Zipp 404 Firecrest Carbon Clincher early review

A couple months back Iron Cycles was lucky enough to be invited to visit the Zipp factory in Indianapolis. Zipp was based in Speedway, Indiana for years, but a move to Indianapolis came along when the need arose for a much larger space.

The headquarters houses design, production, and distribution for Zipp products as well as distribution of many SRAM products. The facility is clean, well thought out, and state of the art.

After the tour we had a presentation from some of the designers and while listening to their wind tunnel data, enthusiasm, and thoroughness of their designs I "drank the Zipp Kool-Aid". I was so impressed with what they were doing I had to give their newest line of products a try.

We all know the tubular 303 is the bee's knees in cyclocross. I had a few sets that I raced on all season with nary an issue.

But what of this new Carbon Clincher model and the Firecrest shape?


First, Zipp was late to the party with a full carbon clincher, but seems to be that way for good reason. Zipp wanted to be absolutely certain their braking surface could handle the high-heat of long descents as well as provide the smooth stopping power we all want. I can say that in my experience Zipp hit a home run on those points.

More important to me though is how fast a wheel is. Who wants to spend nearly $3000 on bicycle wheels if they aren't fast?! I won't say that I feel night and day faster on them, but I can't easily compare them to 32-hole box-section rims since I rarely ride them. Zipp's wind tunnel data shows that the Firecrest shape is not only faster than just about everything on the market (including their previous generation 808...think about that for a minute) in low-wind conditions, but a lot faster in high-yaw conditions. Fast wheels in the wind? Now who would want something like that in Chicago?!

Now let's talk about the first 500 or so miles I have on these wheels. Riding solo does feel fast, but so did the previous 404's. If I am saving a few watts I can't tell because I don't have an accurate enough way to test. They certainly do feel like they are holding speed a lot easier than a set of HED Bastognes or the Zipp 101s.

Braking does feel solid and smooth, though I did notice some "whistling" coming from my rear wheel under heavy braking on my last ride. First time I've heard that, and maybe just a brake pad adjustment away from being fixed, but worth noting.

If there is one thing that I can walk away from initial testing on these wheels preaching is the way they handle cross winds. If you've ridden deep-section carbon wheels you've almost undoubtedly felt cross winds pushing you around. The new 404 Firecrest shape has NONE of that. It's really shocking to say, and more shocking to (not) feel, but these wheels are incredibly stable all the time.

For a 200+ lb rider, that might not be a deal breaker. Bigger riders won't feel the effects of cross winds on their wheels as much as lighter riders. But let's say you're 150 lbs, or even 110 lbs. This new shape allows you to run a deeper and faster wheel in much more gusty conditions without feeling unsafe or having the fear of being blown off of the road.

Triathletes and time trialists rejoice. This new shape called Firecrest is your ticket. So far a 404 and 808 version is available, I wouldn't be shocked to see a 1080 as well. The full-carbon clincher 404 and 808 are available as well as a tubular variant. My guess is a 303 version of the carbon clincher will be out before we know it, as well as disc wheels (I hope!).

I highly recommend checking these wheels out. If you're looking for an all-out race wheel, the tubular version might be for you. Save some weight and get the aerodynamic benefits. If you're training on them as well like I do, grab the carbon clincher model. You can't go wrong with either. They aren't cheap, but they sure are nice.

Whizzing by

This one came from a friend of ours, cBall. He helps us with a huge chunk of our tech stuff, as well as design, and enjoys riding as much as anyone at the shop.

A couple warm days in February and we’re thinkin’ sweet, spring’s springing and winter’s done. Punxsutawney Phil did call for an early spring. Although anyone who’s lived through a few Chicago winters knows better than to pack away the trainer. But for now we can hope the 20 inches stays away and we can roll into an early season…outside.

It’s pretty cool to see so many people out and about on their bikes. You kind of grin at the other cyclists cruzin’ around…give the “nod” thinking you’re part of some secret society that has it all figured out. It’s the kind of excitement like when you were a kid riding around with a card in your spokes.

So, the other night I was psyched to be out on the streets, I was riding south on Kedzie at a pretty good clip and passed another rider. I looked over as I passed and said: “Hey man, what’s up?” I was fully expecting a similar response, but instead got a strange stink-eye look at the back of my bike. Why the look? And then like music to my ears, my King continued to Whizz.

It was the reassurance of cool that is always welcomed…the hubs, not me. As I continued to whizz down Kedzie, I enjoyed one of my favorite activities of getting lost in the saddle. So during this winter respite we can all think of what the new season will bring. New wheels? New saddle? A 29er? Whatever comes our way, we can all hope winter continues to whizz past.

