Neuvation M28 VS Mavic Ksyrium Elite VS Easton Circuit?
 

It looks like I may be in the market for new wheels as there is a nice hole in the rim of my heavy stock rear wheel and I might as well go for gusto and replace both of the darn obese things. I was looking at reviews on RoadBikeReviews of these wheelsets, and couldn't really come to a solid conclusion. I'm looking for something "bomb proof" between $250 and $500. I want the wheels to be stiff, and under 1800 grams for the set.

My choices are narrowed down to 3 wheels:

1) Neuvation M28 for $250 -- possible hub reliability issues, but great customer service??
2) Mavic Ksyrium Elite -- about as expensive as I'm willing to get, how durable / stiff are they?
3) Easton Circuit -- seems like good price to performance, but what the heck are those hubs?

Can people with more intimate experience with any of these wheelsets chime in? I might be ordering today since I can't really live more than a few days without riding my bike and I need my bike to be ride-able tomorrow.

As far as I'm concerned the Neuvations are bombproof, on my second season using them as cyclocross wheels and used them as a road wheelset the season before and still haven't needed to true them yet. And yes customer service is great. Easton's are also great, very stiff wheel that seems to be able to take a beeting. Have had for 1 season and so far no issues. No idea about the Mavics but personally I think they're overpriced, I think they tend to be a bit on the heavy side for the amount you pay. But I've heard others who swear by them.

What does "bombproof" mean to you?

How tall are you? What do you weigh? How hard are you on wheels?

While all 3 are good-to-great wheels, unless you weigh 125 lbs and are a featherweight on the pedals, none of these are what I would consider to be "bombproof". Solid and durable for sure but not necessarily bombproof.

55/Rad

I have road on the Mavic Ksyrium Elite and they were too flexable for my liking...I upgraded to the Ksyrium SL's and Wow what a huge difference. Much stiffer and lighter. Made the whole bike feel better. I know the SL's are more then what you want to spend but from what I have learned if you spend money on anything get good wheels.

Neuvation (John Neugent) does provide great customer service, in my experience: every time that something was wrong with my M28 Aero wheels, John would respond immediately and satisfactorily. But after numerous problems I finally got tired of being stranded with broken wheels and asked for (and received) a full refund.

In other words, while I appreciate that John stands behind his product, I would rather have a more reliable product. A precursor for his great "customer service" reputation is that many customers must require such service -- in other words, many customers must have problems with the products.

By the way, my problems with the M28 Aero wheels, in order, were:
First Set--loose front axle, sticky freehub (pedals would spin along with wheel rotation in higher gears), broken rear drive-side spokes at 1900 mi and 2600 mi.
Second Set (replacements)--Broken rear hub flange at 1400 mi.
Both Sets--rear wheels would not stay true.
I weigh under 180lbs and am pretty easy on wheels.

I have had two of the three wheelset you mentioned. I have broken two different spokes on my Circuits in the past 4 months and have replaced them with Mavic SSL's. Much stiffer ride and it really stiffened up the feel of my bike. As another poster siad you get what you pay for. I have seen the ssl"s go for as little as 500.00 on ebay.

I just got the Easton Circuits. My initial impression of them is that they're awesome. More info tomorrow when I really have a chance to ride them!

How about adding Reynolds Alta Race to that list?

Shimano: 259.00
http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/155...d-Wheelset.htm

Campagnolo: 300.00
http://www.repartocorse.com/

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=229293

Edit: I just ordered a pair from Reparto Corse on Mon. night and according the UPS tracking they are on route to my house TODAY. Can't wait to try them out.

If you are looking at the M28 wheelset for 250, why not consider the R28 SL2 for 299 from Neuvation Cycling's website. Super cheap for a 1550 g wheelset. While there may be some reliability issues, I have never heard anything bad about their customer service. If 500 is your cap, you should definitely call Mike Garcia. Also, You can get a DT Swiss RR1.1 laced to the DT Swiss 240 hub at performance bike for 249. Mike could build the front for under 500 total. It is like a 900 wheelset normally, and the hubs are some of the best out there. The rims are as well.

Had the same problem with Neuvations. I had a spoke break on one set and the wheel went so badly and imediatly out of true that the wheel could not be trued back 100%. John replaced it immediately. I pulled a spoke through the hub flange on the replacement during a race. John replaced that one too but at that point I just boxed 'em up and put them on ebay. Currently I'm on some Ultegra/Open Pro's which weigh about the same as the Neuvations and are more "bombproof".

I've been wanting to try this wheelset.

http://www.bikesoul.com/wheeldivision/s2link.jpg

They're made by Soul Bike in Singapore and are supposed to weigh in at 1300 grams. They go for about $350 US. I chat with the owner of the company from time to time on IM. He's a very nice guy and has even posted here a couple of times. Euro said something derogatory (imagine that) about his bikes and Sean, the owner, spoke up and corrected him. It was great. :D Website is www.bikesoul.com