Rim choices

Building a good road wheel, you've got several choices to make.  First, let's take a look at some of the good rim choices available.

First and foremost is the offerings from Stan's NoTubes.  I'm a huge fan of Stan's products, and every MTB wheel we own has Stan's rims.  Being on a team that's sponsored helps, but I'd want to do it even if we weren't.  They now have two road options available, and they're looking to be every bit as good as the MTB offerings.  Their first road rim, the Alpha 340, has been redesigned and beefed up a little bit, and now comes in at around 380g, which is damn light for a road rim.  Their new rim, the Alpha 400, shares the same outer profile, but has reinforcing ribs which increase rim strength and durability and bumps the weight up to 425g, right in the same arena as the venerable Mavic OpenPro.  Stan's rims are designed to be easily compatible with road tubeless, and also incorporate a lower bead hook which slightly increases tire volume and decreases the risk of pinch flatting.  One thing I've noticed with Stan's rims is it is far, far easier to install and remove tires, thanks to the lower bead hook.  I also rode a set in a configuration I would have expected to be not quite stiff enough for me, and was very surprised at how stiff and responsive they felt.  I'm a big, big fan of the Stan's stuff, but the downside is their price, coming in at $120 each.  Still, they're probably my favorite choice for a road rim right now.  Some folks do take issue with the fairly sizeable decals on the rims, but decals can always be peeled off.

Next up is the KinLin rim line.  These are Taiwanese rims, but are made of a high quality aluminum alloy which keeps the weight low.  I've built several wheelsets with these rims, and they've always been nice and straight and easy to work with.  There's plenty of positive reviews available online, these rims are the real deal.  From the KinLin range, the two most popular are the XR-270 and the XR-300.  Both are an aero-profile, with the 270 being 27mm deep and the 300 being ever so slightly deeper at 30mm.  The weights are respectable, at 445g and 465g, respectively.  Heavier than the Stan's, but also a deeper V-shaped "aero" profile.  Does it make a real difference, aerodynamically?  I have no idea.  What really sets these two rims apart, however, is their price, coming in right around $40 each.  Very few quality rims can be had in that price range.  KinLin has other rims, but these are the two I'm familiar with and have built with.  As far as I'm concerned, none of the other rims offer as much as these two.

That's the two major choices I'd list.  Of course there are other major manufacturers out there.  Mavic, with their ubiquitous Open Pro rim, can't be left out, but I think the design is starting to show its age and really doesn't stand up to the other options I've listed.  Velocity makes a bunch of different rims, but I've built with them before and have never been really blown away.

7/27/12: Quick update after some more research and thought on the matter.  I think my treatment of Mavic was a bit harsh.  Yes, the Open Pro rim design is a bit dated, but it hasn't changed because it doesn't much need to.  I've got a set that I bought in 2000 built with Dura Ace hubs and 3x DT Champion spokes which has been utterly flawless.  It's really hard to beat the long-term performance of that setup.  It's not real fancy, it's not real light, but it is solid.

Also, I completely skipped DT Swiss rims.  I've only had the opportunity to build with one DT rim, but from what I've seen, their quality is extremely high (as I would expect from their spokes, nipples, and hubs) and they're also a great choice for a wheelset that emphasizes durability and strength.