[Closed] Would you buy Enve wheels if you had the cash?

but if they didn't have the huge logos how would everyone know how much you'd spent!?!?!

i took the decals off mine

all the road stuff inc stems/bars/posts come with black decals now anyway, looks a lot better imho,

the flashy colours are the domain of the enduro lot

[URL= http://i1272.photobucket.com/albums/y394/dansipods2/photo%201_zpsk5ofwqoy.jp g" target="_blank">http://i1272.photobucket.com/albums/y394/dansipods2/photo%201_zpsk5ofwqoy.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]

Dirtyrider, much nicer sans logo 🙂

No I wouldnt. My BS theory states that they appear to give far too many away to sponsored riders to consider them good value for money.

Giving product away to sponsored athletes is actually shrewd. The actual cost of the product (that you control) is relatively low compared to spending money on advertising (where you have to pay somebody else's rates), and you get 'real world' advertising.

Any high end product promotes its share of criticism. It's just the nature of the beast. If you sponsor racers, you get criticised. If you don't, some people say that the product lacks credence.

Enve won't sell to you unless you wear a full Troy Lee outfit & have your teeth whitened.

For my off-road bikes then probably not, for my bling road bike - probably. Not sure what advantages they have over my Hope/Stans/Sapim Lasers for off road use.

the flashy colours are the domain of the enduro lot

So it's a no to Enve wheels. Time to close the thread and move on.....

I'm tempted by SRAM etap.... Worth it?

[s]Haters[/s] People with fully functional eyes are going to hate my custom crosser!

I'm a bit late to this thread but I have ridden a set of Enve's a few years ago. I was working in a posh shop at the time and they came hawking their wares. We got a demo set for the shop and I was the first person out on them. Had a few days at Hamsterley and Inners on my Stumpy Evo taking in the trails and the DH tracks.

Yes I could feel the difference but not in a good way in my opinion. They felt stiff but made the bike feel harsh and uncomfortable. They also weren't any lighter than the standard Rovals. I was initially smitten with the looks and the Chris King hubs and could have had them for a seriously knocked down price. But, I didn't like the ride. There's absolutely nothing to gain from all that cash.

Someone else I know rode them, loved them, bought them (at almost retail price), put them on his Patriot and cracked the back one within a month.

So yeah, if you desperately want the ultimate poseur wheels go for it. Personally, I satisfied my curiosity and they do nothing for me. And when I hear people raving about them I immediately think "You're full of s**t mate".

Well if (Mavic) Team GB wheels that the French seemed a bit uppity about, were really really round... are Enve wheels really really really round?

Aracer 😆

Yes I could feel the difference but not in a good way in my [b]opinion[/b]

And when I hear people raving about them I immediately think "You're full of s**t mate".

meh

If I could easily afford them I would no question. Why ? No real reason, probably because they're nice and I like nice things.
If you've got money it's your duty to spend it 😀

No Tang thats a beautiful bike, glad to hear your riding hard, as you should.

Maybe as they look nice, but I've been fine with my 721/Pro2 wheels for years so why change now? Could spend the money on better things than bike wheels.

I can't see them being any better than the import carbon wheels, I've noticed a great improvement with my lb wheels Comming from a budget oem ally wheel set, better cornering and general steering feel, better acceleration from standstill which is very noticeable, I can accidently pop a wheelie from a standing start if I'm not careful, and better comfort.

Now the clincher (excuse the pun) is how much better are they than a high end ally wheel set? Couldn't say, but I imagine it's a much closer gap.
I went with lb over a high end alloy set, well, mainly because the difference in price for a fully built set on quality hubs is basically the same... And because carbon fibre!

ive got 2 pairs (AM and M70) and while im not going to dismiss them as totally marketing bolleaux, they are nice rims, they are quite light and very stiff (if that is a benefit is up for discussion, IMO they work better in some situations, not others).

It's the (not so) little things that will stop me buying more, namely having to take the tyre, and rim strip off then reseal the tyre one you've trued the wheel.

That and I dont like the pressure of having to be a riding god when riding with others, as the ATGNI chants cut so, so deep...

(Damn, 4 pages !) 😀

I wouldn't - I dislike the brand name (sounds like "envy", which overloads my smugometer though I've no idea of its derivation) and the logos are a major eyesore IMO

If they were genuinely better AND I had the cash with nothing better to spend on, then yes. I doubt eiher applies.

Edge was a pretty cool name before they changed. My race partner is on ENVE with NFTO road team and has put thousands of training and racing miles on all their products for 2 years with no problems at all. That includes trainer clinchers being ridden for months in Girona/Majorca/Alps, no mincing about. Quite a few crashes also.
I recently spent a morning with the European head of ENVE and they are well aware plenty of other products are after them and that keeps the R&D team very busy.
I get the cost thing, and like I said on my wage I couldn't justify it to my wife and kids. I do however like a company dedicated to a material in the way they are and total dedication to making the best possible. I've said it before but there is a cost to building in the US as opposed to China.

better acceleration from standstill which is very noticeable

😆 😆 😆 😆

Nope. Even if I had the money, there's things I'd rather spend £800 on. Like a holiday.

That said, I did buy the "equivalent" Kuroshiro fat bike rims as they are totally unique and miles ahead of anything else. So I would if I could see a noticeable difference. Don't see that with ENVE so I'll stick with LB thanks. As said above, I have first hand experience of their warranty policies and they are superb.

GB

As others have said, if I had Euromillions type cash to spend then I probably would simply because I could afford to get them and find out if I liked them.

As it is I could buy some but it would not be sensible due to the money being better used elsewhere.

Saying all that, I don't really like the look of carbon wheels on MTB's so might not bother even if I was minted.

tang - Member

there is a cost to building in the US as opposed to China.

