15 reviews for CRW Works CS4045 Road Disc Brake Wheelset

1. 

   5 out of 5

   scottj.c (verified owner) – June 27, 2023

   (Complete review with pictures: https://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=132&t=172996)

   Ordered a set of the CS4045 from Panda Podium on June 5th, EMS shipping to the US, delivery on June 22nd – totally acceptable.

   Wheels were packaged and wrapped securely, no issues.

   As for the wheels themselves – they look incredible. Spokes are very wide carbon aero blade – wider than the Hyper spokes and seem close to the Cadex Ultra carbon spokes. Hubs are very nicely machined, end caps look like they remove easily. I haven’t dissassembled fully yet to confirm, but it looks like 6802/6902 bearings, and the design looks very similar to the popular swiss hubs, so I anticipate servicing should be similar. Freehub is a 36 Tooth ratchet. I’ll test later if it is interchangable with any of my 350 or 240 freehubs.

   The spokes are laced in a cross pattern, 16f and 20r. There is space between the spokes where they cross, so creaking or noise from rubbing spokes should not be an issue. A QC/QA spoke tension chart is included with the wheelset, and includes test results from balance, roundness and flatness. I’m no wheelbuilder, so I have no idea what it means, but the numbers look very consistent. The spoke drilling in the rim looks like it is angled and slightly offset for each side, to better match the spoke angle.

   Rims are already set up with tubeless tape, and valves are included. The tape has a dark weave pattern and was installed so smoothly, I almost thought it was an undrilled rim bed until I finally found the seam at the end.

   Valves – 12.5 grams and different lengths to match the depth of the staggered rim depth. Valve caps are a nice anodized aluminum, and look slimmer than standard plastic caps.

   Wheelset is right on spec at 1179 grams with tape. 1192g once you add the valves. Finish looks like a light clearcoat with the UD weave visible underneath. I’m not 100% sure, but the logos feel like they might be on top of the clear coat, so it might be possible to remove them if you are concerned with grams or aesthetics.
   I personally think they look great, just wished I had the gold decals instead of chrome on my Factor now for a better match. Overall quality looks at least equal with the Rovals, though I think the factory tape install looks better on the CRWs.

   Installation – 28mm GP5k S TRs went on without levers, just requiring a normal amount of twisting and hand-wringing to get the last section of tire bead over the top of the rim. Tires inflated easily with my compressor, should likely be easy with any booster pump. 25mL of sealant, and the tires held pressure overnight, with very little loss.

   On the bike – Disc rotors and 12 speed D/A cassete all installed without drama. My prior wheelsets all used DTSwiss 180 or 240EXP hubs. The CS4045 wheels mounted right onto the bike without needing any adjustment to either the brake calipers or rear derailer. Dimensional spacing for the rotors and cassette must be identical to DTSwiss with very good tolerance, as I experienced absolutely no brake rub, or gear indexing issues from changing the wheelsets. Wheels spin passes the eye test, looking perfectly straight and smooth. Bearings also feel very smooth. The nipples appear to be connected to the spokes via a taper-lock type interface, so I dont expect any issues with spoke tension or adjustment over time.

   Ride Feel – This is where it gets interesting. These wheels are so light and smooth I had to look down to make sure I was actually on the road, and not hovering. These are easily the smoothest, lightest wheels I have ever ridden. On good pavement it felt like I was on a hoverbike, on rougher pavement the CRW wheels seemed to telegraph just a bit less road texture than other wheelsets I’ve ridden. Like any very good peice of equipment, they seemed to disappear, while rewarding any effort through the pedals with smooth surge directly to the pavement.

   Comparisons – Feder 35 (1280 grams) – the CRWs feel tangibly lighter, and more responsive to the little accelerations up punchy climbs, or closing the little gaps back down to the wheel ahead. CRW seem to be stiffer and quieter. I had a noise issue with the front disc brake on the Feder wheelset where the steel spokes would occasionaly resonate under braking. Braking is totally silent with the CRW wheelset (with the same rotor) – the resonance disappeared.
   FarSports Gravel 50 (1360 grams) – Equal in comfort. CRWs are again tangibly lighter and more responsive. CRWs seem less affected by crosswinds, very stable through gusts on fast flats and descents. I had 15-20mph swirling winds during my ride Sunday, so I feel like I got a good sample of conditions.
   Roval Rapide CLX IIs – CRWs feel much, much more responsive. Maybe it is in my head, but the 350g difference was apparent to me. Quick accelerations feel a bit laborious with the Rapides, but effortless with the CRWs. CRWs seem to hold speed very well, but I need more time to judge this.

