Reynolds 46 Aero Carbon Road Wheelset Clincher

While Reynolds has a quiver brimming with world class race wheels, it's calling the 46mm its signature rim depth. The reason for this is its exceptional versatility and optimal aerodynamics across every discipline of riding. From your ultra fast weeknight crit series to the steepest of the summer hill climbs, Reynolds' new 46 Aero Carbon Clincher Road Wheelset has you covered. Its construction serves to beautifully illustrate Reynolds' latest generation of lightweight, durable, and aerodynamic carbon wheels. The complexity of the Aero design is deep, but we'll walk through it together. To start, one needs to understand the prevalent ideology in aerodynamic wheel design, and to do so, we need to understand drag. Simply put, drag is the restraining force that acts on the wheel when its direction of motion is counter to the free stream of airflow. Now, airflow near the surface of a wheel is turbulent by nature, and when it comes close to the rim surface, it becomes a turbulent boundary layer. This is the start of two kinds of drag, skin friction and pressure drag. Currently, wheel makers are attempting to harness the turbulent layer, reattaching it at the rear section of the rim. The reasoning behind this is that the system reduces pressure drag, but in return, the wheel sees gains in skin friction. However, this is viewed as a compromising tradeoff, as skin friction has around a ten fold lower drag value than pressure drag. To maximize this turbulent system, we've been seeing builders create a constant, rounded edge at the spoke face. For those attempting it, it's been viewed as a leap forward in design. However, Reynolds finds it to be counterintuitive. We'll explain. You see, the science of aerodynamics has developed almost as a case of supply and demand. As aviation technology develops, engineers are forced to develop more efficient airfoil designs, and these designs take the shape of what's called a NACA profile think of a stretched out tear drop shape. ...