In addition to new trail bike saddles, Shimano’s PRO component brand has a new 3-spoke carbon wheel option for the opposite end of the racing spectrum – time trialing. The new Pro Tri-Spoke Clincher takes their popular three spoked tubular carbon front wheel raced by Shimano sponsored athletes in TTs and triathlons, and adds a clincher variant to make it a more viable option for amateur racers.
Pro Tri-Spoke Clincher aero wheel
The new Tri-Spoke Clincher front wheel directly carries over the same aerodynamic shaping as the race-proven tubular. Keeping the same 65mm deep aero rim profile and same three spokes, the clincher version opts for an aluminum rim bed and braking surface. That brings wheel weight up to 1040g (that 275g more than the standard tubular variant), but will offer the added convenience for racing & even training if you don’t have a support car following behind in case you puncture.
The new wheel gets a 3K 2×2 carbon weave finish to match the clincher disc, not opting for the more expensive hi-mod Textreme carbon only available in the tubular wheels. The Tri-Spoke Clincher front joins the rear Disc Wheel Clincher that Pro already had in their line-up for a couple of years.
The alloy rim extrusion looks to stick with the same 17c internal that Shimano says pairs well with a 25mm clincher. The wheel itself is built on Ultegra 6800 hub internals. The new PRO Tri-Spoke Clincher will be available from January 2018.
