These Bontrager Classics wheels are in essence the same as you would find the professionals using for winter training and, with tubular rims instead of the clinchers fitted, in events that are tough on equipment, such as the cobbled roads of Paris-Roubaix.
Winter cycling is hard on equipment, with rain soaked roads, dirt, mud and gritting salt all conspiring to increase the wear rate. Durability becomes a key concern, and nowhere is this more important than in a set of sturdy, well built wheels.
The seasoned approach is to build, by hand, a pair of traditional wheels. Reliable box section rims, 28 or 32 tangential spokes and smooth running, durable hubs. The Classics are Bontrager’s take on this approach, with the result being inexpensive yet, we hope, bullet-proof and race-proven wheels.
At their centre are Bontrager hubs with sealed bearings and a steel rear spindle, with servicing made easier with an interchangeable freehub body. The single-eyeleted rims measure 22mm across the braking tracks. Spokes are double butted, and there’s 28 of them front and rear.
A set are being put through the RCUK test mill now, full review soon…
Available as a pair or separately (handy if you’re running a Powertap rear hub and just need a front wheel) Front: £134.99, rear: £164.99.
