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First Look: CES Sports £600 50mm carbon fibre wheels

Welsh company CES Sports show us newly UCI approved carbon fibre clincher wheels

The aftermarket carbon fibre wheel market has gone through the roof in recent years, with more choice and lower prices the defining trend. CES Sports is another company to add to that growing list, and the Welsh outfit recently dropped off some wheels for us to review. Before that happens, here’s a first look.

We say CES is a new company, it has actually been around since 2016 but we only started speaking to them last summer. The company was launched with the bold aim to “make carbon wheels affordable and accessible to the growing population of cyclists and triathletes, whilst at the same time trying not to cut corners on the quality.”

- The pros and cons of carbon fibre wheels

CES Sport RC50 Clincher Wheelset - rim detail 2.jpg

That quality has been noticed by the UCI, with the company just this week getting equipment approval from the sports governing body across its entire range. That means the company can partner with any professional cycling team that might be in need of a new wheel sponsor or individual athletes that need to ride approved equipment.

UCI approval is obvious and notable on frames, there’s a small sticker and everything, but less is known about the approval status of wheels and other key items of equipment that are sold for racing purposes. You can see what is involved in the UCI’s wheel testing here and the full list of approved wheels here.

But we digress… The company offers a range of carbon wheels from 38 to 88mm rim depths, what we’ve got in for test are the RC50 which, yes you guessed it, has a 50mm deep rim. That’s a really good all-around choice ideal for road racing and time trialling.

CES Sport RC50 Clincher Wheelset - rim bed.jpg

These are the clincher rim brake wheels - tubeless and disc brake versions are also available - with a 25mm wide rim made from Toray T700 carbon fibre and featuring a basalt brake track intended to resist the high temperatures often involved when braking, especially in the mountains or race scenarios.

The hubs are CNC-machined with Pillar PSR1423 aero bladed spokes with alloy nipples, 20 in the front and 24 in the rear. The wheels have a max rider weight limit of 120kg.

CES Sport RC50 Clincher Wheelset - rear hub.jpg

Claimed wheelset weight is 1,655g, but we weighed them at 1,580g so someone’s scales need calibrating.

Included with the wheels are carbon-specific brake blocks, rim tape, quick releases and a one year warranty. You can customise the rims with 11 colour decals to choose from.

These RC50 wheels cost £600 for the pair. Because the wheels are made to order, there’s a 4-6 week lead time. Shipping costs £9.95 in the UK and they’ll ship internationally as well.

CES Sport RC50 Clincher Wheelset - front hub.jpg

The company also offers a disc brake version of all its wheels, the RC50 Disc Brake wheelset costs £650. There are also three tubeless wheelsets in the range, the RC50 Tubeless costs £620.

Of course, £600 is still a lot of money, but before these came along the most affordable wheels from a reputable company was probably wiggle’s in-house Prime brand, with a set of carbon wheels currently costing £699.98. Or there’s Hunt with its 36Carbon Wide Aero wheels costing £880.  

So £600 seems a very competitive price indeed, and we'll be finding out if they live up to this promise once we start testing them. Stay tuned for the full review soon. 

www.ces-sport.co.uk

- 26 of the best road bike wheels 

David worked on the road.cc tech team from 2012-2020. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds, and you can now find him over on his own YouTube channel David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes

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4 comments

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sneckyat1972 | 6 years ago
1 like

Carbon wheels at this price will be of interest to a many riders who either don’t have the money or think the prices being charged for so-called top end wheels is utterly ridiculous. That’s me on both counts. The review does not discuss where they are made but they do look quite similar to those from many of the Chinese companies down to the Pillar spokes and generic looking hubs. I may be wrong: the rims might be artisan crafted in a shed in Wales but at this price it’s very unlikely.

The Chinese companies with decent reputations such as Far Sports and Light Bicycle will be charging about £350-£450 for similar spec. So £600 for these might not seem too much of a premium to deal with a UK based company and know there won’t be any extra charges through customs. I do think though that more investigation  from the reviewer and openness  from the growing number of UK based companies offering carbon components would allow customers to make informed decisions as to what it is they are actually buying.  

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matthewn5 replied to sneckyat1972 | 6 years ago
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sneckyat1972 wrote:

generic looking hubs.

I could be wrong, but they look like Powerway R13 hubs. I have a set on some cheapish handbuilts and despite my misgivings they have been absolutely fine so far.

http://power-way.com.tw/phb-r13.htm

http://power-way.com.tw/pfh-r13.htm

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ChetManley | 6 years ago
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Make some gravel/cx disc ones and I'll start saving my pocket money.

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cjwebb | 6 years ago
0 likes

Recently seen on probikekit that they are now selling Venn's innovative carbon wheels.
With one of their ubiquitous discount codes, can be had for well under £700 for 50mm deep wheelset

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