it's a bianchi i think.... maybe an earlier variation of the name...



this is not a steel frame but, a damn famous one ridden by il pirata...most famous during the marco pantani era, an alloy custom hand built Reparto Corse...

ah! how to clean chains very clean enough?

guess my method is not clean enough....

budget limit?

fulcrum racing 3 - spokes are not as expensive as R1 or R0... but at local price here of almost RM1.8k... i might be thinking of upping my limit to fit the R1 in as the R1 is stiffer with the broad aluminum spokes, not necessarily a whole lot lighter but the stiffness makes a difference if you need it.. replacement spokes on the R3 are more expensive than conventional spokes but not as bad as R1 and R0 which is over RM50 per piece...

mavic ksyrium elite - would be the most sensible wheel for the price paid, spoke replacement might be a worry if you don't have a mavic shop nearby and it might not be as cheap as normal spoke although not exorbitant in price. I think price of SLS (SL is no longer available in 2013 range i believe) might be out of question unless you are willing to increase until beyond RM2k...

campy zonda - problem of having to invest in an extra shimano freehub if your shop does not have one already built with shimano freehub (which they are mostly not) due to it being built for riders running campy components, quite light but not worth price paid

shimano c24 -  don't think a new set is within your budget... the ones we see sold at RM1k - RM1.5k on BBS are stolen sets from shimano factory in johor. New ones especially C24 is much more than that....straight pull spokes reportedly weak with bulky riders and a pain to replace... not sure because of availability or price... for KL, it is both...

ea 90sl - reportedly a very tough wheel with 28r/24f spoking and quite feathery, heard of problems with the hub end cap tension adjustment... but not sure if it is true... and for the price of over 700 USD... makes you consider alternative options

the best is to know if the wheelset is well supported nearby or the shop you visit since lightweight wheelset tend to be less durable and you might want to be mentally prepared when shit happens... spoke breakages are more common in people who don't take care of their wheels... dented rims would mean immediate death, unless your shop stock up on replacement parts.. bearings would be the last to go and mostly due to natural reasons...

i think it is safe to say any of your listed wheels are confirmed a better than your alex wheels... in terms of both rolling resistance and also spin up rate...aero characteristics i would not demand much since no alloy wheels have more than 30 mm of height or it will be massively heavy and negate the purpose of the upgrade in the first place... and 30mm might not make much difference compared to a 24mm model...crosswind wise, unless you have some 404 or 808 type of height, i don't think it's a worry or safe to say you won't become another andy schleck...you might have to put some thoughts on what you prioritize...lightweight or aero? the unfortunate thing is alloy wheels will always not be aero...

or you can look into SRAM S30 wheels as it has torroidal shape copied from old zipps... if it is still around...

yes, i mean you can't get the old ones anyways... so it's the new ones that has the C35 in the line up and the price has not wavered since a couple of years back... it is a good wheel, but just not nifty enough to get people's attention like the more zingy zipps, reynolds, and the likes...

wow, you sure you want to get such an expensive wheel to commute??? a tree branch up your spokes and it will be catastrophic... maybe you can look into getting one more cassette and maintaining your alex wheels for commuting and the other set for more serious riding...

workmanship i won't worry as they can't slaughter you on wheel truing, or can't slaughter you much... and low spoke count is the way to go nowadays, unfortunately... you just have to go with the trend or live in the shadow...

yeah, pro-lite is supposedly a very cheap wheel...but if we buy it via ebay.. the shipping charges included lets us think of more expensive wheels...

is saving AUD 20 per day not a lot??? sounds like a lot to me... or maybe because in my mind i convert the currency...

if it is a car door... i would have more worries than just the wheel alone..

anyways... get what you can afford... jake gyllenhall would not cringe at destroying a set of zipp because he can afford to stock multiple sets in his home garage.. heck, he might even change it just because of a tiny scratch that damage the zipp stickers....

but, you and me have to think twice on buying expensive gear to abuse....let alone to commute... and maybe leaving it under the sun or to the thieves..

well, i am always a skeptic of bike fit... unless you know certain things that you can pinpoint or want to correct (like a bad back on long riding days)... going to a fitter would be pointless... since you have no objective and you end up just listen to depending on how you view it... advise / BS

for rm8k... it will be guilty for being un-sexy...

paired spokes always look nice... especially the carbon monocoques like this corima winiums

i will be happy given the normal aluminum spoked ones

you don't need training as long as you are physically active...

just don't follow the pace of the fast riders and go according to what you can afford to churn out...

I bought the go pro 3 black edition..the hd recording was awesome! I put it on a 3km test ride around my neighbourhood. Check the video if you have 10min to waste, there will be some sexy chicks caught on tape (just to lure u guys..but really there are some nice chicks in it)

P/s: i call it the crotch cam!

won't the wind from the vents cause discomfort?