I had 36-hole 700c 13-20's on my first good bike. At the time I might have weighed 120 pounds and I dented the rear in short order. Eventually, it took a catastrophic hit and I had to replace it. All that the shop had that day was the Mavic Module E-2, the preccursor the the MA2. I was not happy that the original rim was not available, but I didn't want to wait for a special order 13-20 to come in. That turned out to be a very good decision on my part. I learned quickly why the LBS didn't bother keeping the Rigidas in stock. I think the weights were similar, but the difference in durability between the 13-20 and the E-2 was night and day. I eventually put an E-2 on the front also (following a crash). I had put lots of dents in those 13-20s in the course of several months. In the few years that I held onto those E-2s I never dented either.
Maybe I was becomming a better, more careful rider, or maybe the 13-20s are a lot lighter, but the E-2s sure worked much better to me. If people are getting away with 13-20's, more power to them, but if they don't work for you, it's not atypical. They are soft like butter.
Tom Dalton Bethlehem, PA
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