2% Weight Reduction (Wheels)

he nonsense about lighter wheels making a big difference will be repeated forever regardless of how much independent evidence to the contrary is available. 

It's been the same with narrower tyres or higher pressure being faster, stiffer frames being more "efficient", road pedals transfering power "more effectively" etc etc... All based on errr... feel firm beliefs and scraps of often valid but incomplete or irrelevant data taken out of a wider context. 

P.S. I must say though the Earth felt so flat when I was cycling to work this morning.

Just the extra fun and placebo factor of riding lighter wheels (half a kg min I'd say) is enough to make it worthwhile.

Zippier and easier acceleration from the billion lights and junctions on my commute means a better riding experience for me personally.

The little experiment mentioned here found that extra weight at the rim, even as little as 50g, slows you down measurably when accelerating up a hill compared to weight at the hub.  

https://www.cyclist.co.uk/in-depth/143/rim-weight-vs-hub-weight

I'm going to come at this from a different angle.

Do I notice the difference in wheel weights probably not as mush as I think.

Do I notice the difference in carbon stem and alloy, probably not.

Do I notice the difference in bar weight, probably not

........ 

Do I notice that it all adds to to a summer bike being 2kg lighter than my winter bike,oh yes.

You definitely won't notice the weight difference.

Depending on the quality of the build you might notice better performance, especially on climbs.

What hasn't been mentioned is rim width. The Hunts are a wide rim and here you might notice the difference with  the tyre sitting better because of this extra width. Run them tubeless and you will really notice a difference. You might even be able to run a wider tyre too which will give even better (lower) rolling resistance.

... adding to that.. get a set of 46mm deep rims from light bicycle for £300 delivered, use the dt350 hubs (matching the hole count!) you already have and spend £125 taking the bits to your local bike shop to build you the wheels up with spokes and manpower. 

Best of all worlds.. lighter, wider, cheaper and faster!

Yeah and nah - can't say i've seen a site that actually bases their figures on the acceleration due to pedalling, generally seem to be an average power / VAM calculation which gets more simplistic the higher the grade/lower the cadence ; then again, would the better analysis come up with anything that makes a radical difference ?... almost certainly not.

It depends where the 160g is located. On the frame (or on you!) you most probably wouldn't notice. However, the further out on the wheels, the more you might notice it. At the hubs, probably not. At the rims, maybe. In particular - depending how sensitive you are to different levels of personal fitness/performance, tyre pressures/bike performance, road and wind conditions  - you might notice 160g (80g per wheel) out at the rims in terms of acceleration but you'd have to be pretty in tune with your body/bike! I changed tyres and tubes once and saved about 150g per wheel and that was defninitely noticeable, escpecially on long steady climbs where each push on the pedals is an effort and a mini 'accleration' - here is where you *might* notice a small decrease in rotating weight (or just flat-out accelerating!).

I also wouldn't dismiss deep section 'aero' rims due to cross-wind issues. Yes, if you are going 50/60mm deep and above then you definitely may feel a little more buffeting in cross winds but i have some 38mm (and some 50's) deep aero profile carbon rims and they are much more predictable in windy conditions than the 30/32mm deep non-aero aluminium rims they replaced, particularly in front-quarter cross winds or into a headwind. Due to the aerofoil profile they remain much more 'planted' when the wind around the wheels switches from side to front e.g. as you pass a gap in a hedge, or as a large vehicle passes you. Yes, with a direct sidewind you feel a larger force pushing due to the higher surface area but it is much less 'snatchy' when the direction changes and it is rare that you get a continuous sidewind unless you are cycling along a long straight exposed road, e.g. along a coast. With my old wheels I guess the air passing them was more turbulent due to the 'sharp' edges on the inside of the rim and with changes in the angle of the wind they could 'flick' noticeably  leaving you feeling somewhat wobbly in gusty conditions! The deeper aero rims feel like a knife through butter in many ways, most especially into a big headwind. Maybe some of this is phsycological though?

At the end of the day a new set of wheels, even if only 160g lighter (maybe more with suitable tyre/tube choices?), might give you nothing more than a phsycological 'boost' but that could be all you need? If you start cycling quicker for a reason (whether equipment or phsycological), that will improve your general fitness level, which in itself will allow you to cycle quicker again! Its a win-win!

Thing is, you've already got a decent set of wheels on your bike.

Just make sure they are serviced every year, I dont think you need to bother replacing them.

Just upgraded to some 52mm rims.  Saved about 50g over my old wheelset.  Am I any faster?  No idea yet as I've not been out for a decent ride yet.  Do they make a cool noise?  Yes.  Do they look really cool on my bike?  Hell yes.  Do I look 'all the gear and no idea'?  Absolutely!

Your wheels are reasonably good at the moment so an upgrade won’t give you a massive improvement.

if your tyres are bad then an upgrade there might be better, conti 5000 tubeless or none depending on your chosen poison. 

Latex inner tubes? 

Rock n roll dry lube? 

Go to Light Bicycle and get some 55mm carbon clinchers on DT hubs for about 600USD. That’s all these companies are doing, but they add their own sticker and charge you a premium in the process. You won’t notice the weight, but you will notice the aero

If you're gonna go carbon, go carbon. I wouldn't personally bother with less than 50mm...in fact my next set will be 60mm cos more is better

You'd notice half a kg in weight difference, though wheels are more than just aero vs weight - stiffness and hub stuff is also important. Whether you are a heavyweight or not may affect your choice too...if heavyweight then definitely go more aero...else it's possible you'll get blown around more on deeper rims if you're pretty light. Go 40mm in that case

Hunt freewheels are loud, but not as loud as Hope

I definitely do notice the different feel of my Campag Shamals vs my Fulcrum R5s.  Feels a bit like an unseen hand giving a gentle push up short inclines.  They are lighter and stiffer, I guess this means more of my huffing and puffing is converted into forward motion.

Hunt have a 60 day 'ride and return' policy... try 'em, what's to lose...?

"Would I really notice the weight reduction of 160g"

No.

Ride with 160ml of water in your bottle. Pour it out. Ride some more.

Can you tell the difference?

Unless you intend to be a specialist 55Kg hill climb trialist, there are far more performance benefits to be unlocked by going aero before weight saving. A good set of 40mm ish rims will not cause problems in cross winds (my experience using Reynolds Assaults at 41mm), they look good (personal opinion of course), and one of the benefits of disc brakes is that the rim can be profiled for aerodynamics alone without the necessity of a brake track.

Decent wheels, properly maintained will give thousands of miles of service all the time increasing your happiness factor by at least 2%. I'd take 2% happiness over 2% weight reduction any day!

  Would I really notice the weight reduction of 160g and is that worth £500 more?

Nope, you will not notice the difference.  But you will convince yourself because you spent far more than you should have

 I’m guesssing the hubs and rim stiffness will be a big improvement.  

No not really, unless you're powering up hills stood up

If you want to go faster buy some Ebay Chinese 60mm deep carbon wheels.  These will give you a little more speed-maybe 1mph ave and sound great.  Do like carbon wheel hum