FULCRUM WIND 75 DB

£1,149 Fulcrum’s Wind wheels have gone deeper with the new Wind 75 DB. We test out their tri credentials...

Fulcrum’s Wind 75 DB is a new disc brake aero wheelset that is (you guessed it) 75mm deep front and rear, adding to the existing Wind 40 and 50 wheelsets. The Wind range is a mid-point between their budget alloy road options and high-end Speed range, the latter costing over £2k. The Winds, while featuring full carbon rims, have dependable aluminium hubs with sealed cartridge bearings, as opposed to carbon hubs with Fulcrum’s CULT ceramic bearings on the top-of-the-range Speed 55 CMPTZN DB.

The depth will be suitable for most triathletes looking for maximum aero gains. If your budget allows, then the front wheel paired with a rear ‘disc disc’ will make a rapid set-up for races where winds are low. They weigh in at 1,820g for the pair, neither particularly heavy nor light for wheels of this depth.

Thanks to Fulcrum’s ‘2 Way Fit System’, the alloy straight-pull spokes sit in inserts so there are no holes in the rim bed, which means fuss-free tubeless tyre installation with no rim tape needed. Bear in mind that the Winds require a bottom bracket tool rather than the more typical lockring tool to fit the disc rotors – this could have been clearer in the specs. Fulcrum say this is so the bearings can be housed further out, which creates greater structural rigidity. Fulcrum also told us 25mm or 28mm tyres are optimal on the generous 19mm internal rim width, and tyre pressures will depend on the rider’s weight, road surface and weather. For the test period, we used 25mm tyres at 90psi.

On the road, we were impressed with the high levels of stiffness and smooth operation. If you find a noisy freehub jarring, then you’ll be pleased to know that it’s virtually silent. However, you do get a pleasant whooshing sound from the deep rims, which is amplified on windier days. On the flats they feel stable as your speed ramps up, and both cornering and climbing performance impressed us for a deep wheelset.

We did find that in crosswinds above 20km/h things got a little hairy at the front, and in similar conditions we’ve tested front wheels as deep as 90mm that have felt slightly more stable.

Overall, we found these wheels came into their own on fast and flat stretches of road when the winds were calm. For very blustery conditions, a shallower front wheel may be needed, but for most races the Wind 75 DB are a fast and dependable choice. i-ride.co.uk

“On the flats they feel stable as your speed ramps up, and both cornering and climbing performance impressed us for a deep wheelset”