2. 

   5 out of 5

   Antony Hing (verified owner) – November 19, 2023

   WELL WORTH IT!! SWAPPING OUT ROVAL RAPIDE CLXII 51/60 WHEELS FOR ULTRA-LIGHT CRAFT RACING WORKS WHEELS CS40/45

   If you want to lighten and transform the performance of your bike then buy yourself a Craft Racing wheelset…it’s really that simple!
   Background: I’m a social recreational rider with the occasional competitive streak 😊 who enjoys riding quality bicycles and components. My comments are based on being a 156cm 58kg rider riding the 2023 S-Works Tarmac SL8, Dura Ace 12speed, size 44 (XXS).

   In my case, the Craft Racing wheels “CRW” were replacing an acknowledged top notch wheelset: Roval Rapide 2nd gen CLXs 18(F) 24(R) spoke 51/60 depth rims – a very tough act to follow. However given my low bodyweight I had found the Rovals more than a confidence-denting handful in the gusty cross-winds that are prevalent in my part of the world, to the point that I began declining certain ride invitations – precisely not what you want when you’ve just dived deep into your savings account for a top of the line thoroughbred.

   Out of the box the gorgeous gloss finish of the aero CRW rims, showing off a subtle amount of the underlying carbon weave is superbly premium and draws admiring comments from other riders.

   I chose Pirelli P Zero Race 700×26 tubeless tyres for my CRWs, which my mechanic mounted in his words “with ease”.
   This tyre rim combination sits beautifully flush: the Rovals in contrast presents a rim that is sits out, proud of the tyre at the junction of the rim and tyre (26mm S Works Rapidairs). While this may be a specific design feature of the Roval, I prefer the flush tyre rim look of the CRW’s).

   Installing the CS40/45 wheelset on my S-Works Tarmac SL8 has made an unbelievable riding improvement: an immediate 300+g weight saving has massively improved my bike’s acceleration. They are super comfy over all types of sealed road surfaces and quiet with no brake noise, no spoke noise and no rim ‘box section’ noise. Most importantly for me its 16(F) 20(R) spoke array with 40/45 depth rims has given me the critical stability in gusty cross winds that the Roval Rapide CLXs even shod with grippy S Works Rapidair tyres could not.

   For extra fun I also replaced the 53g/pair Roval alloy thru axles with the Over Fast carbon super light 29g/pair thru axles for a bonus 24g of weight saving.

   A special thanks to Joe Wittingham and Tommy Zhang of Pandapodium: shortly after I ordered the CRWs in August 2023, I became aware of a YouTube review by Peak Torque which while confirming the CRW’s superior aero and lightweight characteristics also reported some quality control issues. Joe and Tommy reached out to me immediately to inform me that there would be slight delay as they worked directly with Craft Racing to address these issues. Joe and Tom worked tirelessly to ensure that my wheels would be produced and delivered as a direct result of Craft Racing’s rectified and improved quality control process and they have installed and performed flawlessly. (Peak Torque have likewise posted a YouTube update on the improved Craft Racing wheels.)

   Investing in the CRW CS40/45 wheels feels to me like a natural progression from the Hyper 50mm and 33mm wheelsets that transformed my 2015 rim-brake Focus Izalco Max00. My S Works SL8 weighs in at 6.8Kg including cages, Garmin 530, Raveman head Lx, Varia tail Lx and a pair of Assiomo pedals.
   10 rides, 500kms, and nearly 5,000 metres later the CRWs have had me fall in love with my S -Works all over again – the bike has gained the nimbleness and stability I need!

   I’m giving these wheels a 5 out of 5 star rating: astonishing quality/look, light weight, performance, comfort and a great price!

   PS I needed to micro re-index my Dura Ace rear derailleur cogs 4 and 5. Other than that it was a super easy hassle free changeover.

3. 

   5 out of 5

   CanyonJdeB – November 20, 2023

   Just finished my first week ridIng the CRW 50/60 set up with 28/32 tires. I have been riding DT Swiss Mon Chasseral 25/28 and it is hard to imagine a case for ever using them again, except perhaps on a pure climbing time trial. The CRW wheels are gorgeous, crazy light, crazy responsive to power, corner like dream. I am in love.

4. 

   5 out of 5

   Manuel Youshimatz (verified owner) – December 29, 2023

   I absolutely love my CRW wheels! They feel very light and responsive compared to my Winspace hyper wheels. The hub feels nice and premium. I also have a pair of Zipp 404 wheels. These take the cake hands down. You really feel the lack of both in terms of acceleration and climbing performance. I got the 4045 version which is not as deep as my 404s or the Winspace wheels, yet they feel just as fast if not faster on the flats and on top of that they are much better under crosswind conditions. I’m glad I waited for these because I don’t think you can get anything similar for less than 4k if better wheels even exist. Can’t recommend them enough.

