When 650c wheels fell out of favor for larger riders years ago, smaller riders who actually needed the smaller wheels for fit reasons have had a much smaller choice of wheels when it comes to high performance carbon wheels like the Zipp 404 FireCrest clincher. Hoping to remedy the situation, and make their wheel technology available to all, Zipp has now released a 650c version of their popular carbon clincher so those with small wheels can still be fast – theoretically that is, you’re responsible for the engine.
Boasting all of the same technology as its 700c big brother, the 58mm carbon clincher carries a weight limit of 250lbs with a combined wheel weight of 1465g. The wheels carry a 16/20 spoking pattern with a radial laced front wheel and 2x non drive and radial drive side rear lacing pattern. Like all FireCrest rims, the wheels have a wider brake track measuring almost a full 25mm which are meant to be stopped by the included Zipp Tangente Platinum Pro Evo brake pads. Wheels will also ship with Zipp Tangente butyl road inner tubes with removable cores, Zipp integrated valve extenders, valve extender wrench, quick release skewers and rim strips. The rear hub is compatible with 11 speed cassettes of all modern drivetrains, meaning Shimano, Campy and whatever else is coming. Consumers will have a choice of classic white or beyond black decals, and the wheelset will retail for $2,725.
Adding to Zipp’s #Zippfit revolution, they also introduced an all new Vuka Stealth full carbon aero bar set up, check it out after the jump.
While certainly not cheap at $1,070, Zipp’s new Vuka Stealth bar integrates the stem, basebar and all mounting hardware into one streamlined, UCI 3:1 legal piece. Bar extensions are sold separately, but it is compatible with all industry standard 22.2 extensions. According to Zipp’s math, the Vuka Stealth offers a staggering 1,920 different fit options which means it should be easy to find the proper fit while still keeping things as aerodynamic as possible.
The Stealth will be available in three separate stem lengths, short, medium, and long but each model also comes with a stem-length spacer adding an additional 10mm to the effective length of the stem – meaning there are basically 6 different stem lengths to chose from. Stem angle is fixed at 0º rise or what would be a -17º stem. Additional adjustments include stack and reach adjustments with options for pad width and pad position as well as extension width and length.
Crafted from unidirectional carbon fiber, aluminum and titanium hardware keeps the bits together and results in a total weight of 820 grams (medium with Zipp Vuka Race Carbon extensions). The bars are compatible with all current drivetrains and plug in style TT brake levers.
Not to leave anything out, Zipp wisely integrated a computer mount into the base bar that is at least compatible with Garmin mounts, though we’re guessing there are more options as well. If you want to know more about the Vuka Stealth, Zipp is having the bar’s engineer@waitebe take over the @ZippZpeed Twitter account tonight at 6:30pm EST to answer any questions. Be sure to use the hashtag#ZippFit to take part.
