Submitted by
Todd Tabb
a Road Racer
from Valdosta Ga
Date Reviewed: July 11, 2001
Strengths: Strong, Aero, quick acceleration...bulletproof so far. Damn good looking hubs!!!
Weaknesses: Stiff road ride. Campi compatability possible but annoying and expensive.
Bottom Line:
I was a little frustated having to send the wheels to Velomax to make them Campi compatible and the annoyance/cost ($75+shipping) almost made me not buy these wheels. But when I received the wheels...my first ride was back to back centuries. I took a huge chance taking new wheels on this ride...they were perfect, although a little stiff (meaning slightly uncomfortable for a long ride). Sprinting is effortless with these wheels and I have noticed my top speed on sprints has increased from 60 kph to 62-65 kph. How much is attributable to these wheels is questionable but the feel of immediate response is there. I am over 200 lbs and have not had one problem so far although I have only put 500 miles on them. Bottomline, buy these wheels if you want the best looking hubset in the world and if you buy them get good compliant 23mm tires, anything less will jar your teeth.
Similar Products Used: Mavic Ksyriums Rolf Vector Pro's
Bike Setup: Custom Italian aluminum frame with Campi 10 sp.
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Submitted by
Bob Chambers
a Recreational Rider
from Anderson, SC
Date Reviewed: June 25, 2001
Strengths: See my prior review
Weaknesses: I'm posting an updated review. I've been using these wheels for about 9 months now. There's been a raspy sound in the rear hub. First we replaced the bearings. Velomax gave my LBS a major hassle about sending out the bearings and letting the LBS do the work -- despite the fact that the LBS had been to some kind of Velomax tech seminar. Anyway, the new bearings didn't solve the problem. Then the LBS decided maybe it was the freehub body. But he said a freehub body shouldn't go bad this quickly unless it's a really cheapo one. Well ... guess what. It's a Shimano LX freehub body which apparently has lousy seals. It's been adapted for use with the Velomax bearings, so Velomax has to supply it. Again, they were a hassle to deal with for my LBS and it took weeks to get the wheel back. Well I just finally got it back and mounted it up on my bike. Now the wheel is grossly out of true and apparently Velomax is real touchy about letting LBS's true the wheels, too. So now I'm in for yet another hassle with the LBS and Velomax. When the wheels are working, they're a nice ride. But given that I've been without benefit of their services for about six weeks out of the nine months I've owned them, and given the difficulties between my LBS and Velomax, I'd not make another Velomax purchase.
Bottom Line:
Lots of polish and glitz. Also lots of problems and hassles.
Similar Products Used: Mavic Cosmics, Spinergy Rev X
Bike Setup: 1998 Trek 5500 w/ DuraAce
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Submitted by
Dave Freeman
a Road Racer
from La Verne, California
Date Reviewed: April 27, 2001
Strengths: Quality. Aerodynamic, very light, very fast, and very pretty. Exceptionally smooth bearings. Velomax puts out an exceptional product. And they stand behind their product. Several months after posting the previous review, I was contacted by Brad (Velomax), and asked if he could rectify my problem with the rear wheel staying true. First off--my wheels were the Orions--Not Javilins,(my error) so my follow up review will be in the correct catagory. Brad offered to true the wheel for free and guaranteed that it would stay true. I brought them to his production site and he gave me a tour of the facility. I was very impressed. The spokes on these wheels are torqued at a very high tension (as compared with other wheels). He actually records the tension of each spoke on each wheel in his computer after the wheel is built. Brad told me that this causes problems when people who are not framiliar with his wheels attempt to true them. The tension must be very close on all spokes. If it isn't--the wheel won't stay true. I bought my wheels over two years ago and the rear one arrived out of true (which may well have been shipping damage). I immediately had my local bike shop "true" both wheels. This appears to have been the source of my problem, and subsequent trips to the same "mechanic" only made the problem worse. I ultimately gave up on the wheels and they spent about a year and a half in the garage with some of my other bright ideas that didn't quite work out. But Brad stands by his wheels. His offer to make this right for me--at no charge--proves this. He interupted his busy schedule to give me a short tour and to explain the importance of spoke tension--especially for his wheels. I was very impressed. After I get some more miles on them I will be submitting another review--only this time, in the correct catagory (Orions).
Weaknesses: Your bike mechanic has to know what he's doing if they should need to be trued. Brad says that his dealers recieve instruction on how to true these wheels (I didn't buy mine from a store that stocked them (they were a special order).
Bottom Line:
My first review was a little hasty and a little harsh. These are great wheels and I fully expect them to perform as originally hoped now that I've had the problem taken care of.
Bike Setup: Cannondale CAAD 3 and Lightspeed Classic.
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Submitted by
Dave Freeman
a Road Racer
from La Verne, CA. USA
Date Reviewed: November 15, 2000
Strengths: Very Light, very pretty, few spokes, low profile rims, good aerodynamics.
Weaknesses: Wheels won't stay true. The rear is much worse than the front. I called the company and spoke to a rep before purchasing. I was told that I could race crits on this wheel set and that they were very durable. I told them my weight (My racing weight is 185). I have to true the rear wheel after two or three hard rides. I won't do extended climbs or race a crit with the rear wheel, because I don't feel I can trust it. I've had the wheel set for a couple of years and at this point--rarely use them.
Bottom Line:
I wouldn't recommend them for heavier riders. Lighter guys probably wouldn't have a problem. They are pretty--and they feel fast.
Similar Products Used: Roval, Spinergy, Mavic Open Pro Ceramic.
Bike Setup: Cannondale Cad 3 wi ultegra--Litespeed Classic w dura ace.
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Submitted by
Bob
a Recreational Rider
from Anderson, SC
Date Reviewed: September 21, 2000
Strengths: Wheels seem fast and stable without being harsh as one might expect from a 30mm rim. They seem very superior to my Mavic Cosmic Elite wheels in windy conditions -- which I attribute to the use of non-bladed spokes. No creaking or popping. Despite the low spoke count, they seem VERY solid. Cosmetically, they're gorgeous and the hubs generate constant compliments. The hubs/bearings are super smooth. The wheels also seem light for their type. I've done a number of climbing rides on them and they do quite well. They were dead-on true out of the box and they're dead-on true after about 700 miles of hard riding over the last couple of weeks.
Weaknesses: The self-adjusting bearing feature leaves a little play in the front wheel that no amount of skewer leverage can remove. It bugs me a little, but no real performance compromise noted.
Bottom Line:
So far, these seem like money well spent. I was looking for something that would be durable enough for every-day riding, but also as fast, light and aero as possible. I did considerable research before I arrived at this selection. I have not been disappointed.
I'll withhold one star because of that bearing play thing I noted and because I don't have the miles on them to be able to comment on their long-term durability.
