Scribe 365 Disc Wheelset

The Scribe 365-D wheelset gives an obvious clue to its intended use in the name – a wheelset to be used year round, and in all conditions. With a competitive weight and price, and quality rims and spokes, these should be on your shortlist.

• Pros: Tough rims, quality spokes, smooth bearings... a stiff wheelset that can cope with UK conditions
• Cons: Aluminium freehub body – powerful riders may prefer a steel option

I was excited to test this wheelset, as being an all-weather but fairly heavy rider (currently 92.5 kilos) I get through wheels for a pastime. Most often I snap spokes in either front or rear wheels, the bearings get graunchy, or the splines of soft alloy cassette freehub bodies get dug into and damaged.

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My riding buddies and my local bike shop are often puzzled how I manage to break so many wheels, so when I saw the Scribes had a 115kg weight limit I was intrigued to see how they would bear up. Note that 115kg is bike weight plus rider weight and any luggage. Scribe recommends regular checks if the rider weighs over 105 kilos.

Both bikes I would be testing the wheels on are currently quick release, but the Scribe wheels came out of the box set up for thru-axle so I had to knock out the thru-axle end caps and fit the quick release ones. This proved a little tricky initially, as they refused to budge being tapped out from inside, so I ended up resorting to pliers to pull them out before swapping over to the supplied quick release adaptors. They were really stuck on.

I also had 6-bolt rotors, so had to use the supplied 6-bolt adaptors. I had to back out the grub screws on these slightly, to allow enough purchase for the disc, then do up the lockring with a cassette lockring tool. Swapping the cassette from my OEM wheels onto the Scribes, it seemed a shame to be fitting the cassette over the really cool bright green cassette body. These bright green cassette body splines are the only standout colour on the wheels, everything else is completely black, apart from the white of the small Scribe sticker.

So, after some initial faffing, I was all set. I can vouch for the quality of all of the various end caps and adaptors that Scribe supplies with the wheels; they're nicely made, and blend in with the rest of the wheelset. Nothing looks like an added-on afterthought.

A first look over the wheels suggested they were really nicely made: the 26mm deep rims seemed surprising substantial, the Sapim spokes were all straight and the wheels spun true. Swapping my 28mm Vittoria Rubino G+ tyres over was no problem, despite moving from 17mm internal to 19mm on the Scribes, and they went on easily. I also tried 32mm Panaracer Gravelking tyres on them as well, again with no issues in fitting at all.

There is the option to set these up tubeless (valves are included). I used them with inner tubes initially, running them at approximately 75psi. However, for completeness of the review I also tried them tubeless, using Stan's No Tubes sealant. I needed to use a good blast of air, or CO2 in my case, to get them to seal. After using a shot from a CO2 cartridge I soon heard the "POP! POP! POP!" as the bead seated itself onto the rim.

Running them tubeless at 50psi, the slight harshness of the tough rim disappears because of the lower pressure.

Performance

My commute involves 20 miles each day of mucky cyclepath and back roads, a few shallow kerbs to negotiate, and the odd pothole. Over the five weeks of testing I managed around 500 miles. I wasn't particularly gentle with these and did hit a few potholes, a few corners cut – ploughing across gravel rather than taking the long way round junctions, and some kerbs negotiated to avoid traffic – but nothing out of the ordinary that I wouldn't do with my previous OEM wheels.

A few times hitting potholes I was sure I must have done some damage, as the Scribes have a pretty stiff ride, but they stayed intact. They've coped well with some absolutely atrocious weather too; I am not ashamed to admit my backside has suffered for this test, and I have been drenched and soaked through several times, but the Scribes have kept on spinning freely. I even managed a few top 10 Strava times (for the year) on them.

Personally, I really like the stiffness of the wheels. At 26mm, they are not particularly deep, but they are certainly stiff, and you will feel more of the road surface if you are upgrading from shallower rims. I guess if you are not used to a stiff feeling wheel it might be something to consider, as shallower rims tend to have a bit more give in them. Lateral stiffness, however, was excellent, and there is no brake pad rub or feeling of flex at all. They just stay put.

Showing up at the weekly Sunday ride, the Scribes invited absolutely no comment from anybody. They are very anonymous wheels, with just the small and easily removable Scribe logo on them. This is just a sticker, so if you wanted to go completely stealth it is no trouble to take off with fingernails, a hairdryer and some WD40. If you are looking for bling wheels to make your bike stand out from the crowd, these are probably not for you.

On 40-ish-mile weekend rides, powering along filthy mucky lanes and getting the bike absolutely covered in mud, the Scribes kept on spinning. At least with the lack of "bling" on the wheels, you feel you can use them for how Scribe has advertised them.

One thing these particular Scribes don't have, which many of the more expensive ones in the Scribe range do, is the Scribe 54-tooth engagement hub. These 365-Ds only have a 3-pawl system, and it is noticeable when starting off on the bike that there's a good few degrees of motion before the pawls engage and power starts being transferred. Bear this in mind when shopping on the Scribe website, as it is one of the only wheelsets that doesn't get the better hub.

After more than a month of testing I removed the cassette to view the wear on the freehub body. Unfortunately, the same has happened to the Scribes as I often find with aluminium freehub bodies. The steel cassette had started to eat into the soft aluminium significantly, making the cassette difficult to remove. This was a real shame as the rest of the construction is so high.

If Scribe could resolve this, by changing the design to steel or offering a steel option, this would be a solution for more powerful riders, and really allow the wheels to live up to their name. As the Scribes are already competitively light, it would barely affect the weight.

Edit: Scribe tells us that it has been working on an anti-bite guard for some time and will have this soon for both its 365s, and its Ratchet Drive hubs. Scribe also says that if any customers have an issue with bite when changing cassettes, it'll replace the freehub body free of charge.     
 

Value

At £290, the Scribes are pretty good value for money. They're a little cheaper than some I felt to be in the same ball park cost-wise and feature-wise, though other factors do come into play.

The Mason X Hunt 4 Season Disc wheels are £329 and have a similar weight, but the Hunts do have an anti-bite guard on the cassette freehub body. This is a steel insert added to the freehub body to lessen the damage caused by powerful riders. The Hunts also include all the valves, thru-axle/quick release and Centerlock/6-bolt adaptors for fitting to a range of bikes. Hunt sells replacement bearings for its wheels very cheaply as well – £5.99 per bearing vs Scribe at £15 for a set of two bearings.

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Another alternative – Fulcrum's Racing 5s – are also a similar weight, although they don't come with the 6-bolt brake adaptors of the Scribes and have aluminium nipples as opposed to brass (and therefore would be more prone to oxidisation with winter salt on the roads). Although tubeless compatible, they don't include rim tape or tubeless valves, which would add to the cost of setting them up tubeless. They are £334.99 at RRP.

Shimano's RX31s have an RRP of £279.99 and are still available if you search around. The Shimanos weigh considerably more, but do have a very tough steel freehub body and easily user-serviceable bearings, although they are quick release only so won't appeal to those with thru-axle bikes.

Conclusion

Overall, I'd say the Scribe 365-D is a very good wheelset for all weathers. The wheels are stiff and tough for everyday use, and include a plethora of adaptors and valves to suit most setups, including tubeless. If they had a steel freehub they'd be even better.

Verdict

Decent value, toughened, everyday wheelset that can be ridden in the worst of conditions, and copes well with British roads