Foldable Bikes Party: Zipp 404 NSW clinchers review

Tuesday, 17 May 2016

Zipp 404 NSW clinchers review

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Zipp’s Indianapolis HQ contains a windowless facility it calls 'the Nest'. The debut product of this lab – the Zipp 808 NSW wheelset – took victories last year in the UCI women’s team time trial and World Ironman.

Zipp 404 NSW: faster, more stable and coasting on magnets

While the 808 is very much a TT special, the 404 NSW, with its 58mm deep rim, is more of an all-rounder wheel. Zipp claims the 404 NSW is less affected by sidewinds than previous 404s, which it has achieved by reworking its dimpled rim into what it calls an ‘ABLC [Aerodynamic Boundary Layer Control] SawTooth’ pattern. It looks pretty similar, but is designed to reduce the build-up of sideways pressure, the release of which – ‘shearing’ – causes a bicycle wheel to suddenly jerk to the side in a crosswind.

Zipp NSW technology comes to 303 wheels, disc brakes to 404, 808

Zipp has also replaced stick-on decals with more aero-friendly printed logos and designed new, lighter ‘Cognition’ hubs. The ‘Axial Clutch’ rear hub disengages the ratchet completely when coasting, reducing friction and allowing you to hold speed longer. The magnet-based system requires no lubrication or maintenance, and its low profile also makes it compatible with SRAM’s 1x single-chainring setups.

The new 404's dimpled rim has been redesigned to improve crosswind stability

But what do all these things mean when we’re riding? Well, it’s hard to measure the rear hub’s gains, but we did find that we could maintain more speed through corners. However, it’s in the wind that these really shine. You feel disruption from crosswinds much, much less than before – lending credence to Zipp’s 34% reduction claim.