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We used to think of the Zipp 404 as a wheel for the big rouleur riders. CSC's Jens Voigt is a perfect example. Then we saw Oscar Pereiro riding these rims in the mountains of the '05 Tour. The aggressive Spaniard, who appears to be on the small side of mean and median height and weight, spent much of three mountain stages off the front with these wheels. While he got caught on one of the stages, the other two he got a second and a first en route to 10th overall. But pros can tend toward unusual tastes. The tiny Cricket, Paolo Bettini, loved attacking and winning on Mavic Cosmic Carbones, which are not terribly light, even on climbs.

Weight isn't everything when it comes to wheels. Aerodynamics, especially Zipp-tuned aerodynamics can make a big difference. The rim dimpling, as you know by now, reduces drag just like the dimpling of golf balls. What few notice is that Zipp tweaks the rim width to help the rim slice through the wind better. This rim bulges slightly wider than the 303 tubular. And the better shape makes it faster than most wheels of its depth as well as faster than the 303. As we state in our description of the 303, which one is a better overall wheel depends on your preferences. The 404 rim is 29g heavier than the 303.

Buyers of the new 404 in the tubular rim version will benefit from Zipp's new way of building carbon fiber rims. Zipp calls this method Carbon Bridge construction, and it is more than just laying up piles of carbon fiber. It employs Kevlar thread stitched in a co-axial helix (think round) to bind the layers of carbon fiber at the top of each rim's sidewall. What the stitched segment does is better spread out the compressing load that the rim experiences as it nears and passes the ground. They call it a "capstone." The result is a rim that is 28% more impact resistant than earlier iterations and allows Zipp to remove material from under the tire bed (hence the diet between the previous iteration and this one).

If your preference is for the familiarity and easy care & feeding of clincher rims, the 404's need to be high on your wish list. They're reasonably light, slice through the wind well, are strong enough to be an everyday wheel. You can ride to races on these, race, and ride home. One bonus with these wheels, too, is that you don't need to change brake pads as the braking surface is aluminum. The 58mm depth is deep and you might feel it in crosswinds, but the flipside is that they conquer rolling hills with drag-nullifying slickness and can triple up to be a noticeable advantage in events where you're racing the clock.

The joining of carbon to aluminum, known in Zipp-speak as M2CM, is also stronger than all get out. While it is neither recommended nor covered by the warranty, 404s have been used mountain biking in 29er frames and have held up to the off-road abuse given out. There is a carbon bulge beneath the aluminum rim. The dimpled carbon section helps slice and smooth the airflow over the rim and tire and since the carbon is structural, it is also shock absorbing. The rim itself weighs a mere 200g, which needs the bonded carbon lower section to work. The spokes are affixed to the carbon. Between the spoke track and the rim, the curved carbon functions as a leaf spring, compressing every so slightly to take the edge off rough and imperfect roads. If you've ever felt that deep-section wheels have a harsh ride, we recommend you try clincher Zipps; you'll come away with a different opinion.

The Zipp 404 is built with 18 radial spokes in the front wheel. The rear has 24 spokes, with the 12 drive side arranged in a cross-two pattern and the 12 non-drive spokes in a radial pattern. All spokes are straight-pull Sapim X-Ray with aluminum nipples. The rim width is 22.5mm. The depth is 58mm. The cassette body can come with Campagnolo splines or Shimano/SRAM splines for the appropriate cassettes. The hub bearings can be upgraded to ceramic. The front tubular wheel weighs 550g, the tubular rear 682g for a total wheel weight of 1232g. The front clincher wheel weighs 768g, the clincher rear 892g for a total wheel weight of 1660g. One note of interest to Zipp clincher owners: The maximum recommended tire pressure on the clinchers is 125psi.