June 15th, 2009 by 
thien
Weight
As with most things bike-related, wheel weight is a primary concern, especially because unsprung weight is more easily felt. This set of wheels came in at 1,730 grams and the actual weights were about 4% higher than what was claimed.
While climbing, I thought the weight would be a penalty. But I climbed our local Old La Honda in 20:27 with these wheels which was only about 45 seconds off my PR. So the stiffness of the wheels must have made up for some of the weight penalty.
Further, at this price point, there isn’t a lot of competition in aero wheels, especially those with full carbon construction. The Reynolds Assault is its closer competitor in design and weighs significantly less for the same price point.
Considering it’s competition, the Vuelta is a solid offering for the price.
Performance
These were cool wheels. Though they are a bit heavy–and when at first under way, you notice the sluggishness. But once at speed, the wheels felt great. They are very stiff but at the same time, smooth. They have remarkable dampening in that road vibrations are felt but they don’t disrupt the ride.
The aerodynamics were also very noticeable; the bike maintained 24+ mph much easier than a standard spoke rim. And on a favorite nearby downhill, I typically go 31 mph. With these wheels, I was hitting 33 mph with the same effort. At the same time, the rim profile wasn’t too affected by the wind. Yes, I felt a push from sidewinds but it wasn’t disconcerting.
The braking was a mixed bag. They were at first mediocre; the cork pads took a while to bed in. But once they did, stops were remarkably quick and very powerful. I think the lowered brake pad location increases leverage. However, apparently one of the rear pads was misaligned. This eventually resulted in a horrific screeching noise and significant pad wear. These brake pads need to be continuously monitored which is endemic to high-performance carbon wheels.
Summary
This is an ambitious offering from Vuelta. They feature ingenious design touches (esp the lowered braking surface), a fair price, and excellent aerodynamics. They were impressive at high speeds and had a great ride quality. However, they face fierce competition from Reynolds and are a bit heavy. Competition truly does improve product development–and consumers get to benefit!
Value
4
Overall
3.75
June 15th, 2009 at 5:52 pm
some caution for the full carbon clincher wheels owner out there: do not mix your carbon brake pads with alloy wheels! your carbon pads will pick up metal bits and embedded into the pads and when will damage your carbon rims when you switch back to carbon again. Do not mix your carbon brake pads with alloy rims! when you switch out carbon wheels, bring the pads with you.
June 15th, 2009 at 11:33 pm
Thanks for the headsup, Kwan. I’ve heard that before from other people–and should have made a point of it.
Great feedback.
June 16th, 2009 at 4:46 am
Too bad that “Kwan” is incorrect. Swiss Stops yellows go both ways and don’t pick up alu bits in them. If you spend $1000+ on carbon wheels, spend the $50-75 on the pads.
I ride yellows as do @ a dozen of my team-mates and ride group. Zero issues.
June 16th, 2009 at 3:35 pm
Thanks for the update MM, sounds like SS yellows is an exception.
June 16th, 2009 at 5:25 pm
In case anyone is wondering, the rims are made by Gigantex
June 16th, 2009 at 9:51 pm
They also look like Joytech hubs, so this looks like another generic Gigantex/Joytech wheelset to me, not that there’s anything wrong with that.
Also, there’s a misprint on the weight: the rear ain’t 1730g; and there may also be a mix-up between the actual and claimed weight, because I’d be surprised if the claimed weight is 2060g, and actual is 1730g. Just sayin’
June 17th, 2009 at 9:41 pm
Thanks for catching the typos!!!
Here’s what it should have said.
# Claimed: weight — Front: 703 grams, Rear: 958 grams, total 1661grams
# Actual — Front: 740 grams, Rear: 990 grams, total 1730; +69 grams
June 18th, 2009 at 8:54 am
I’m surprized at the comment that the bearing felt sticky. A have a set of the new Vuelta Corsa Super lites. the bearing are super smooth and the seem to spin indifinitely.
I too picked up speed on the downhill, coasting from 19 to 22.
June 23rd, 2009 at 5:25 am
How are these with mounting tires on and off? I have a set of Token wheels which are the exact same wheel and it’s pretty much impossible to get a tire on and off the rim….flat out on a ride and your going to spend 1/2+ hour trying to change a tube. Are these any better?
June 24th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
Mounting tires isn’t super easy, especially Vittorias. Best if you have 2 (plastic) tire irons required.
June 26th, 2009 at 11:56 am
Not sure that the lower braking point will increase power - the longer lever arm of the break pad will decrease the force at the pad for the same force through the cable and the shorter lever arm from the hub will reduce the force at the road. That’s a loss in both cases.
July 30th, 2009 at 12:37 am
Has any of you tried the Campagnolo Boras? To me, they are super sexy and ultra expensive. I sure like to hear your comments. Thank you.