It’s Saturday night and you’re out on a chain gang ride, and your friend is floating effortlessly through the bunch, they don't seem to be pedaling when they are drafting, but just carving through the air. At the end of the night, you ask them how they were doing it, and you find out that it was their new wheels, Fulcrum speed 40c wheels are said to be “like free speed”.

You go home and Google these magical wheels, and you begin to wonder what your friend thought free meant. Thankfully, ICAN has your back with their FL40 series of wheels. A very similar wheelset, but not at the same price point.

ICAN 40mm wheels use new carbon fiber

Both ICAN and Fulcrum needed to balance weight, stiffness, and aerodynamics. To achieve this, they both decided to use carbon fiber rims. ICAN constructs their rims from high modulus Toray T700 carbon fiber, whereas Fulcrum merely says their rims are carbon fiber. Both companies have used a 40mm deep rim, and we will tell you a little about why.

You’ve bought a shiny new road bike, but it has box section aluminum rims, and everyone tells you that you need to upgrade your wheels. People tell you that stock bikes need a wheel upgrade, but if you want to know why you should look at the ICAN road bikes.

You need a wheel upgrade. Sometimes it can be windy out there, and you want a set that will be fast in all weather conditions. That is why they have used a 40mm deep rim. This rim depth will work in all weather conditions. You will not find yourself getting blown across the road on a windy day, even with a break in the hedgerow.

Both ICAN and Fulcrum 40mm deep rims on your bike will feel just like you have put a supercharger on your bike when compared to box section rims. You will find a speed that you never knew you had. You will be able to go faster on your bike and to hang with your mates will become easier.

To go with a 40mm rim depth, both companies have spec’d a wider carbon fiber rim. They have both used a 25mm wide rim. You can now ditch your 23mm wide tires and look for 25mm or 28mm tires. It might seem counter-intuitive to go for a wider tire when trying to go fast, but new scientific research shows that 25mm or 28mm wide tires are faster than 23mm wide tires.

Wider is faster

More importantly, with a 25mm or 28mm wide tire, you can run at a lower pressure, without needing to put 110psi into your tires. With a 25mm wide carbon fiber rim, the shape of the tire makes less contact area with a wider tire than it would with a 23mm wide tire. The lower the rolling resistance, the faster you will go for less power.

Not only do you get lower rolling resistance, but the wider tire also fits the rim much more aerodynamically. This is because the wider tire and rim combination holds the air to the wheel rather than turning it into turbulent air. This again will help save you a few watts when trying to set a new PB on Strava.

As we mentioned earlier, a wider tire means you can run a lower tire pressure. This is where ICAN wheels have an advantage over Fulcrums, as ICAN are tubeless ready. This allows you to get the most out of the wider rim. Run tubeless tires on your ICAN wheels and you can have a puncture-free day out. With Fulcrum, you better take a puncture kit with you, or run at high pressures and take all the comfort out of them.

2:1 spoke lacing is the future

Both Fulcrum and ICAN use a 2:1 spoke lacing pattern, and what is this? A 2:1 wheel spoke pattern means there are two spokes on the drive side of the wheel to one spoke on the non-drive side. This allows Fulcrum and ICAN to create a very strong wheel that is stiff and efficient at power transfer. These wheels will not flex under load, but this design does not mean that they will be heavy, as it does not require an increase in weight. It also makes both brands’ wheels more balanced, and the spoke tension is more evenly distributed. By distributing the weight evenly, there will be less fatigue on the rim and the hub flange, and your shiny new carbon fiber wheels should last you a lot longer.

ICAN uses high-quality Sapim CX-Ray spokes for this spoke pattern. They have picked these spokes because of their butted profile. This pattern means that the spokes are as light as titanium spokes, but they do not have the flex issues that you can find in titanium spokes. Fulcrum uses generic spokes.

To go with the 2:1 spoke pattern, both companies have employed hubs that work with this spoke pattern. The rear hub has a larger flange on the drive side. An oversized flange means that the spokes on the drive side are shorter than on a normal hub. This allows less change in deflection on the drive side and less deflection of parts.

Fulcrum wheels feature cup and cone ceramic bearings, and ICAN wheels feature sealed bearing hubs. This means you will spend less time going to your local bike shop with your ICAN wheels.

ICAN will save you a substantial amount over Fulcrums, as they come in at a quarter of the price of Fulcrums. If you are worried that this will affect the quality, then ICAN wheelsets are UCI approved, and on their approved list. So, you can buy a high-quality set of wheels but not have to take out a new loan to do so.