ZIPP vs HED

You have a road bike and the weight difference makes a larger differnce in road racing so I would say yes....

Btw is there supposed to be a pun  "I'm in over my head looking" for "hed" wheels.

I would say no. Considering they are very close and the real difference between the two are the better hubs in ZIPPs and a different way of making a disc wheel. At about double the price, I guess you have to ask yourself this question.

Are maybe a few seconds for a 40k work 2x the price?

For road cycling... Those 2 seconds you just lost made you loose that wheel.  Have fun with the next 10 miles you got left in that RR.

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Thanks didn't notice....

Well here's why...

Looking at his photo...It looks to me that its a road bike.  In the future when he has both a road bike and tri bike he may want to participate in a road race.  There are differences between a RR and Tri and if he so chooses to participate in an RR he may find out why there is such gap in pricing for such little differences.   He wanted to know if its worth the difference in price and all I was trying to do was to show the pro's of the more expensive option.

xcrunner, your weight claim im not so sure about. while ZIPP is lighter in some comparisons, (clincher 404 vs. Jet 40) they are also heavier in others (clincher 808 vs. Jet 90) HED's Jet 90's are also 8mm deeper than the ZIPP 808's. anyway, you'll be happy with either purchase. the question is would you rather spend an extra grand for the ZIPPS? its your decision, but you'll find many opinions for and against both sides. I'm very happy with my Jet 90's as I had the same questions you did prior to this season. do some research, figure out how deep you want to go, and give yourself a price range and then see what fits. good luck with whatever you choose.

X2...
For best of both worlds..buy HED and Zipp Decals...A real Poser. 

nice......get a Jet 90 rear and an 808 front and have some custom ZIPP and HED decals made and mix and match on each wheel.....that would be a hilarious sight to see at a race

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Weight of the wheel is not the most important thing.  Some of the heavier zipp wheels become more aero and in turn save you more time while still being a little heavier than other wheels.

Zipp has the best hubs, they spend more time and money in the windtunnel than anyone in the bike industry.

If you CAN afford the zipps get them, if you want to save money and that time difference is not worth it, go HED.

IMHO

If you honestly think riding a HED wheel vs a high priced zipp would lose you in a race (road or otherwise), well...

2 seconds over 40k will not lose you a wheel, sorry.

Edit: Where not talking about a non aero heavy training wheel vs zipps. We're talking about two very high end wheels.

Edited by bradword 2009-06-02 1:11 AM

I'm a bigger guy (250lbs) and did the Orlando 70.3 in my HED Tri-Spoke Carbon Sew-ups. I love these wheels because (1) they are affordable and you can get them in clinchers or sew-ups for like 700.00 for the pair. (2) They are durable and not as rough on wind as a disc and (3), they are like 1/3 of the price.

I have friends that run zipps and although a P3 is an incredible bike, if you have a few extra lbs and aren't going with full dura-ace or SRAM compo's and grams are the discussion versus lbs, then stick with the HED's and put your money into some excellent bars or speedplay pedals or something you may not have thought about purchasing.

Wheels get beat up and again, if you are using something for only race day (maybe rent) or if they will be used during training, then go with a more economical wheel. In the long run, you won't notice the difference.

Good luck and I hope we all thoroughly confused you.

Jeff

There will be much more of a difference in how much the wind plays with you and how your legs feel than the difference between the two wheels.

I'm not much help, but this exact topic came up yesterday at the bike shop.

A guy came in saying his missed placing in his age group by 1min and was in there to "buy a minute" and was questioning the HED vs. ZIPP vs. REYNOLDS debate. Pretty interesting.

The shop recommended the Zipp's just because that's what they primarily sell. They stock both, but more people go with Zipps. Seems like they come in, go straight for zipp, and keep going. The fact that it's in high demand says something.

But then again the shop said they are more expensive and he needs to consider what type of wheel he wants (808, 1080, etc) before plopping to one brand.

Just a thought.

Just so you know, I find it funny that your wheel is going to cost more than my entire bike setup

I'm looking to trim an extra minute, as well.  A friend of mine who used to ride for a team told me that good aero wheels (Zipp 404s in his case) versus the stock Reynolds that I currently have could net me 1 to 1.5 MPH on flat terrain.  I'm about at about 22 MPH over a sprint tri distance (25k), hoping to notch it up over 23.  Can anybody confirm this, or does anybody have a different estimate?

FWIW, I have owned both Heds (Alps and H3s) and Zipps (404s and 808s). Really, the best way to decide for yourself is to get out and ride them.

The H3 is a bit heavier, yes...but weight is sort of irrelevant in tris (although the mental aspect can't be discounted). However, I found the ride a lot smoother and more "buttery". They do catch a bit of wind, more so than the 404s--but nothing too bad, and you can get a nice sail effect.

The 404s were like there was nothing between me and the road--both in terms of weight and in terms of teeth-jarring. I never even notice them in a crosswind.

The 808s have a nice ride, not as smooth as the H3, but not bad. I do get blown around a little sometimes--out of the three, they are definitely the hardest to handle in a windy race (20 mph+ winds).

Out of all of them, if I could only have one, I would most likely go 808s (which is what I am riding currently)...but the H3s, esp. the new ones would be a close, very close, second. I ended up with the 808s b/c when I was shopping for wheels (switched from 650s to 700s), I got the best deal on 808s. Had I found an equally good deal on H3s, I could have just as easily ridden those.

Edited by mmrocker13 2009-09-15 8:41 PM

I love my hed Jet 60's...but I've never ridden Zipps.  I know that at 195lbs I'm heavier than the recommended weight for my wheels, but they are extremely durable and have held up with no truing needed in the year I've owned and ridden on them.  The ride is also great.  No complaints from me.

Where are you finding these for $700 A PAIR??

ebay or slowtwitch, g/f got hers for 325 apiece there.

If there really was some MAJOR difference in performance, everyone would be using the same wheels. Fact of the matter is, both brands are great and you cant go wrong with either.

x2.

X whatever .........