Borg 45 Disc review

The Borg 45 Discs have rims that are are wide enough to take on cyclo-cross or gravel as well as road, and are handbuilt in Suffolk

The latest version of the Borg 45 Disc has new large-flange Borg DX hubs built to the brand’s specification by Miche. These are 50g lighter than the previous ones that we reviewed last year (397g v 447g) and now are the Shimano Centrelock rather than six-bolt type, which saves a bit of weight, as does a new freehub body with a titanium core. They also now have the Borg name on the smart white hub bodies.

The tubeless-ready carbon rims have a depth of 45mm and Malcolm Borg, who handbuilds his wheels at the Cycle Clinic in Suffolk, says that with their 26.6mm external rim width they are suitable for cyclo-cross or gravel as well as road.

Borg uses quality Sapim CX-ray bladed spokes with Sapim Polyax alloy nipples, 24 front and rear, which he says have a very long life.

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The all-up weight, including rim tape, of 1.63kg is pretty impressive considering the deep, wide rim and especially considering the price. This rim depth is something of a sweetspot, supplying good aerodynamics with only a small and very insignificant weight penalty.

We ran 26mm clinchers, which were a perfect size for the wide rim, and this translated to a feeling of cushioned but taut stability on the road, not to mention a feeling of speed, verified by Strava afterwards, since the sidewall ran nicely flush into the rim wall for optimum aerodynamics. Unlike some deep-section wheels, there was no twitchiness – if anything the Borgs felt even more stable at speed.

We tested the Borg 45 Disc wheels in a Specialized S-Works Venge, swapping out its original Roval CLX 64s, and despite the Borgs having a price that’s exactly half that of the Rovals, the Venge still rode like the incredible bike it is, proof that despite the Borg 45 Discs being in the ‘budget’ category for carbon deep-section wheels, they can literally perform with the best.