HED Ardennes RA Black Rim Brake Alloy Wheelset

This is my second set of HED Ardennes, and I love them! I had the Ardennes Plus SL, but when those did not survive a collision with a car, I replaced with these RA Black versions. Firstly, they look really great with the blacked out braking surface. Secondly, they really do have exceptional stopping power - startled me at first. You do have to get used to the whistling of the machined surface when braking, so if you can give up your dreams of stealthy stopping, you'll be impressed with the stopping ability of these wheels. As with other Ardennes Plus wheels, they ride really, really nice. These are some really great all around wheels! I do wish HED had finished these differently as the slightly textured finish attracts more dirt. I would like to give these five stars because the wheels themselves deserve it, but I received my set with the front wheel out of true, right out of the box. If I had not waited three months for the wheels, I would have sent them back for another pair. I need to ask WBW if they can true the up for me.

I use this wheel for my everyday riding. I use it to do training on the hills. It climbs like nothing would stop it. It responses quickly. the width of the rims help you descentconering with super confident. Just point and go.

Very light. Easy rollup to speed. Love the wider rim. Because of the wider rim the actual tire surface on the ground is wider and it makes for a smoother ride. I have rim brakes and the noise is interesting but they stop on a dime.

Bought a pair in to use during my annual 6 week trip to the mountains of Colorado. I have a regular pair of Ardennes I've had for several years but thought I'd try out the Black version. Frisco is at 9000 feet and everything is uphill from there :). Lightweight and braking may be superior to my other bike (Disc brake). Sure beats carbon hoops in the rain. Only real downside is the accelerated brake pad wear which should be expected but was more pronounced then I envisioned. I haven't seen any reviews that mentioned this issue or recommended a certain brake pad. I was getting 150 to 250 miles on the front pads depending on the brand. Rear pads last a lot longer. My rides were typically mountain passes with aggressive riding on the way down. Will probably have a lot better mileage in South Texas where I spend the rest of the year.

Best light weight alloy wheels on the market! The fact that they are also tubular puts these at the top. I've put 500 miles on these wheels since purchase. Initially I had terrible brake noise but after degreasing the rims all is good. They compare in weight to composite rims. I bought these for a supper light bike build, so I went with rim brakes instead of disk. Since I'm using this bike for the hills I wanted alloy rims. I was having a hard time finding rim brake alloy wheels until I found these. The are light, tubular, excellent braking distance and firm on turns. The price point was they only downside. So when they popped up on sale I grabbed them. Very pleased that I did.

I haven't used these wheels on the road yet, but I can say the tubeless Schwalbe Pro One tires mount very easy and the new hubs look like a big improvement. They weigh about 10 grams less than the advertised 1430 grams which is very light. It also is amazing to see a manufacturer's weight claim accurate.

I have used the Ardennes SL Plus, set up tubeless and they are very, very, nice wheels.

The 23 mm Schwalbe Pro Ones measure 26 mm on these rims, and the 25 mm measure 28.5 .

I am anxious to try out this Black turbine brake track, I am expecting good results and Andy at Hed has been a very good person to deal with if questions need to be addressed.

Put these on my 15.2lb Focus Izalco. They are light and stop on a dime. Yes, an unusual braking sound, but no more unusual than carbon wheels. I have the previous Ardennes version that was slimmer than the new width. Must say, the wider rims/tubeless make mounting tires a challenge. I use tubes. Had to search for tires that would mount easier. Finally found some Hutchinsons that mounted easier. Not looking forward to having a flat on the road. Luckily, I don't get them much at all (knock on wood) . All in all a great wheelset and yes I would buy them again. I'm a big fan of HED wheels. Nice that they give an option to purchase a Campy or Shimano freehub.

This wheel set is my best of 3 brands for mounting Schwalbe tubeless. Ardennes must be a couple mm smaller than R brand wheels.

I have had a side puncture flat 25 miles into a ride and with thumbs and one spoon removed a bead and put a tube in like old days.

that isn't the case with 2 other tubeless wheel sets I have. I threw a set of early tubeless wheels in trash for there was no hope for

a field fix and even a heated garage tire mounting was miserable. These wheels are light , sturdy , fast and you can fix flats.

The Pros for this wheel Great looks, terrific braking, smooth rolling, made to accommodate 25c or 28c tires.

The Cons Rim tape provided for use with tubeless tires is also a MUST USE for tires with tubes to prevent tubes from being cut by spoke holes in the rim. Very difficult to mount tires with tubes (I haven't tried tubeless tires yet).