5. 

   5 out of 5

   vasquito (verified owner) – January 29, 2024

   Perfect Fit for an SWorks Aethos.
   Just did over 1000km over 1 month between a mix of flat, mid and high mountainous rides.
   Wheels fitted with GP 5000 STR 25 and mucoff tire sealant.
   No mistakes, the wheels are very stiff, stiffer than a the winspace hyper d45, but they are not uncomfortable to ride (only if you plan to ride on very poor roads or cobles).
   I recon that the aethos frame has some play in the game helping absorbing the vibrations, so I would recomenda a 28c tire on this wheels if you plan to do very long rides.
   But regarding the performance, they are the best wheels I’ve ridden so far.
   They are light, responsive and despite being considere a mid deep section wheel, they are very agile and stable when cornering downhill, even in crosswinds.
   The hub is fenomenal and engagement when accelerating is immediately (contrary to the hubs from winspace that somethings the engagement is not immediately and does those irritating click sounds from time to time).
   Regarding tubeless setup, I had trouble putting the tires in the wheels (I had to used tire levers, a common “issue” with the gp5000str 25c) but once fitted, I didn’t have to use a compressor seat the tire. I was able to set the tire with only the floor pump.

6. 

   5 out of 5

   Klaus Dietrich (verified owner) – March 7, 2024

   Light, stiff, comfortable. Impeccable finish. Unbeatable for the price! Where is the rim brake version :-)?

7. 

   5 out of 5

   Angel Ortiz (verified owner) – April 5, 2024

   SO IN COMPARISON IM coming from a set of roval 50 rapide but this wheels are just different and the best i have ever used or rode on fast stable and comfy well done 10 out of 10!!!

8. 

   5 out of 5

   Chris Yura (verified owner) – April 16, 2024

   These wheels are incredible. Out of the box, and onto the scale, 1192g for the pair, with tape installed (they do a great job taping too). That’s back down to rim clincher territory for me, so I was happy the weights are honest.

   The wheels these replaced were much heavier, I think 1702g for a 50mm deep rim, White Industries CLD hub, Sapim CX-Ray spokes. They were my daily drivers, and are just fine. But I wanted lighter.

   The 4045s are basically same specs, but much lighter, and have a hooked rim, which is all I really wanted in a wheel package. Saved up and made the purchase. Panda Podium makes it not as much of a “plunge” feeling when you’re spending real money on products, so I felt like I’d have after purchase support for sure.

   Wheels have no wobble at all in the truing stand, spokes are nice and stiff (thick bladed carbon), no pings or pops when you first ride them, nothing, they were built well. Bearings don’t have any play either. I don’t have 10000 miles on them either at this point, but they seem just fine. Coming from steel spokes to carbon, the ride feel is more noticeable, you’ll feel more of the buzz for sure, but it’s not in any way uncomfortable, just noticeable if you do a back to back ride from steel spokes.

   Light wheels still rule. The spin up to speed is back to under 10 pedal strokes. You notice this if you’re up and down a lot in traffic, or a crit person, cresting a small ring hill and immediately go big ring to a decent, you’ll get up to speed faster. You also get the added benefit of better braking control, less mass. Where you do feel a slight penalty (lack of better word) is if you’re on flat ground at a cruise speed, the wheels want to slow up more if you have to coast for a few. Luckily they get back to speed nice and fast, so no biggie. It just depends on your riding style and what you want. You can probably just run the “heavy” deeper version of the wheels, but I hate the crosswind factor, it gets old after about an hour of getting blown around.

   Just some notes, I’m 70kg, roads are mostly normal roads, nothing great but nothing ridiculous either in terms of bad. Once in a while I’ll hit something big, but I’m again, pretty light so don’t crush wheels like a heavier rider. I ride 600 hours a year, so put stuff through some work, but not abuse, just a lot of use. I mounted 28mm GP5000 S TR’s on these, and did not use levers. I did leave the tires out in the sun for about 20 minutes on a warm day, it was tough at the end but not absurd, again I did it with my thumbs. Inflated with a floor pump and the tires held air without sealant for a day before they went low. Filled with sealant next day and they’ve been good since. 25mm I think would have been too narrow, mainly because if you do flat, the tire isn’t going to be able to protect the rim as well if you are riding on the road. 28mm give you some wiggle room. 28s are also about in line with the rim width, so aero enough. If you can feel or detect a difference, then go smaller, I don’t personally care enough and would rather have some meat on the rim if I flat.

