$793.11

Shimano has revamped their wheel line with the introduction of Dura-Ace 9100. This 60mm deep WH-9100-C60 Tubular wheelset demonstrates the depth of their improvements.

The rim is first and foremost. Shimano is embracing wide rims. This rim has a 28mm outside width, which not only increases air volume in existing tires, but makes wider tires, like 25mm wide tires, more aerodynamic, as the sidewalls are more flush with the rim walls. The depth, 60mm, is great for time trials, triathlons, and flat to rolling road races and crits. This new iteration is also faster than the wheel it replaces-by sixteen watts. That’s well beyond a marginal gain; it’s almost jumping a category.

Despite the depth and added material of the width, Shimano has kept the weight down. Wheel weights are 655g for the front and 816g for the rear.

Helping with the aerodynamics are the low spoke counts. The front wheel has only sixteen spokes. The rear uses Shimano’s new OPTBAL spoke system to improve rigidity while decreasing drag and minimizing weight. It’s shorthand for optimal balance and means they utilize 21 spokes in a 2:1 ratio, fourteen on the drive side and seven on the non-drive, to keep spoke tension high. The spokes are bladed, of course, and to even further the aero, the nipples are hidden in the rim.

The freehub body is made of titanium for light weight, and the internals have been reworked for lower drag and quieter freewheeling action.

The wheels come with skewers. The rims require Shimano’s RC55C4 pads, which are available in two widths, and need to be purchased separately. As Shimano designs the wheels as part of a system, they recommend you use these pads and only these pads, when riding these wheels.