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Submitted by
Lawhoo
a Cross Country Rider
from Virginia
Date Reviewed: July 12, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Price Paid: |
$250.00 | | Strengths: | Weight, clean machining of rim walls, smooth hubs | | Weaknesses: | None | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic 517s, Trek Matrix | | Bike Setup: | Trek 990 frame, SID, XT/XTR | | Bottom Line: | These wheels are great. I ride really rooty and rocky trails and weigh about 175. This wheelset has held up really well over the past 4 years; they have stood the test of time. The front wheel has never gone out of true. The rear wheel is slightly out of true, probably because of some hits it has taken. The hubs are awesome. They spin like so smoothly. B | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Peter Buch
a Racer
from Atlanta
Date Reviewed: May 17, 2004 | | Favorite Trail: | Bull/Jake Combo | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$150.00 | | Strengths: | Strong. Looks good. Doesn't make any noise. | | Weaknesses: | Not Really. A little heavier than the top of the line. | | Similar Products Used: | XT 517 rims | | Bike Setup: | Airborne Lucky Strike Ti, Cross Link in fr, XT/517 in back Duke Race fork. XTR Front Rear Deraileurs | | Bottom Line: | I have this in the front as a replacement. I'm 175lbs and give it a good pounding. but I only do huge hits in emergencies. I think spokes should be professionally worked on because they are at a specific tension. I find it hard to believe someone folded a well maintained Cross Link Unless he's huge person catching sick air. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Colin
a
from Arlington, Va
Date Reviewed: March 15, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | front wheel is awesome havent had to true it yet. both wheels spin so beautifuly always. pretty light too. | | Weaknesses: | rearwhell...dont know wahts goin on there. comes out of true alot. free hub body is aweful. i got these free from my brother though so some of it could have been a result of his abuse. and im sort of afraid to really take these guys off any real drops they dont look so sturdy with the radail lacing and all. | | Bike Setup: | nishiki TI frame pretty much full XTR | | Bottom Line: | good wheels. if you have acess to a truing stand and the patients to true your rear wheel every few rides its well worth it. if not dont bother | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Casey
a
from Tempe, AZ
Date Reviewed: January 30, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$150.00 | | Purchased At: | Ebay | | Strengths: | The Front Wheel ROCKS! I've hardly had to true this thing, and it's held up to 2 years of riding Phoenix's nastiest rockiest trails. | | Weaknesses: | The Freehub on the rear wheel is garbage. Don't buy the rear wheel! | | Similar Products Used: | XTR Hubs on Bontrager Valiants, XT Hubs on 517's | | Bike Setup: | K2 Razorback Grassroots Team, XT Components, Psylo SL, Hayes Hydraulics | | Bottom Line: | The Front wheel is the best I've ever ridden, the back wheel is very durable, except for the freehub is garbage. Stay with a shimano/king/hugi rear hub!
I give the front wheel 5 chillies, and the rear wheel 2 chillies. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dave
a Cross Country Rider
from Orange County
Date Reviewed: February 19, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | San Juan | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$100.00 | | Purchased At: | came on bike | | Strengths: | light, excelent technology | | Weaknesses: | Dont crash... thats all | | Similar Products Used: | Hugi with sun rim | | Bike Setup: | Specailized FSR MAX backbone | | Bottom Line: | Dont crash, i folded one of these in half going downhill... super good and light wheel for anything else though | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dave
a Cross Country Rider
from Orange County
Date Reviewed: February 19, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | San Juan | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$100.00 | | Purchased At: | came on bike | | Strengths: | light, excelent technology | | Weaknesses: | Dont crash... thats all | | Similar Products Used: | Hugi with sun rim | | Bike Setup: | Specailized FSR MAX backbone | | Bottom Line: | Dont crash, i folded one of these in half going downhill... super good and light wheel for anything else though | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ryan
a Cross Country Rider
from Flagstaff, AZ
Date Reviewed: February 12, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | Mt. Elden network | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$80.00 | | Purchased At: | Ebay | | Strengths: | Very stiff, spins smoothly, looks snappy, stays true pretty well | | Weaknesses: | hub, bizarre spoke pattern, stickers | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic 221 | | Bike Setup: | 1999 Haro escape 7.4, XT drivetrain, Judy C shock, bontrager jones tyres, raceface chainrings, avid 1.0 cantilever brakes | | Bottom Line: | Bought just the rear wheel, "slightly used by lightweight female rider" on ebay for 80 bucks with shipping and all. I have put maybe 400-500 miles on it, with 10% of that being very rugged, rast, technical areas with large jumps and dropoffs (mountain terrrain), and the rest road (gotta get groceries). Anyways, the wheel has stayed very true and stiff, but I noticed yesterday that the hub has spun itself loose. Not sure if it's Mavic's fault, or the seller's. We'll see. | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
billy
a Cross Country Rider
from farmington
Date Reviewed: February 11, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | island lake | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$100.00 | | Purchased At: | friend | | Strengths: | pretty light, stay true, stiff and im a 230+ rider | | Weaknesses: | stickers | | Similar Products Used: | nuke proof | | Bike Setup: | homegrown 8000 | | Bottom Line: | these wheels are really good for the price i paid, i reccomend them to anyone. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
G.
