Velomax Wheels
- Thread starter velobob
- Start date
I had a set of the Velomax Orions. Initially they were great. Smooth bearings, light weight and a great wheelset all around. However, one day I was in a descent when a spoke broke. It broke flush at the hub. Something that Velomax says never happens. I took it to a lbs and they said that they could not fix it and it had to be sent back to the factory for repair. The lbs also had another set from a customer that broke flush at the hub at the shop. They also claimed that Velomax sounded surprised when they told them it broke at the hub. Well, I finally send it back to Velomax and they told me that I needed not only to replace the spoke, but I needed to replace several spokes and nipples. No problem, I told them to go ahead and replace them. Then after a week or so, I asked them when they were going to return the wheel. They told me to replace the entire rim since it was not up to their spec. I was extremely surprised. I asked them if it was rideable and they said it was perfectly rideable but just not up to their specs. I just had them return the wheel since I didn't want to spend any more money. I rode them for a little while and they felt fine but I sold them shortly after.
I could have just had a bad experience with the Velomax. Maybe Easton has improved some of quality and strength of their wheels. If you get a set cheap go ahead and try them out. Just for comparison, I weigh about 165lbs and am fairly gentle on my wheels. I currently ride Ksyrium's and AC420s and they have not let me down yet. Just my experience.
I could have just had a bad experience with the Velomax. Maybe Easton has improved some of quality and strength of their wheels. If you get a set cheap go ahead and try them out. Just for comparison, I weigh about 165lbs and am fairly gentle on my wheels. I currently ride Ksyrium's and AC420s and they have not let me down yet. Just my experience.
velobob said:
Surprising, as I've always thought Velomax produced high-quality wheels. Did you buy your Orion's new? If so, where did you get them....was it from a dealer?cyclepath said:
How much did the repairs cost, or did they do the repairs under warranty?
I've got the OEM Circuit Comps, and they are working great at 5600 miles for me. Still running true, with no tuning required.
I'm sure Velomax\Easton produce high quality wheelsets. It was just my experience with the Orions. The issue I have with the Velomax is the proprietary hub and spoke design. Once it breaks at the hub, you have to send it back to have them repaired as most LBS do not want to deal with it. It could have just been bad luck and sometimes these things are subjective. I got them back a few years ago new from a dealer. Unfortunately they were out of warranty and I had to pay to have them fixed. I don't recall how much the repairs were but it was definately over $100 to repair. I probably had over 3k miles on them before the spoke broke at the hub.
dhk said:
Thanks for the answers. I got the Circuit Comps with my custom frame last year, since at OEM prices they were less than the 32 spoke DA/OP wheels I first wanted. The builder said he'd never seen a broken spoke on them, so I figured they were worth a try. Have 5700 miles on them now, and they are running fine with no truing ever.cyclepath said:
Agree that has to be tough to fix a broken spoke at the hub. If I get 10K miles or more without any problems, that will be enough and I won't spend money to have them repaired. I figure I can always go back to regular 32 spoke built wheels when these Circuit Comps bite the bullet, just for the ease of maintenance/rebuild in the long term. Depends how long they hold up.
