With nigh on 100 years of wheel manufacturing underneath their belts, it’s honest to say that Mavic is aware of a factor or two about spherical bits for bikes, they usually produce some very costly choices. Nonetheless, the Cosmic S 42 is the least costly set of street wheels in Mavic’s carbon line-up, which now options practically a dozen fashions. It’s supposed as a trickle-down product with among the options and tech of the dear wheels at a fraction of the fee, albeit on the expense of some weight and efficiency maybe.
Moreover, as a more moderen mannequin, it truly improves on the high-end Cosmics in some areas. As an illustration, it’s wider internally than the range-topping Cosmic Final 45 which prices over £4,000.
Development
The wheels are delivered pre-taped, prepared for tubeless arrange with an appropriate size tubeless valve in every field too. Nonetheless, there aren’t any spare spokes included which feels a bit imply on the worth. There’s additionally a small piece of card with a QR code that results in a 40 web page technical doc/instruction handbook, so Mavic ought to be applauded for this and for not together with reams of paperwork with every wheel.
Claimed weight for the street wheelset is 1,660g – 775g entrance, 885g rear. My scales mentioned 777g plus 897g plus, so 1,674 for the pair, however as this included rim tape then Mavic’s numbers are honest sufficient.
The ratchet freehub ought to provide faster engagement and higher sturdiness than pawls
(Picture credit score: Tim Russon)
Because the identify suggests, the carbon rims are 42mm deep with a reasonably conservative 21mm inner width and contrasting white ‘Mavic Cosmic S 42 Disc’ lettering. They’re a hooked design, so can be utilized with tubeless or tube-type tyres and the profile, like all trendy aero wheels, is a blunt U-shape. Mavic’s U is much less blunt than some although, most likely partially as a result of rim’s relative narrowness.
The hubs have sealed cartridge bearings, and Mavic’s Prompt Drive 360 freehub on the rear makes use of a ratchet system moderately than pawls for faster engagement and supposed improved sturdiness. Mavic makes use of this design in a lot of their wheels so spares and replacements can be found and primary servicing seems to be to be simple sufficient.
(Picture credit score: Tim Russon)
Mavic’s web site variously states that the Cosmic S 42s have ‘wind-tunnel-tested flat spokes’ and ‘bent radius, spherical (entrance and rear)’ spokes relying on which part you learn. The reality is that my wheels had barely curious ‘squared off’ spokes that didn’t really feel spherical however nor had been they as flat or aero as one thing like a Sapim CX-ray. They had been double butted although with a J-bend so ought to be simple to switch if vital. Metal nipples lace the spokes into the rim.
The journey
I mounted a pair of tubeless 28mm Goodyear Eagle F1 R tyres on the Cosmic wheels, utilizing the equipped tubeless valves with solely gentle trauma as as to whether I ought to centre the valves with the massive lettering or the entire of the branding. These valves are a bit on the fundamental facet, and it took just a little little bit of effort to get them to seat and seal correctly – they don’t provide the additional options that lots of the finest tubeless valves do and an improve could be worthwhile. As soon as sealed and hermetic, I headed out of the door, onto the worst roads within the UK apparently!
Conservative 21mm inner width
(Picture credit score: Tim Russon)
Regardless of the plethora of potholes, cracks and normal detritus on my native roads, the Cosmics stayed straight and true over the check interval and didn’t endure from some other points both. In fact, this shouldn’t be shocking and I might have anticipated any half-decent wheelset to have survived equally not to mention wheels from a famend producer; wheels ought to final tens of 1000’s of kilometres with the precise care, particularly now that disc brakes have eliminated any put on points from the rim.
The Cosmic S 42s had been untroubled on poor roads
(Picture credit score: Andy Jones)
Freehub noise is a divisive topic, however in case you want a extra muted musical accompaniment to your rides then the low thrum of the Mavics may attraction greater than the high-pitched buzz some wheels make.
A journey within the blustery remnants of Storm Éowyn jogged my memory why deeper wheels will not be all the time a good suggestion. I actually needed to focus greater than normal, although the winds had been supposedly right down to about 45kph. The marginally slim width, which ends up in a sharper U than some trendy wheels, might need contributed to this, though, to be honest, it wasn’t perfect circumstances for any fashion of aero wheel!
42mm deep is an efficient, all-round depth for normal using
(Picture credit score: Andy Jones)
In additional acceptable climate, the Cosmic 42S wheels had been, effectively, high quality; loads stiff sufficient, sufficiently resilient to the dangerous roads however not noticeably uncomfortable or jarring. Nonetheless, they didn’t actually excite or encourage both – they held pace fairly effectively however lacked a little bit of urgency when it got here to accelerations or efforts uphill.
Worth and conclusions
It’s laborious to get very excited concerning the Cosmic S 42 wheelset. It doesn’t declare to do something exceptionally effectively, it weighs a bit greater than many circa £900/ $1000 street wheelsets and doesn’t provide the width that some trendy rims do. Nor are the spokes correctly bladed and Mavic makes no explicit claims about aerodynamics. Alternatively, it’s a well-made, nice-looking wheelset with a speedy engagement ratchet freehub from a long-established model with an ideal heritage, which ought to guarantee continuity of spares and backup. So in case you worth these parts greater than weight and width, then it’s a moderately priced entry into Mavic’s carbon wheel vary.
The phrase ‘aerodynamic’ does crop up in Mavic’s advertising of the Cosmic S 42s, however with none figures or actual claims (for what they’re value). From their form, I might assume that they do confer some wind-cheating benefit, however I wouldn’t prefer to guess how a lot.
Zipp’s 303 S is lighter and wider for a bit more cash if you wish to persist with massive manufacturers or smaller firms like Hunt and Scribe can prevent cash and weight in case you are proud of what they provide.
The journey was okay however not inspiring and it lacks a USP to make it stand out from the group within the $1000 / sub £1,000 carbon wheel market. It is sensible for Mavic to have launched them to their line-up as an entry-level wheelset for the model, however a little bit of looking ought to lead to extra compelling options for that form of money or related specs for much less cash.