   Great wheels, thanks Panda Podium for the site as well, I never would have found these wheels without a storefront to bring them to light.

9. 

   5 out of 5

   Andrew Guy (verified owner) – May 14, 2024

   Easy to set up tubeless ride really well straight from the box. Look fantastic. Been riding for 3 months now. Bought some spare spokes as well just in case. Very light and a step up from my Hyper’s

10. 

    5 out of 5

    Bao Thanh (verified owner) – May 27, 2024

    Communication w/ pandapodium is excellent. Shipping was lightning fast. Highly recommend them. As for this wheelset, it has exceeded my expectations. The ride is phenomenal. Vibration dampening is excellent. So so comfortable. Light as heck. Came in lighter than specs. Sexy as hell too. It has completely changed the way my S Works Tarmac rides…for the better!

11. 

    5 out of 5

    jousselinbrice (verified owner) – June 3, 2024

    Roues montées sur TIME ADHX pour usage route. Très satisfait de ses roues, meilleurs que les ZIPP 303 FIRECREST précédentes. Roues montées en tubeless avec des pneus TUFO COMTURA PRIMA TR 28mm. Les problèmes rencontrés par PEAK TORQUE ont été réglés. J’aurai apprécié avoir des rayons de rechanges en cas de casse. A voir la fiabilité dans le temps.

12. 

    5 out of 5

    Nina Dowling (verified owner) – August 11, 2024

    Excellent wheels! Swapped the roval rapides out for a climbing holiday and they have been such an impressive upgrade, light and fast! I have put them over gravel and cobbles and they have held up beautifully. I was a little bit nervous going to carbon spokes but they are just the best, so light, strong and durable. Thank you panda podium for bringing these to us

13. 

    5 out of 5

    Nimmerichter (verified owner) – August 11, 2024

    I ordered the 4045 wheels in May and it was delivered to Europe after appr. 3 weeks (as expected). The wheels look great and are apparently well build. But more importantly I had no issues after riding it for 2000 km. The weight was as advertised, mine came in at 15g less, and the overall weight (Shimano rotors, 28mm tubeless Maxxis, 11-30 cassette from Incolor Zoney also bought here) is 1065g front and 1340g rear (2405g). Compared to my Black Inc wheels with same configuration (but Shimano cassette) is 1230g front and 1705g rear (2935g).
    Mounting of tubeless tires was easy and even without sealant the tire sits firmly and doesnt loose much air (obviously I use sealant).
    The only issue I experienced was with the valves: at the very first inflation with my compressor to fix the tire before adding sealant, the valves (both) get broken! I think I read this before in another review. I had spare valves but be prepared to have them as well. Maybe the quality of the valves is not as expected and CRW or Panda should consider to provide better quality of such minor and cheap parts as compared to the overall price of the wheels.
    Finally, saving 500g on wheels appears to have an impact on riding, an especially during uphill riding and while accelerating, the difference is remarkable without sacrificing any safety and comfort.
    So excellent wheels, not extremely cheap but compared to other brands a very good price for the quality > recommendation.

14. 

    5 out of 5

    amar.jahin (verified owner) – August 18, 2024

    I want to document my experience with customer service.
    TL;DR: it is great.

    In late May I cracked my rims going over a seam on the road, you know these ones on bridges. But this one was especially bad in that the tarmac just before the seam was cracked. I cannot say for sure that this is due to a manufacturing issue of the wheel, I was in a big group and many other ridders where okay going over the same feature. Though a couple of riders, on ENVE and Zipp had issues as well.
    I contacted customer service and told them what happened. Tom Zheng was very responsive and arranged to send a new rim free of charge!! This is simply great customer service from a small team. Thanks a lot Tom for your help.

    I wanted to share this because the main reason people say it’s worth it to buy a mainstream brand is the warranty. Granted an ENVE or a Zipp warranty is gonna be better than panda podium in general. But I wanted to share my experience in this case since this level of support is on bar of the big brands.

15. 

    5 out of 5

    Luca Motz (verified owner) – September 27, 2024

    Put those wheels on my Factor O2 VAM. Had ENVE 2.3s on before. I always thought the Factor felt a bit like a toy bike, because it always was a bit sketchy riding over cobbles and rougher roads. Well it turns out it was the wheels! Those basically transformed the bike and it’s way nicer to ride now. Much stiffer in the corners as well. How ENVE managed to build terrible wheels for twice the price of these excellent ones is honestly beyond me.