What's The Difference? - Carbon Fibre VS Aluminium Wheels

Bike riders often wonder what the difference is between carbon and aluminium bike wheels so in this video we'll tell you everything you need to know. What really is the difference? Find out here...

When we talk about aluminium or carbon wheels, what we are referring to is the material of the rim, as almost all hubs and spokes are made from metal. The vast majority of bikes are sold with aluminium wheels. Generally speaking, only the most expensive road bikes will come with carbon wheels and this means that they are a fairly common upgrade people consider.

Carbon wheels look awesome. And well…. That’s the most important thing right?! Aesthetics are hugely important and Traditionally Most aluminium rims feature an unpainted aluminium rim on the brake track. Most paint finishes would wear off over time, so manufacturers just leave it bare.

An entry level wheel would typically be alloy and weigh around 2kg for a pair without tyres. If you compare that with a premium deep section carbon wheel such as this Vision Metron 55, the rrp is 1950euro and it weighs 1580g a pair without tyres. A half a kilo saving in weight. You can go even lighter too. Some carbon wheelsets are as light as 1 kg a pair.

What wheels do you have on your bike? Let us know in the comments. 👇

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Music: Epidemic Sound
Silhouette (Young Community Remix) (Instrumental Version) - Cacti
Prologue - Brendon Moeller
Our Jam (Instrumental Version) - Da Tooby

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[Visionism]

"I'd definitely go for an all round wheel" I don't blame him. I've tried the square ones and they're a bit bumpy.

[scotthamilton]

Recently at the end of this season, I hung up my $2.7k carbon clincher rims and went back to the aluminums that came with the bike. I warped the front carbon during a huge decent so I wasn’t happy but knowing it was covered under warranty I really didn’t care. However only 2 years of warranty exists on most brands. Anyway, , after going back to the aluminums, I did a killer solo 100miler with about 6.5k of hills at around 17.3avg speed, one of the most epic rides of my life. Then, the following week, I took off 1.5min on my PR up a 2 mile climb. Also very important to note that I became a monster in downhill cornering because the braking was that much better on the aluminum. I had gotten so used to inferor braking with the carbon wheels that when i went back to aluminum, i felt like a different rider. Back to the warped one, I got a brand spanking new carbon replacement under warranty, after kicking and screaming, and guess what? I’m not going back to carbon on that bike because of the rim braking. Knowing what i know now from this before and after experiment, I would have not "upgraded" ....If money is tight, stick with the aluminums and don’t invest into carbon, however..carbon hoops and rim braking is a stop-gap combination until disc technology dominates. The carbons feel like velvet however. In the end it’s all just marketing hype to sell merch to the mass consumer market. On the road, I often get blown away by people with entry level bikes and I’m often as strong if not stronger than some that are riding $12k rigs. Genetics and consistency dictate, , where money and gear can’t compensate.

[hkou]

The reason for deep rims being made from carbon is not that the alloy rims would be too heavy, but the fact that it would be hard (almost impossible) to make them (winding deep alloy profile into a circle causes wrinkles).

[geoffbuck]

Carbon rims save "30 secs over 40km at 40kph" - "cor, that sounds a lot!" I don't think so !!! Stop trying to justify carbon rims for any other reason than they look BLOODY SEXY!!!!

[davidbatley]

Jon, dead right mate. Unless you have a budget of over £1k stick to aluminium. For most of us average riders there is no significant performance gain (average speed 40km/hr - right!).

[martyjbrown]

Nobody has mentioned the SOUND of deeper carbon rims. It's awesome.

[fuchsy]

Carbon bike parts, you don't need them, but you want them anyways
But really:
Go for alloy rims. They're better for your wallet and for the environment.

[aaawwweeee]

All the aero gains and aero talk is nothing but a marketing scheme. people who cannot hold average speed of over 30 km/h for 100km should only think about getting a right frame size and proper fit for comfort so they can maximize their power output. instead of thinking about better bikes and carbon wheels or slamming their stem just to be more uncomfortable and possibly slower. honestly if your 5 minutes interval speed on flat road doesn't exceed over 40km/h you don't even need a race bike. get an endurance bike. it would be a better training tool for developing power because it's more upright and comfortable. they exist for a reason.

[jonburnell]

And the difference between the trimax 30 and Metron 55...about £1, 200. Yeah, I'll stick to aluminium and get a turbo trainer, and have a couple of cycling holidays.

[brianmessemer]

My beloved Canyon Endurace SL 7.0 Disc - yep that's right, 105 group set baby, and proud of it - came with ever-reliable, durable DT Swiss Alloy wheels. They're friggin' awesome. Are carbon deep-dishes more, ya know, eye-popping? Yeah no doubt. But I'm both happy and impressed with my bike as it came. If I accidentally catch a pothole, I don't worry the way I might with carbon wheels.

[deadenear]

"If you are running disk brakes all your braking is done at the disk " 6:29 Thank you for that unknown information GCN.

[JDndcity]

I've got a 30 deep alu front for stability and reliable braking with a 66 carbon rear for a little bit of aero. Perfect combo for rim brakes if you ask me.

[frozenbean]

I just picked up a pair of Hunt alloy wheels that weigh less than those carbon Visions. They're not deep sections, but that doesn't really matter when you live in a hilly area. They feel really peppy when climbing, and they were actually affordable. They have a great freehub sound, too.

[Mububban]

I upgraded the 2.2kg alloy wheel set on my Giant road bike with 1.5kg carbon Prime wheels from Chain Reaction. The difference on any sort of up hill gradient is night and day. Sure, climbs still hurt, but now I only feel like I’m fighting my own body and my own fitness, not fighting the bike itself.

[iaf-gerardodeluzenberger]

I have a set of Dura-Ace C24s. The rims are aluminium alloy with a CFRP (carbon fibre reinforced polymer) laminate on the inner surfaces. They weigh in at about 1420 grams, which means they are nearly 500 grams lighter than the stock wheels that came with the bike, so that's huge. None of the aero benefits of a deep section wheel, of course, but I simply do not ride that fast, and there is no question that the lighter wheels have contributed to me to keeping up at speeds I just couldn't manage before. The best bit is that I got them second hand from someone who was upgrading to full carbon deep section wheels so I got them for a little over 50% of the original retail. So yes, the rest of you lot go out and buy really cool wheels and I'll be waiting around for your hand me downs.

[spfccmt]

The question I need an answer to: How to tell my wife that there’s no summer holiday because I needed carbon wheels?

[dpstrial]

Carbon wheels are generally stiffer laterally and more compliant radially. Since changing to carbon, I have found the steering to be more precise and the shock-absorption to be better.

[Dangerusc]

Probably the most informative cycling wheel comparison I've seen. Quick. Informative. Helpful. Thank you!

[GoldEighteen]

In regards to stiffness, rim depth and spoke bed location are very important. For example, my Reynolds 72 Aero wheelset is 72mm deep and the spokes are bedded at the innermost edge of the rim. That means the spoke nipples are located roughly 60-70mm from the outer edge of the rim. Now, on a full carbon rim that aims to be as light and Aero as possible, this is an issue because the wheels become very floppy when sprinting or railing up a climb. In my 25mm aluminum Bontrager wheelset, however, the spokes are bedded very closely in relation to the outer edge of the rim (roughly 10-20mm). This means there is less surface of the sidewall that can flop around under load.

[brendavane]

Carbon frame and good aluminium wheels is the best mix for a social rider. Would love to have the power for better wheels, but simply a waste of money.