficial wind angles.
Q. Is aerodynamic performance more important than weight savings?
A. Let's look at a few figures. Assume a rider uses a conventional bike over a 25 mile flat course time trial. He weighs 150 lb, his bike is another 20 lb, and he is producing 185 watts of power. The aero drag with this scenario would be approximately 6.5 lb using aero bars into a 2 mph headwind of between 0 and 5 degrees. With his standard bike, our rider's time would be around 1 hour 7 minutes and 38 seconds. If we reduced the weight of his bike by three pounds, that time would come down by just 3 seconds. However, swap the wheels to an aero design and the drag could be reduced to 6 lb. Even with the additional quarter pound weight of the new wheels, his time saving over 25 miles jumps dramatically to over 1 minute 30 seconds. No contest.
Q. Are Deep rim aero wheels difficult to true?
A. No, but you will need a 5.5mm socket type tool. All wire spoked Hed wheels should be trued with a socket tool. You will have to remove the tire to do this.
Q. How much time could I save in a 25 mile time trial by switching to aero rims?
A. It depends on the wheels. Using our 150 lb test rider in an aero tuck as a model, switching to aero wheels will typically save between 1 minute 30 seconds and 2 minutes over a flat 25 mile course. Using a Deep front and Disc rear, two minutes is a realistic figure.
Q. If I smash one of the alloy rims on a HED wheel, can a new rim be bonded to the carbon?
A. No, however, we will repair or replace the damaged wheel for less than the cost of a new one.
Q. How do I fix a computer magnet to a H3 front wheel?
A. You can glue a magnet onto the surface of an H3 with 2 part epoxy (any hardware store epoxy should be fine). A small rare earth magnet is the best for your magnet. We stock such a magnet, you can call and order them.
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