The Wheelset:

What makes your bike go round.

Welcome friends to "The Wheelset" page of Get-Into-Cycling.com. How does pedal power get transmitted to the ground to make the bike move? Well, through the wheels, of course. Think of them as the legs of the bicycle. Just like the frameset is the skeleton that gives the bike its form, the wheelset is an essential part of the whole body of the bike. Without the wheels to propel the bike forward, the skeleton would be useless.

In this section we'll cover the different types of wheels and tires available on a variety of different bikes for a variety of different riding types.

Types of wheelsets:

The wheelset receives the most punishment of all the parts of the bike, hitting every rock, pothole or curb.....all the while protecting the rest of the body of the bicycle.

The wheelset shown in the photo above is a traditional type for a roadbike, although mountain bike, bmx and many other types of bicycles use this design of wheel. Wheels of this design are usually made of light aluminum alloy or light steel and have anywhere from 32 to 36 spokes. But that's where the similarity ends. Let's look at the differences:

- Road, touring, hybrid bike, recumbent wheelset: These wheels are usually built for speed, are extremely lightweight and have superior handling and grip on paved surfaces. They usually are very stiff and generally have uncomfortable riding characteristics, compared to say a mountain bike wheelset.

Road bike wheels come in a variety of sizes, but the most common sizes are the 27" diameter and the 700c (centimeter) diameter. Recumbents can range anywhere from 16" to 700c sizes. Some road bike wheels also have less spokes to reduce weight and wind resistance. These wheels are designed more for racing and tend to be very pricey. The wheelset shown in the photo below is an example of one.

- Mountain bike, beach cruiser, comfort bike, city bike wheelset: These wheels are more robust compared to road bike wheels and are designed with strength, durability and comfort in mind. The rims walls are usually double the thickness of road wheels, which adds to the weight, but increases their survivability if they should come in contact with, let's say, a large rock or a curb.

These wheels also have a wider footprint compared to road bike wheels allowing them to traverse over uneven or slippery terrain. The most common size is the 26" diameter wheel, although there are mountain bike wheels with 24" and 29" diameters.

- BMX and Kid's wheelset: The wheelset of these bikes usually share the same charactersitics as mountain bike wheels but in a smaller size. Common sizes are 16", 18" or 20" diameters. Weight is usually not a factor, given their smaller diameter, so the wheels are usually constructed of steel. However the wheelset for a BMX racing bike are lighter and stronger than their non-racing counterparts.

Tires and tubes: The shoes of the bike.

But it's not just the wheels alone that do this job. A good set of wheels must also be equipped with a good set of tires and tubes. The tires are the "shoes" of the bike. It's what provides the grip to the road surface. Just like for automobiles, there are various types of tires out there for different riding conditions:

- Clinchers: The traditional setup is a tire with an inner tube. These are called "clinchers." The vast majority of bikes, road, mountain, bmx, etc., are equipped with a clincher wheelset. The tire has a wire bead that runs along both sides of it. The bead fits into a rim "lip" and holds in place when the inner tube is inflated.

Inner tubes come in a variety of materials from rubber to special "puncture proof" materials. Inner tubes are also available with two different types of valves. Let's look at both:

- Presta: This type of valve uses no springs to seal itself. Instead, the air pressure inside the tube pushes the valve closed, thus preventing air from escaping. The top of the valve also has a small bolt that can be screwed down to prevent the air from accidently escaping.

- Schrader: This is the valve that is used on automobile tires. This valve has a spring loaded mechanism inside the valve stem that closes regardless of air pressure in the tube. Air is allowed in, by pushing a pump head into the valve stem. The pump head pushes down the spring loaded pin inside the valve stem open allowing air to flow in. Once the pump head is removed, the spring pushes the valve mechanism up, sealing the air inside the tube. Air can be release by pushing the pin inside the valve stem down.

- Sew-Ups/Glue-Ons: Another special type of road tire is the "sew-up" or "glue on" tire. This type of tire has no inner tubes since the tube and the tire are one and the same. This type of tire is literally glued on to the surface of the rim. Sew-ups are much lighter than clinchers because they have no separate tubes. The sew-up wheelset are also lighter because they have no rim lip.....just a smooth surface for the sew-up to glue on to.

The disadvantage of sew-ups is that if you get a flat, your only options are either to #1, remove the old tire and "glue-on" a new one in place (a very messy job if you've never done it before) or #2, sew the tire up with a special sewing kit (hence the name "sew-up." Another disadvantage is if you do not glue the tire properly or if the glue becomes old and brittle, the tire can come off the wheelset prematurely during a ride, causing you to crash.

- Tubeless or UST: Originally designed for mountain bikes, this type of setup looks similar to a clincher, but without any inner tubes. The tire mounts on just like a clincher. The wheelset is either designed specifically for tubeless (with sealed spoke holes and valve openings, just like an automobile wheel) or a modified clincher wheelset with special rim strip and sealed valve opening.

The advantages to this type of setup is the elimination of pinch flats, since there are no tubes to pinch. The disadvantages, however, are #1, it's price (a little more expensive than a standard clincher setup), #2, they are more difficult to mount compared to clinchers due to it's airtight seal and #3, you still need to carry tubes with you anyways if you get a puncture.

Tire widths:

Tires are not only available in different diameters, but different widths as well:

- Thinner widths on road bikes, for example 700c x 20 are designed for high speeds and cornering such as racing. Comfort is not even in the equation, just performance. Wider tires like 700c x 35 are designed for comfort and maximized shock absorbancy, such as for long distance touring rides and for carrying heavier loads or traversing off road.

- On mountain bikes, thinner wheels like 26" x 1.50 are designed for open, flat, hard packed fire roads whereas larger 26" x 2.125 tires are more capable on soft, muddy terrain.

The hubset: The core of your wheels.

So what connects the wheelset to the bike frame? The hubsets (or hubs) does that job. The hubs allow the wheels to spin while remaining securely attached to your bicycle frame's dropouts (see "The Frameset" page for more on dropouts).

The photo above is an example of the hub for the front wheel, whereas the photo below is an example of the rear hub. The rear hub does double duty as part of the drivetrain. The circular tube around the spindle is called a "freehub" body. This is where you would attach a cassette (see "Drivetrain" section).

What locks the wheelset hubs to the frame? For most bikes, that would be a device called a quick release skewer (pictured above). The quick release locks on to the frame's dropouts by twisting a lever (usually on the non-drive train side of the bike) towards the bike, which causes the quick release skewer to compress together, holding the wheel firmly to the frame.

Other bikes use a nutted hub, which is tightened on to the frame by using an appropriate sized wrench. You'll even find older "10-speed" style bikes from around the 60's and 70's equipped with large "butterfly" nuts that are hand tightened.

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