Velocity A23 in 650B (700C, too)
28h 650B rims are on sale. Details here.
The A23 road rim Velocity started making in 2010 is slightly wider than normal road rims. For the “road” market the 23mm width of the A23 has purported benefits when used with narrow tires. When I started using the 700C A23 for wheelbuilds I was impressed with the strength to weight ratio of the rim, the uniformity of the rim joint, and thought it would make a great 650B rim. 650B riders need wider rims for the 38mm+ tires typically used on 650B bikes.
I expect a shipment of 650B A23′s from Velocity by the end of the month. The rims, like all Velocity rims made since January, are manufactured in Florida.
The 650B A23 rims will will come in silver only. Drillings on the first batch are 28,32,and 36H. The sidewalls will be non-machined, just like the 650B Synergy rims.* Available a la carte and for wheelbuilds.
Rims will be $75. If you pre-order 650B A23′s you’ll get 10% off your rims. To get the A23′s rolled into 650B I had to order a substantially larger number of rims than my usual rim order, so pre-orders will help me and I hope the discount helps you.
If you are having your wheels built at a local shop they can order the rims from us. Local bike shops and framebuilders can email the shop for dealer pricing.
*Why non-machined sidewalls? Mostly because machined sidewalls on anodized rims aren’t necessary, remove a little sidewall material and potentially decrease the lifespan of a rim. A well-built wheel’s weakest link (in normal usage) is the thickness of the rim sidewall. In normal usage the wheel will last until the sidewall has been worn too thin by the brake pads.
Machining rim sidewalls became “standard” in the industry in the last couple of decades, but their main benefit for manufacturers was to make rims feel better on bicycle test rides by masking rim joint irregularities, not improve braking performance. The inevitable dirt on brake pads and brake usage will “machine” the sidewall of bicycle rims in use. Powdercoated rims need machined sidewalls to be used with rim brakes. Non-machined powdercoated rims will often squeal loudly and always brake poorly when used with rim brakes until the brake pads wear through the powdercoat. I do not know if the ubiquity of machined sidewall rims or the recent popularity of powdercoated rims has fostered the misunderstanding that all rims must be machined to work with rim brakes, but that misunderstanding is out there. Most of my customers know better, but I get the question from time to time with other rims.
NICE! I will be ordering some today.
What kind of tubeless setup will you use in conjunction with traditional tires? Stans?
I want tubeless and am willing to experiment/ be a guinea pig with some guidance.
Thanks for the order!
Stan’s or similar tape, tubeless valve stem, and sealant. The Stan’s website has excellent videos on rim preparation.
Hello Anthony.
Could you tell me about your background in wheelbuilding and who have you built wheels for on a professional,commercial level. I’m interested in ordering a high quality wheelset. Phil,Velocity.
Thanks Jimmy
Jimmy,
I have been building wheels for a living since 2006. I do other bike related sales and service, but most of my business is wheel building. Searching bikeforums.com, the KOG list, the 650B list, would, I’m sure, turn up some results from my wheelbuilding customers.
Anthony,
Thanks for getting these wheels.
I laced these wheels with sapim cx rays on white ind hubs. I painstakingly managed to get some Grand Bois Hetres’ on. The combination is quite frankly the best wheelset I have ever riden. I will be buying quite a few more of these.
Note: the pair I got were not the most quality control perfect rims I have ever seen. The spoke holes of one rim would not allow me to use velo plugs as the holes were off just enough to cause 4 flats where I wasn’t even riding. I suffered 4 subsequent tear downs trying to make the plugs work but no matter what I did, they just didn’t work on one rim (quality control?). I went back to using rim tape and all is well.
-Also, Im not really a weak person and putting on Hetres on this wheel was nightmarish -something I considered before using on a tour I just completed. After rim tape, no flats after 10 days of amazing riding through Cali wine country. Love this wheelset.
Hetres speak for themselves but they really work on this rim.
Maybe a slightly finicky rim but -best performing sport/ credit touring wheel I have experienced
These look nice. You say the Synergy is overbuilt. What is the weight difference between these and the Synergy? Thanks
The Synergy isn’t overbuilt in the abstract, but for the way many people are using their 650B bikes they could use something a little lighter. The A23′s average 22g lighter than the Synergy. I weighed ten A23′s and Synergy in my stock to arrive at that figure. Not a huge difference, but the easy conversion of the A23 to tubeless make it possible to shed a significant amount of weight. On my personal wheels I was using standard tubes with Synergy rims. After switching to A23′s tubeless my wheelset is almost a half pound lighter.
William,
I’m sorry I just caught your comment. I will send you some Stan’s tubeless tape, which can be used with tubes as well. The Stan’s tape is very thin and will make getting tires on the rim much, much easier.
Anthony
I have Rigida racing 2000 rims with Campanolo Record hubs, I would like to replace the rims would the 23A be a good choice, or is there a more upscale – racing rim that would be more along the lines of the Rigida Racing 2000 rims?
thanks for any tips on replacing my rims. the only reason I want to replace them is the sidewalls have ridges from the brakes, maybe I can sand them smooth with emery cloth – they are still thick walled.
John,
Are your wheels 700C or 650B?
What size tyres can we expect to fit on the a23s? They are supposedly for 23 or 25mm tyres, right?
I would like to have a crack at running 42mm Hetres tubeless, but would settle for 38mm and tubes.
Is this the 650b rim brake rim for me?
A 42mm tire is no problem. I have used Hetres on 23mm rims for many, many miles. I’ve used up 55mm tires on 23mm rims.
The A23 extrusion is “tubeless ready”, but is intended to be used with tubeless tires. There are none available in 650B. That hasn’t stopped people from using them tubeless, but I can’t recommend it.
FYI, I also carry the PL23 rims from Pacenti which is very similar to the A23. Both 650B and 23mm wide and can be used with a rim brake. And of course there is the Velocity Synergy, also 23mm wide and in 650B.
Call me if you’d like to talk more.