The Zipp 303 Firecrest is unquestionably one of the most prestigious wheelsets on the market. With renowned versatility and top-shelf speed, the 303’s are at home in the pro peloton, triathlons, gravel races, cyclocross and the local town sprint. At 45mm deep, the 303 sits right at the sweet spot of aerodynamic speed and climbing quickness. It’s by far their best-selling wheelset.
For the 2021 model year, Zipp is adding an all-new wheelset to the 303 line, the Zipp 303 S Tubeless Disc-brake. The specs are absolutely modern in every way with a 23mm inner width pared to a 27mm outer width that’s optimized for today’s variety of 28mm tubeless tires. The new rim shape features a hookless bead (Zipp’s first) and comes locked-and-loaded for today’s latest tubeless tires. The new 303 S will unquestionably become a staple across a wide variety of disciplines — including gravel riding and racing. At that width, Zipp says you can run up to a 700x50c tire. Keep in mind that since it is hookless, tubeless tires are required — even if you run tubes in them.
To hit the ultra-competitive $1300 MSRP for the complete set, Zipp has foregone the Firecrest dimpling and runs them with their 76/176D centerlock hubs. I’m grateful to see Zipp transitioning all new hubs to centerlock rotors. Centerlock is a better platform and simplifies compatibility with Shimano’s groupsets to be more attractive to a wider audience. As a bonus, they are also including Zipp lock rings, so you no longer have to roll Shimano or DT-Swiss ones on your Zipp wheelset.
Zipp has included a handy tire pressure calculator with these wheels because the required pressures will be unnerving to the old 110 psi crowd. Max pressure is 72 psi. Yup, you read that right. Low pressures are smooth, comfortable and fast. Yup, fast. For my 170 lb rider weight, I’d be about 59 psi. — about 15% lower than I’d typically inflate those tires on tubeless rims.
Key features of the Zipp 303 S Tubeless Disc-brake Wheelset:
- Updated Zipp graphics (baked-on with clear coat)
- Optimized to be fastest with 28mm tires
- Can fit up to 55mm gravel tires
- Lower tire pressures mean more comfort, grip and speed (it’s true)
- 23mm wide internally with a new hookless bead (Zipp’s first)
- Uses 76/176 centerlock hubs (includes lock rings)
- Available with SRAM/Shimano or XDR driver options
- Requires the use of tubeless tires
- 250 lb. rider weight limit
- Weight: 1540 grams
- Lifetime warranty
- MSRP: $1300/set — available soon
More Info: Visit Zipp.com
