The Ride
Considering these have less than 32 spokes and they don’t have a massive rim, the Deamions are actually a reasonably stiff wheelset. Maybe those qualifiers make that statement come across as faint praise, so let me say it more plainly: the Deamions are a reasonably stiff wheelset.
I swapped back and forth between the Deamions and some Enve M60 HVs, which are some of the stiffest “trail” oriented wheels I’ve ridden. The Enve’s are certainly stiffer, but the Deamions aren’t wet noodles by comparison; they’re just not quite as stiff. And considering the Deamions have a narrower rim and cost roughly a month’s salary less, that’s pretty dang good.
Compared to the Raceface Turbine wheels that came stock on my Following (which have the same number of spokes, weigh about the same, and have a slightly narrower rim), the Deamions are noticeably stiffer. And that fact is noteworthy, since the Deamions are lighter than the Turbines, and they aren’t that much more expensive.
In other respects, I’d call the Deamions average. At 1,825 grams (measured) for the set, they’re neither impressively light nor depressingly heavily. There are plenty of more XC-ish wheels that are significantly lighter and accelerate significantly faster. There are also plenty of more stout wheels that weigh more and will likely take more abuse. The Deamions fall somewhere in the middle, which isn’t a bad thing for an all-around wheelset.
Some people might argue that the 23 mm internal rim width is a bit narrow, but ultimately, that really depends on what tires you’re running. The Deamions are ideal for those running 2.1 to 2.3” tires. I didn’t have any noteworthy issues with tire roll while running the 2.4 Goma’s, but those are also a stout tire with a fairly stiff sidewall.
While I don’t have enough time on the Deamions yet to make any strong conclusions about durability, they’ve held up to a few rowdy rides. And that’s actually noteworthy. I’ve had plenty of poorly built wheels where the spokes de-tensioned themselves really quickly, and the Deamions haven’t done that. So while long term durability is still in question, the factory lacing job at least seems to be decent. We’ll be putting more time on these wheels to see how they hold up over the long term.
Issues
The only real gripe I have about the Deamions so far is the centerlock rotor adaptor. As I mentioned above, I was using the wheels with a standard 6-bolt rotor, and thus was using the supplied centerlock adaptor. And before I get into this, I should note that the Deamions are also available in a 6-bolt option (no adaptor needed). Literally every issue I had with these wheels wouldn’t have come up had I ridden the version with a 6-bolt hub.
The adaptor works like most other companies’ adaptors—there’s a ring with 6 little posts that mesh with the 6 bolt holes on the rotor.
I’ve had three problems. First, the posts don’t have a snug fit with the rotor holes, so even when everything is correctly installed and torqued to spec, there’s still some rotational play in the system. In other words, if you hold the brake and rock the bike back and forth, the rotor rotates a bit within the lock ring. This isn’t necessarily problematic, but it feels weird. Tighter tolerances would be preferred.
Second, the lock ring itself should work with an external bottom bracket tool, but the way the lockring is cut, my Shimano brand tool didn’t fit well into it. I’ve never encountered this problem using this tool on any bottom bracket or on any other centerlock rotors.
Third, and probably the most noteworthy problem, is that the lock nut came loose on me twice, even when it was properly torqued.
Having the rotor come loose is a bit disconcerting, and since the tool to tighten it isn’t something I carry with me on rides, this led to some questionable backcountry mechanic-ing to get things snugged up enough to make it home. (Without getting into details, it involved using a rock as a hammer.) I don’t recall ever having a problem with other centerlock setups coming loose on me.
Bottom Line
The Vittoria Deamions are not the flashiest wheels on the market—they’re not crazy wide, they’re not made of any exotic materials, and they don’t even have colorful stickers on them. But for a mid-priced wheelset, the Deamions offer a lot of bang for the buck.
All other things aside, stiffness is where I find a lot of 29er wheelsets fall short. It’s a relatively rare wheelset that is stiff enough to not feel like it’s going buckle in a hard corner, while also being relatively light and more or less affordable. And while this isn’t to say that $700 is pocket change, there are plenty of wheels in this price range that don’t perform nearly as well as the Deamion.
So if you’re looking for something flashy for your instagram pics, the Deamion probably isn’t your ticket to fame and fortune. But if you’re looking for a solid wheelset and the 23 mm width jives with the tire widths you’re inclined toward, the Deamion is a very solid option.
Other than the e13 wheelset – did you find any other aluminum 29″ wheelset you consider as stiff and stout?
I enjoy reading your reviews on bikes and parts. Thanks.
KLB
Hey kl,
I’ve definitely been on some wheels that were stiffer and would probably hold up to abuse better, but pretty much all of them were heavier (sometimes significantly so). The WTB i25 rims, for example (which I have laced to some older Industry Nine hubs) – those things are pretty bomber, but that wheelset also weighs almost 200g more than the Deamions. And while something like the E13 TRSr wheels don’t weigh too much more and they’re probably a bit stiffer, they’re also significantly more expensive.
So, more to the point, I haven’t come across any 29er wheels that are as light as the Deamions that are also as stiff as the Deamions, while still being relatively affordable, and that can also take some abuse. But the caveat on that remains – I don’t have enough time on the Deamions to really make a final call on their durability, so only time will tell on that front.