Zipp 1080 Front Wheel Tubular

Comparing the H3 to the Zipp 1080

Update:  January 31, 2011:  I was researching the Zipp 1080 tubular front wheel on Google so I could answer an Ebay buyer's question and surprisingly I found this very post to be ranked pretty high in the search results.  So as a result I have decided to take this opportunity to change this post's primary purpose of being solely as supplemental to selling this wheel on Ebay, to a site that informs my readers about this amazing wheel (Apparently I am biased, but at the same time I try very hard not to make crap up).

To read about the details/specifications of this wheel see Zipp's website here.

To learn even more about the history of this wheel and it's manufacturer see wikipedia's information here.  

Now here's my experience with this wheel.  It is a fast wheel period.  Under certain conditions it is the fastest front wheel ever produced (no single wheel is the fastest in all conditions)  Yet it is a specialized wheel.  It's sole purpose is for speed through aerodynamics. Aerodynamics can not be understated in the sport of cycling.  To be sure, read my post on the effects and the variables related to speed and aerodynamics here.

Realistically this wheel is only valuable for the discipline of time-trialing (it's rim is too deep for the quickest accelerations and best bike handling comparatively).  The 1080s single biggest Achilles heel  is strong, gusty cross-winds. I would like to say from personal experience this wheel handles very much like a tri-spoke wheel.  Both are spooky to time-trial on with gusty cross winds.  For strong gusty cross winds I would advise running a shallower rim depth such as available by any of the major manufacturers such as Easton, Bontrager, Hed, Ritchey, Campagnolo, Lightweight, Zipp, etc.  I've seen recent performance studies and they are nearly all a wash, with Hed and Zipp being slightly superior to other brands.  That being said, Hed's website
claims/shows that their Stinger 6 being superior in aerodynamics ($2100 per pair) compared to Zipp's 404 ($2,400).

I'm throwing in this link because it has some really really cool graphics of what air looks like as it is passing this wheel when moving at 40kph

I'm throwing in this link because it has some really cool images of some time trial machines, wind tunnels and top riders (otherwise it's a bust from my point of view).

Here's a link to Zipp again, only this one is about the dimpled surface of the wheels and it's effects

You might notice that I have a sell ad at the top of this post to Amazon.com for a Zipp Tangente tubular tire.Zipp Speed Weaponry Tangente Tire - Tubular One Color, 700c/21mm  A couple of things about that:  Many bike shops don't carry them, so that is why I installed a Vittoria on my wheel, but Zipp says their data shows that this tire is the best for performance.    At anyrate, I always recommend buying from your local bike shop if possible, but if not, then you should buy off the links from this site.  (Hey, I have my own Amazon.com store at the bottom, y'all!)


 Now back to the selling post
This should be a fun post.  I'm going to share with everyone all the fun that goes with Ebay and the questions and answers that come from it when selling an item.

Be warned all correspondence related to the sale of this wheel will be public knowledge. 

First my actual ad, it can be found here:   Basically it's the above wheel for sale.

Here's my first two responses in the first few minutes:

Pretty funny Mr. Tenterelli!  This is an inside joke. A friend of mine who I'll allow to remain anonymous, suckered me with a joke with the punchline "tenterelli".

The joke is as such:  I saw a dent in a bike frame and asked my friend about it.  He said the dent was actually caused by a bullet. 
Incredulously I said, "No way.  You're joking."
Sincerely he says, "No, I wish I was." and then he goes on with this long detailed elaborate story about how at some recent  bike expo thing that was held outdoors behind the Hearnes Center (here in Columbia) under tents, there was a bizarre incident involving some thug kids who got into it with some vendor and next thing you know, shots were fired!  It was a bizarre thing and one of the bullets actually ricocheted off the top tube of his bike.

He went into great detail, and even seemed to be a little upset recalling it. 
He even had evidence.   The top tube of his bike looked exactly like what I would imagine a small caliber bullet might do to a bike tube, with a glancing blow (I used to target shoot as a kid, so I had supportive experiential reference).

So he goes on with his story and says that during a police interview about the shooting he learns from the police that this incident is related to a group that travels around the country harassing and  trying to extort money from venders, specifically outdoor venders that operate under tents.  

I was hanging on his every word until he told me the name of this group of thugs.

"They call themselves, the Tentarellis."

I'm going to guess that Mr. Tentarelli isn't going to be the final high bidder.

Here's what I've gotten so far on facebook:

I'll update as I go.  I may or may not delete this post after the auction.  It depends on how good this gets.

The auction will end @ February 5, 2011 12:34:25 Central time (United States)

Good luck buyers!

Quick update:  Sat. 29th, 6:20pm and I'm up to $5.50.  Lookin' goooooood!
On my ebay description I clearly indicate no international shipping, but I've just received a request for me to reconsider.

It's not that I'm against international shipping because I'm a xenophobe.  It's that international shipping is very expensive and I feel my risks go up concerning having a bad exchange.

Check out the image below of some Specialized Tri-spokes that I sold overseas (Hong Kong) last year.

You are probably thinking, "Why in the heck, did he package them like frozen pizzas?"  The answer is shipping costs.  If the box was even an inch wider,  the shipping cost would have doubled from $50 per wheel to $100 per wheel. 

I find it a huge hassle to ship large items overseas, the boxing, the long time shipping, and thereby long time clearing of PayPal fees.  It's not my cup of tea.

With that said, I recently sold my sub-nine wheel, got the same question (during auction) to allow international shipping, saw that the buyer had a perfect feedback score, so I said sure.  Of course he didn't end up with the final highest bid.  I've noticed that folks who ask questions almost never end up with the final  highest bid.  I don't know why, but it's just something I noticed.

My suggestion:  If you really want to win the auction don't ask any questions, just bid really high (waiting until the last 5 seconds doesn't always work out).

Update January 31,2011 11:46am:  Here's my latest questions and I provide my answers immediately following:

ski4ever:  As per my Ebay ad:  I bought this wheel used.  My research tells me that it can not be older than 2008 because Zipp did not manufacture them before this date.

Really the manufacture date is inconsequential for several reasons.  1. It isn't a perishable item (time/age has zero effect on it's performance)  2. The manufacturer hasn't made any changes in it's design since releasing it  [correction:  the 2008 model had internal spoke nipples and therefore my wheel is a 2009]3. How the wheel was treated/used is the critical factor as to it's value, not age of manufacture.

As I've said in my ad, this wheel is pristine and hardly used.  A wheel of this quality can literally be ridden for tens of thousands of miles before the bearings have significant wear.  I've ridden it around a hundred miles and have given it the highest care.  Typically timetrial wheels like these see very low use and mileage because they are so specialized to just time-trialing. 

I would like to make the point that my used wheel is literally superior to a brand new one.  Why?  Because the wheel is of the exact performance and quality of a new one (possibly better with "broken in bearings".... not quite as tight) and most importantly it has a nearly new tubular tire already glued on.  My wheel is ready to race right now!  Not only does it's buyer not have to purchase a $100 plus tubular to ride it, but mine is correctly glued on with the most ideal valve extension.  To be sure see my link on how I glue on tubulars.

To a1950fan:  I never sell items that I put up for auction outside of Ebay's policies.  In other-words, I will not stop an auction so I can cheat Ebay out of fees.  My ad does have a buy it now price, so I've already indicated what I'm willing to sell the wheel for.  Good luck bidding.