I had a custom wheelset made. I received them 3 weeks from the order date. They were dead true and all the spokes had equal tensions. I took them out on a 55 mile maiden cruse and they are flawless. I got a lot of comments from friends about how sharp these wheels look on my Orbea. Black hubs and nipples with white spokes and white Deep V's. It really makes the bike unique. Thanks Richard for the lacing advise and top notch wheel smithing. These wheels are bomb proof.
Tony Buck
May 22, 2009
I wanted to wait until I had some miles on the wheels before giving feedback. I am a clydesdale rider. I ride hard, but would certainly fall into what Grant Petersen (Rivendale Cycles) would call an "unracer". I love my bike. I chose it and it chose me...but it's not a high end super bike. It's hard to justify spending gobs of money on a wheelset, when really, all you want is something you never have to worry about that fits your style.
Enter Prowheelbuilders.com. I had considered builds in the $400-500 range from my local shop (they weren't really interested) and other online sources. Ultimately Prowheelbuilders.com had the best value, and offered a good strong hand laced wheel for my budget. I been riding these wheels for about 400 miles over varied terrain: road, gravel, bikeway, and single track (including rock gardens). Everything is solid. I have not needed any touch up truing, and I suspect everything will hold together nicely for ages. I wanted a high(ish) engagement hub, and opted for the Bitex MTR--there's not a lot online about this hub, so I'll share here that I am satisfied. The engagement is much faster than a typical factory wheel you'd see on an <$2k bike. The sound is loud-ish, and not unpleasant, but it sounds nothing like a high end hub.
Overall, I am very pleased with my purchase and the quality of work. I'm sold, and will come to Prowheelbuilder.com for any future wheel purchases.