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FSA XC500 Wheelset | $469.99
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FSA XC500 Wheelsetl

BikeRadar verdict

35 out of 5 stars

"Impressively tough tubeless wheels but quite narrow, heavy and awkward to seal"

By Guy Kesteven

FSA have been making wheels for a while now, but this tough all-rounder set is all-new for 2009.

The rim is only 24mm wide, which limits your optimum tyre size to about 2.35in, but the super deep well means this is one seriously strong hoop. We’ve given it a beating and it’s absolutely rock solid. 

There’s no sign of wobble or flex from the handmade 24 straight-pull spoke build either, but the deep well does make it difficult to set up with tubeless tyres.

Freehub pick-up speed is average and while the steel body should stop gouging it makes for a relatively heavy pair of wheels overall.

The supplied Scatto quick-release skewers are lovely too, although the 20mm adaptor for the front is an extra £14.99.    

User Reviews

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  • User review of FSA XC500 Wheelset

    Not sure about these.....

    Whilst I've not use the XC500, I did have a pair of XC300s. Whilst they seemed 'OK' they did seem a little flexy, the deep section of the XC500s should alleviate this somewhat.

    the problem I had is that I went through 6 wheels in 13 months. That's 2 rear wheels and 4 front wheels. The problem wasn't anything to do with the rims or hubs, but the spoke nipples. The spokes were about 2mm short and they used cheap aluminium nipples. Therefore, they kept shearing the nipples. This (bizarrely) usually happened after a ride, when the bike was just standing !!!! FSA took 6 weeks to evaluate the problem (after wheel 4) and decided it was due to short spokes. Wheels 5 and 6 were out of a new batch, with slightly longer spokes, but the same problem occured. Nipples were still breaking !

    I would suspect that the XC500 reviewed use the same nipples, so be careful.

    I've now sent them back, got a full refund and bought some Red Metal 1s. Which (after a severe beating at Afan) seem fantastic.

    0.3
  • User review of FSA XC500 Wheelset

    After a similar experience to Matt with some XC-300 wheels I wouldn't go near another set of FSA built hoops - they were just shonky.

    The Scatto quick releases look nice but they soon get stiff and creaky. Although the FSA XC-300 hubs are still smooth and no problem with the freewheel as yet after 2.5 years use.

    A handbuilt pair of wheels (i.e. not factory) with something like hope hubs would be my recommendation. Not these (based on my experience).

    0.3

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Specification

Name:
XC500 Wheelset
Built by:
FSA
Price:
$469.99
Weight (g):
2124 g
Spokes Lacing:
Radial
No of Holes (Front):
24
No of Holes (Rear):
24
Rim Size/Diameter:
24 mm

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