Re: Advice Needed:HED 3's or Zipp 404s?: Bikefanclub.com

Zipp 404 are strong and comfortable.

Zipp 404s use the Sapim CX-Ray spoke. This particular spoke is so good that Sapim says if it breaks at the head, the wheel was not built right. Zipp agrees. It did an entire rebuild on the wheel of a friend of mine. (There was no rim damage)

The head is far lighter, therefore easier to accelerate.

I rode a trispoke on the rear of my Softride for tens of thousands of miles before the bearing hole became too big for the bearings (and no longer round)

I doubt if the Zipps will make it much past 10,000 miles, so the cost of using them is about ten cents a mile. Most people say the rims will fail before the hubs.

I use Zipp brake pads which are true racing pads(translation: expensive and effective). The pads work exceptionally well without marking the rim, but the pads wear out quickly under heavy braking.

Heds have a normal aluminum strip for braking.

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