I Love My American Classic Wheels!

I first heard of American Classic wheels from my bike engineer/mechanic. I had been given a twelve year old Trek 1220 (with an RSX gruppo and a triple, no less), which was a major upgrade from the 1978 Fuji ST-12 I had been riding, and he was fitting the bike to me and suggesting a few upgrades. I had no idea I would be racing at the time, but I told him I wanted to go fast and he suggested some American Classic Sprint 350 wheels with Sapim bladed spokes, the same wheels he had on his best bike. When they arrived the Trek 1220 became significantly lighter -- this is a 1300 gram wheelset!, it felt much better than with the original wheels and most important, it was faster.

It took some time before I was able to compare the Sprint 350s to Ksyriums and Campagnolo Eurus wheels, and I quickly decided I liked the AC350s a lot more. The Ksyriums came on a used (nearly new) Scott CR1 SL I bought once I realized that I wanted a lighter bike than the Trek 1220 for racing. After a couple of rides, they went into the closet and the AC 350s went on. The Campy Eurus wheels were an upgrade for the Scott when it was rebuilt with Campy Record, except after putting them on the bike, I realized I preferred the AC350s, and bought a Sprint 350 rear with a Campy hub. The Eurus wheels joined the Ksyriums in the closet.

For when lightweight was of paramount importance, like accelerating at an important criterium or pushing a tough climb, I bought the American Classic Magnesium 300 wheelset, also with Sapim bladed spokes. These wheels are so incredible I use them only sparingly, when it really matters.

Eventually I decided that training and racing with power was the next step, and opted for a Powertap system. My choice for a Powertap wheel I could race and train on was – you guessed it – an AC Sprint 350 with Sapim bladed spokes. I then purchased some AC420s for when I wanted somewhat more aero wheels, and loved them, too. The front was terrific on my TT bike, while the Powertap Sprint 350 rear wheel turned into a nice disk when I added a wheel cover to it.

I have never had any durability issues with the American Classic wheels, but having an additional set of Sprint 350s with AC round spokes to use as training wheels has reduced brake wear/mileage on the rims of the “racing” wheels.

Earlier in 2009 I decided I wanted to try racing on the track at Trexlertown. My Cannondale Capo was a really nice fixed gear bike, and it has somewhat track geometry. The brakes came off and some track bars went on, but the really nice upgrade was an AC420 track wheelset. The bike lost a bunch of weight and felt much quicker, and turned out to be quite fast on the track.

American Classic produces a whole range of wheel models: I have not yet had the chance to try their deep dish carbon rims, their rear disk, their heavier rider/training/durable wheels, or their mountain bike wheels, but I expect I will seriously consider buying those when I want that kind of a wheel. In the meantime, I sold the Ksyriums and the Campy Eurus wheelsets; the only times I felt they were the right wheel choice were rainy day training rides by myself, and I try to avoid that kind of ride.

I have upgraded most of my original equipment: I now race a Cannondale BB30 CAAD9 and a SuperSix, which replaced the CR1 SL frameset and the Trek 1220. Stems, bars, seats and drivetrains have been upgraded, with the old parts being sold or traded away. But the American Classic wheels have remained and they will never be sold, unless I eventually buy newer American Classics.

Maybe I need to try some carbon tubulars for crits; Bobby Phillips swears by them.

- Alexander "Ali" Meller