A massive cost, but very little benefit to the customer.

Don't think there is even a very little benefit there!

If I had the cash and wanted a high end carbon wheelset I'd get something like the Roval SL (or Traverse SL if I wanted fat trail rims) which would be every bit as good, have no embarrasing logos, and still have 600+ quid left over to spend on other nice bits of kit.

If I had the cash, which I highly doubt I'll be in a position that allows me, I'd buy a 50ft yacht, a fleet of hypercars, and a few top-spec bikes.

So why wouldn't I buy some fancy wheels? Couldn't give a monkeys about others snobby opinions.

If I had the cash and wanted a high end carbon wheelset I'd get something like the Roval SL (or Traverse SL if I wanted fat trail rims) which would be every bit as good, have no embarrasing logos, and still have 600+ quid left over to spend on other nice bits of kit.

Why waste money on Rovals?! Custom build and save another £500!

Indeed. Was just a hypothetical "I want to buy a high end wheelset off the peg" thing. I'd obviously build my own wheels 😉

If I had the money sure I'd waste it on bike parts for no good reason but I'd make sure I sourced the best parts out there... not that common as muck ENVE nonsense 😉 Some 1kg AX or MCFK tubulars on Extralite hubs would be a reasonable starting point

It's all relative really isn't it, if you had enough money to drop on a pair of ENVE rims then you would, and having that much wonga you would be more bothered about losing a Rolex or scratching a Ferrari and making sure you pay the gardener than giving a shit about what people think of your plastic wheels with great bit Gordy decals on.

People with plenty of money do buy the best that they can afford. Why wouldn't you?
Given the choice if I'd got the money I'd have a pair, after all why buy a SC Bronson and then stick stans rims on it,

There's no doubt that other manufacturers are catching them up or maybe caught them up, But as I'm not ever going to put Plastic wheels on a metal bike there's no point looking so I'll stick to Stans and enjoy their relative cheap and ready availability.

People with plenty of money do buy the best that they can afford.

Buying ENVE (for MTB) always seems like buying something popular and expensive rather than perhaps doing some research and getting the "best" rim for that pretty much unlimited budget

Anyone watch GCN?

They've just done a vid explaining the differences between "cheap" and "expensive" wheelsets and the Alloy/carbon differences.

It's all scientifically done, just in a GCN kinda way.

They've just done a vid explaining the differences between "cheap" and "expensive" wheelsets and the Alloy/carbon differences.

What's the answer?

Same with most things tho isn't it.

A Ferrari isn't neccesarily the Best Buy for a performance vehicle but there are some that would aspire to owning the pinnacle of motoring excellence.
NOT ME,

Likewise Rolex watches, if I'd got the money I wouldn't buy one of those either.

Golf Clubs, I've never ever played golf but I bet there is an equivelant brand perceived as being THE BEST,

ENVE Like most other niche brands have a specific target audience, and people make a bloody good living off the back end of these folk. Advertising companies being one of them.

I've personally bought what I think is the best that I can afford being an ally bike on ally rims.
What that says about me is for other people to perceive, me personally I couldn't care less,

They've just done a vid explaining the differences between "cheap" and "expensive" wheelsets and the Alloy/carbon differences.

What's the answer?

Carbon wheels make a road bike look cool 🙂

Have you ever seen anyone riding destickered ENVE rims? 😀

Likewise Rolex watches, if I'd got the money I wouldn't buy one of those either

its actually a smart purchase though as if you pick the right model there is an initial dip in value then they usually just start to increase in value, you are also buying a cosc certified chronometer and an in-house movement from an innovative horological manufacture plus compared to patek, jaeger etc they are relatively cheap. obviously if you find them a gaudy middle-class bauble and view owners as a right weapon they are off the radar.

i would buy enve wheels and remove the decals 8)

edit: didn’t see danW’s post before posting.

Have you ever seen anyone riding destickered ENVE rims?

me

A massive cost, but very little benefit to the customer.

Actually I doubt very much that the cost of manufacture in the US would contribute to the vast difference in pricing. While the labour costs would be vastly different, they represent only a modest proportion of the total manufacture costs. Warehousing/Energy etc. are also pretty cheap in the US (assuming you don't put your warehouse in mid-manhattan) and given the largest market for Enve is the US you avoid shipping and duty costs associated.

At a guess I would imagine that the US build cost would be around 150-200% of the China cost when you trim out the non-manufacturing costs. Enve support a vast network of riders & teams, have big advertising budgets, a fancy HQ and lots more associated costs that the China direct guys don't have. Thats where the money goes in terms of the operating cost of the business, and when it boils down almost none of that is of any use to you as a rider when using the product.

It's an interesting point. Cost aside, does 'industry involvement' like supporting riders, teams, events etc and using the info gained count for the customer? It's marketing/brand awareness for sure but support at that level does go back into developing product, which surely benefits us all in development of the kit we use, same brand or not?

I think it is more skewed in favour of marketing and getting the product out there. They've done very well to make an aspirational (and no doubt high performing) product that is the first thought of many MTBers when looking for an expensive "best" rim to buy (the crucial part of selling well IMO).

Anyone watch GCN?

They've just done a vid explaining the differences between "cheap" and "expensive" wheelsets and the Alloy/carbon differences.

Linky? Because all I could find was this, which doesn't provide the info you suggest

On the topic of high running costs (like marketing), isn't Redbull one of those companies? Huge turnover, but their running costs are insane too.

Actual [i]profit[/i] is relatively low?

If I was to blow Enve amount of money on wheels I would rather buy these, simply for the sake of trying something new: [url= http://www.bikerumor.com/2015/08/29/eb15-ax-lightness-builds-enduro-wheels-to-a-t/ ]AX Lightness Enduro[/url]