Aero Frame Or Aero Wheels | Which Makes You Faster?

Lightweight vs Aero is a question the cycling industry can't seem to agree on when it comes to bike tech. Wheels and frames are two of the most important factors when it comes to these two specialisations, but which combination is best? We do some GCN Tech science, swapping aero and lightweight wheels between aero and lightweight frames, to see which combination is fastest and the results may surprise you.

#Cycling #GCN #GCNTech #RoadBike

Which combination did you think would be fastest?

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Music - licensed by Epidemic Sound:
ES_Spinning the Wheels - Dusty Decks
ES_Streetlight Jam - The New Fools

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[gcntech]

Which combination did you think would be fastest?

[magnusmandel]

"Even the best wheels in the world may only be as good as the tyres you fit onto them"
Well now I would really like to see a test of expensive wheels with cheap tyres versus cheap wheels and expensive tyres.

[henrycash]

Those "shallow" rims are deeper than any I've ever owned 😂

[Stuey]

The lightweight frame with the aero wheels looks the coolest. And that’s by far the most important thing.

[luukrutten]

303s are still aero wheels... More aero than any of my wheels.

[THErealRB]

Recommend an additional person to act as a “control” with constant setup to quantify environmental changes. You can then bias you numbers by percentage difference of the control. Just a thought.

[TheMurmuringGolem]

So basically the results are completely invalid?

[larsborghouts]

The plot of this video is exactly like your average scientific paper. First, a lot of introductory blabla, then some methods and quickly over to the results. Subsequently in the discussion it is admitted that, although the results are interesting, the authors have no idea how to explain them, that the experiment was flawed and that more research is needed. Classic!

[justineichler]

Guys. Very few people have “shallow” rims that deep. It would be nice if you didn’t try to please your sponsors by advertising expensive wheels and instead did a test that mattered. Shimano C24 would be a great lightweight wheel set.

[frankkollar]

I'd have to call this test a a Bodge Let's see it again

[antiloop]

How's the seatpost on the new Aeroad 😂😂

[dgianstefani]

40mm wheels aren't "lightweight" wheels, maybe relatively compared to the 80mm. A real lightweight set would be for example, DA 9000/9100 C24. All you've proven in this test is that super deep rims aren't practical all rounder wheels, and would probably only be better in flat/descent with calm weather. 40mm wheels are all rounder wheels, both aero and relatively light.

[mapk]

A lightweight bike with aero wheels just looks so cool. Kinda reminds me of a Cannondale caad.

[ccmp]

Regardless of the results, a lightweight bike with deep wheels always looks the best. 😎🤙

[thebudgetcyclist]

More I watch GCN, the more I realize how bad the testing is on these videos

[tomeklubomir]

Very interesting results, wasn't expecting that (as you say), but at least you were honest with the different tyre choices. Looking forward to the revised test on same tyres.

[mattrothrock]

Rim brakes when they were an option on the Canyon Aerode save a lot of weight. The ultegra mechanical version with rim brakes was lighter than the Dura-ace mechanical version with disc brakes that cost over $2k less.

[jamescaldwell]

The light weight wheels you used are still deeper than typical wheels and are fairly aerodynamic. Better to have used a lighter alloy rimmed wheels for comparison.

[ECTproCycling]

So conclusion, non of it really matters, just go out and ride?!

[adamcooper]

So I’ve watched this to the end to find out you need to do it all again with the same tyres😢