SNOW DAY!

It shouldn't be much of a surprise to many of you, but we're taking a snow day like just about everyone else.

I'll be in the shop for a few minutes putting finishing touches on bikes for customers, so if you need something call...never know, you might get lucky and catch me!

"Fire" SALE "secret" image.

Lots of quotation marks, eh?

"Fire" SALE! January 28 and 29!

Ok ok, there's no fire (knock on wood). But there IS a lot of construction coming leaving us with a great new look at the store on it's way. Starting February 1 the shop goes under the knife to make the retail and training side into ONE store instead of two!

This is where the sale comes in: there will be dust. Lot's of dust. So we were at the shop today thinking about how we didn't want to have to cover everything and/or find a clean hiding spot for it.

What to do?

That's where you come in. On January 28th and 29th everything in the store will be 35% off. That's right, 2010 and 2011 bikes, clothing, accessories, helmets, you name it!

All you have to do is print out the secret image we just posted here on the blog....see the newest post!

Help us out here. We don't want to hike 50 bikes down to our basement. We'd much rather send this stuff home with you for safe keeping/wearing/riding!

Favorite Things: Power Meters

I know, a bit general. But one of my favorite things has less to do with the brand and more about the idea. Numbers are my thing. I like seeing numbers, measuring things, comparing things, seeing progress. Since I don't do any regular time trials, getting baseline measurements could be tough. Then when you factor in changing conditions, it's hard to see if a change is working or not without power.

Power helps me to not just see how I am doing, but guides almost all of my workouts. Power helps me gauge fitness and pace myself.

Speaking a bit less generally, I'm a fan of crank-based power meters; SRM and Quarq to be specific. I have a lot more saddle time with Quarq, indoors and out.

With the Quarq compared to riding on the Computrainer, I consistently see a less-than-2% variance between the two. Like anything though, there are pros and cons to each system.

Quarq Pros:
$1000 less than a comparable SRM
User-replaceable battery
Change wheels whenever you want
2% +/- accuracy
Excellent customer service

Quarq Cons:
Must calibrate more often (easy process though)
Has to be sent back to change to different chainrings
New company still working out some bugs
Limited crankset options

When it comes to the SRM, it's a bunch of pros with only a couple of cons. The SRM is the gold standard in the industry, professionals use it for a reason. Accuracy is as good or better than anything else on the market.

SRM Pros:
Change wheels anytime
Change chainrings on your own
Best accuracy in the business
Proven to withstand any conditions

SRM Cons:
$1000 more than anything else on the market
Has to be sent back for battery changes (granted, only about once every two years)

There's a third major player in the market right now, probably the biggest one, Power Tap. Their method of power measurement is at the hub. The down side is that power is built into your wheel, so you need to choose your rim wisely. The huge up side is price, as Power Tap blows everyone else out of the water! The range is $850-1850 if you ignore the wired version, which we recommend doing.

The beauty in all of this is that the industry is moving to ANT+ protocol, which means your Garmin 500/705/800 will work with any of these.

Ideally you'd want to sit down and decide one thing: can I live with power laced into one rim? If you can, Power Tap is certainly the way to go if you don't have tons of cash burning a hole in your pocket. If you want the ability to change wheels but don't drive a Range Rover with a Porsche parked in your garage for nice days, maybe the Quarq is for you. Have that Range Rover and Porsche covered, have a bunch of race wheels, and are ready for the Porsche of power meters? Pony up for the SRM.

Favorite Things: Crank Brothers Pedals

We're starting a little something different, seeing if you are interested. I've asked each of the guys at the shop to a few write-ups on different parts, people, rides, etc that they find to be their "favorite". A little way to share the things we love about cycling with you.

The first one comes from Mike, a dedicated user of Crank Brothers Egg Beater pedals:

Since Crank Bros. introduced the Eggbeater pedal over a decade (?) ago, I knew had to get a pair. The sheer simplicity of their design is what drew me too them, and the ease of use and maintenance is what has had me outfit 4 mountain bikes, 1 cyclocross bike, and 1 road bike with them over the years. Float adjustment is achieved by simply by choosing which cleat goes on which shoe. Entry and exit are like butter, even in the muddiest of conditions thanks to the ample mud clearance of the wings as well as the 4 sided design. Their minimal weight is just the icing on the cake! All of these things make Eggbeaters my FAVORITE pedals. Period.


I can say that I think Mike has hit the nail on the head. I own at least 6 pairs of these pedals, from Egg Beater 4ti, 2ti, SL's, and even some Candy 3's.

Pricing ranges from $60 to $425 depending on how light you want them to be thanks to generous doses of titanium.