November Bicycles Rolls Out Carbon Rail52 Aero Wheels, Price and Performance Look Hard To Beat

Saw these at the Civil War Century, they look awesome with minimal logos. I think the guy worked for November, or maybe just had a hook-up there.

Is there a plan for a tubular version? Any idea on rim weight?

November says there’ll likely be a tubular version in the future. The rim weigh is, according to November, coming at 500-520g.

jose – yes, they’re made in asia like most bike parts, no, they’re not the same as the $350 wheels, they’re a proprietary design.

Heard the first couple prototypes of these blew up..good design or not I don’t think their are enough manufacturing control for me to risk it.

REALLY ARE THESES GUYS KIDDING $612.00 CARBON WHEELS FROM YISHUN BIKE

Nathan,
Sorry to disappoint but you are incorrect. In addition to being significantly dimensionally different from the wheels you posted, our rims have a unique mark molded right into them. Plus the fact that we own the mold they’re made in, designed them, had a 3D prototype made and wind tunnel tested, etc.
Our wheels may not be for you, but they are only available through us.
Dave

At least you guys got his apologizes.

Nathan, it’s not really something they hide. They even list the novatec hub part numbers on the site. There used to be a blurb about selecting the best asian materials, etc.. but it appears to be gone now. What they are offering is basically a tidy’d up version, with skewers and a bit more QC than you get on eBay, with a few options for various parts. Better? I don’t know. I do know that many builders out there are doing this type of thing now, and while they’re all using the same basic parts, it’s pretty much on you to decide if the build quality is worth the price difference. Most custom steel frame builders use the same tube sources, too. (most) You’re paying for skill in choosing which tubes to put where, and how to join them.

I’ve put tubes together in the shape of a bike, and spokes and rims together in the shape of wheels. Would I pay this much? Nope, not at all. I can make something myself adequately comparable. Should anyone? Well, that depends. Do you feel skilled/patient enough to make em yourself? Then go for it! Do you feel skilled/patient enough to make a few hundred sets and put them under strangers? I don’t. Let these guys do their thing. Building things to sell from existing parts is pretty much the foundation of the bicycle industry, with very, very few exceptions and innovations.

@Bill: did you read the part about these rims not being open mold rims, that they are Novembers’s rims?

Chris, just curious – what made you think these guys don’t recycle? I may have missed something here. Not trying to stir the pot at all, just curious as i am a recycle and non-waste person myself.

You’re right, rico. I reread the article and somehow overlooked the part that talked about how Rad Johnny’s Planet-X November Fast Sticker Company USA, Inc. LLC’s engineers carefully considered the impact of their new product and weren’t just using pollutants crapped out of Chinese factories to make a quick buck. I don’t know how I missed it the first time.

You can design, test in wind tunnel… but at the end they are all the same – bulky wide peace of carbon. Asian version is just cheaper.. x2

Where are Zipp rims made? HED? Reynolds rims are made in China. Does it, in terms of quality, matter?

@WC: Zipps are made in Indianapolis. Enve’s are made in Utah. HED aluminum is made in Taiwan; not sure about their carbon.

I’d say it is safe to assume that any labor intensive product sourced in China is being produced under the same or worse conditions than those that are found in the factory which assembled your iphone. Until proven otherwise.

@EU, Strada Handbuilt Wheels in the UK is our European distributor – they can build up a set of Rails to your specifications and ship to anywhere in the EU.

@bikermark, our rims are manufactured under contract in Taiwan, not China.

@Chris, you’re right that we don’t have a formal recycling program (though incorrect about any bucks being “quick” – we’ve been doing this since 2010 and it’s hardly a layup). When most bike components reach the end of their lifecycles they’re in customers’ hands, not the brands’. But you’re also right that it’s important and if you have thoughts on how to put a recycling program in place for our customers I’d like to speak with you. You can get in touch here: http://www.novemberbicycles.com/contact

There is just something off about a bike company that from the start was based solely on importing and rebranding existing products. I haven’t quite pinned it down. Whether it’s profit over passion, or profit over proficiency, in the end I just don’t have any respect for it.

Granted, this is just my opinion. Not everyone can be Richard Sachs. But who would want to be Walmart?

So why make such (relatively) expensive hoops and ruin them with caliper brakes? I went to discs (on my cross bike) and never looked back. I’ve read November’s blog before and they are adamantly against disc brakes in cross. The road revolution is on hold for now ( hope Cookson changes that) but the cross revolution is here to stay.

I don’t own the new Rails but I have an older pair of RFSW 50s from November. November installed a Powertap for me. I have raced them for 2 years now and they have been great. Crits, Road races, training.. whatever. Lots of racers in MABRA (Mid-Atlantic Bike Race Association) ride November bikes and wheels. When I had any questions or concerns I’ve been able to get a hold of Mike or Dave and they have been responsive. I see that they have responded here to. Guys, keep doing your thing! And thanks for the great wheels, I would buy from you again for sure

@K11, apparently some folks are getting a lot for what they pay for the November Rails. As for not being on the same level as American manufactured CF rims, there is nothing to substantiate such a claim.

dave and mike are awesome guys and put in a lot of work designing, testing, and marketing these awesome wheels. If you want to support two local guys from Washington DC who built a business from nothing, considering purchasing their products.
Ian

As a DC local I see/work on tons of these rims/wheels. And frames.
They’re fine.
They are exactly as stated before, re-branded china carbon. You pay more for a warranty, some engineering in the US, and a brand name. But, they’re china carbon. Sometimes they have flaws, as any product.

I make this comment more to point out the value of “china carbon” – they produce high quality, low cost stuff, which is durable and affordable. That’s not something to hate on.

These wheels will never touch the HMIUSA appeal of Zipp / Enve. Nor will they ever touch the level of engineering and analysis that goes in to those products.

But for people who either can’t afford, or don’t understand why you should buy $2.8k wheels, these are an awesome alternative.

Ah Internet….the usual level of discourse and intelligence with a bunch of people commenting on wheels they’ve never ridden, without even bothering to read the article, much less the wealth of information on the November site. They have always been extremely up front about all of their products.

The ‘get what you pay for’ angle is particularly hilarious. If one really thinks that those huge price tags flow directly to vastly better R&D and Q/C then they have never been offered the ‘team discount’, or seen a sponsorship deal or a national media campaign, or looked at wholesale or distributor pricing.

I have about 25 wheelsets in my house – from the huge companies down to handbuilts from the LBS. 4 of them are from November: 2 of their older open molds, 1 set of their wide alloys and one set of the stock Rails. A set of the old RFSCs lives on my TT bike and I have over 15 crits and RRs on the Rails since they came out as well as lots of training miles. They are great all-around race wheels and at a price that’s fair and almost unheard of for a *proprietary* design – a good one at that.

You couldn’t pick a more transparent or responsive company to buy from outside of your LBS.

There are lots of other carbon wheels that claim they have their own mold like Boyd’s , Orr, Carroll , Rol and the list goes on and on…
I would like to see the results of the wind tunnel and UCI crash test.

Does Psi Squared ever say anything worth a crap???