a Cross Country Rider
from Ft Collins CO
Date Reviewed: December 23, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | The Bike Shop | | Strengths: | Durability, strength | | Weaknesses: | None, price? weight? | | Similar Products Used: | LX/mavic wheel, LX/Ritchey wheel, Alivio/Arraya wheel. | | Bike Setup: | '96 Bontrager Race, X-link on the rear only | | Bottom Line: | I weigh 130 lbs, which is a lot more forgiving on my equipment. Having said that, I've ridden this wheel HARD for 2+ years and I've never even had to get it trued. This is good b/c sounds like mavic's customer service sucks. I think this is a good all-around XC wheel. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Stephen Smith
a Cross Country Rider
from Georgetown, IL, U.S.A.
Date Reviewed: October 12, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Strengths: | weight/dollar
| | Weaknesses: | none yet | | Similar Products Used: | cheap stock wheels and various road wheels | | Bike Setup: | Fully rigid Trek 850 with NO original parts | | Bottom Line: | After using this site to do my research, for a 155 lbs rider there can't be a better wheel value out there!! You'd have to spend ALOT more money to really gain anything at all. These wheels are strong, light and fast and after two years of riding them I had to true them for the first time last week! My riding is contained mostly to the midwest(flatlands of Illinois) but I hop and jump off everything I can! These wheels are awesome!! Buy them!! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Joel
a Cross Country Rider
from Lancaster, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: October 8, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | Cannell Plunge | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$230.00 | | Purchased At: | Supergo | | Strengths: | Inexpensive...lightweight, pretty decent wheels for the money, although for about $30 more I could have gotten a better set of shimano/mavic wheels. | | Weaknesses: | Oddball components. Company won't deal with you, unless you are a dealer...most dealers don't stock parts. I always carried a spare rear wheelset with me in the car, when I went on long trips. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano XT/Mavic 517's, Velomax Climax's. | | Bike Setup: | Specialized M2, Marzocchi Atom Z2, XT/XTR, Race Face, Easton, Velomax Climax's | | Bottom Line: | Decent wheels for the money, as long as you live near a good LBS. Now I see that they have beefed up the rear hub, and called them "Cross-Ride".
I replaced mine with a set of Velomax Climax's, for about the same amount of money...we'll see how they hold up. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
mack daddy
a Cross Country Rider
from beaverton
Date Reviewed: July 1, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$200.00 | | Purchased At: | wheeleorld | | Strengths: | cheap, good for weekend worrier | | Weaknesses: | weak. I tacoed the rim with a fairly minor hit (dont think I even fully compressed my shock. | | Bike Setup: | Titus racer X, Fox float, | | Bottom Line: | The wheel set was the last low end items on my bike, I upgrade everytime I break something, and they lasted six months. This is one of the shortest life cycles of all my gear (except drive chain in the winter). | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Alan
a
from Chicago
Date Reviewed: July 1, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | somewhere in nocal | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Purchased At: | wheelworld | | Strengths: | Wheel stays true.
Rims have held up well | | Weaknesses: | Freehub SUCKS
Mavic service SUCKS | | Similar Products Used: | Racing since 1990, many products tried. | | Bike Setup: | Used on a Breezer and a Gunnar, both set up for XC racing | | Bottom Line: | Bottom line is that after a year, the freehub gave out. Mavic SUCKS for service and doesn't respond to emails. Their dealer listing has shops in the area and one shop quoted me $65-105 to replace the freehub and they would not sell me a freehub so that I could avoid their $25 charge to put on a effing freehub. And the freehub is proprietary to Mavic and can't be substituted. After this no way would I buy a another wheelset from Mavic. I have a decent wheelset that's dead because I can't get a freehub. So screw mavic freehubs, I'm taking the hub out and relacing the rim with a Shimano compatible freehub.
Mavic rims are decent but I'll never take a chance on Mavic wheelsets again. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mack daddy
a Cross Country Rider
from Beaverton Or
Date Reviewed: March 15, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | Rogers camp | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$210.00 | | Purchased At: | Wheelword | | Strengths: | Cheap, reliable, light, and take a good beating without much complaining.
I ride three to four times a week with lots of climbing, downhills, rocks, mud, etc and they are still running like new. | | Weaknesses: | FLEX. Stickers were pealing before they were on the bike but who cares.
After adding some tension on the spokes the wheels performed much better, | | Bike Setup: | Titus, phsylo, race face, magura and any other toy that can take a beating. | | Bottom Line: | They are a good cheap wheel set, want top of the line pay for it. If you are stepping up to disk brakes and dont have the cash for all the upgrades it a good place to start. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
robby
a Cross Country Rider
from chattanooga, tn
Date Reviewed: February 24, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$250.00 | | Purchased At: | online | | Strengths: | very light
they stay true very well
affordable | | Weaknesses: | stickers were crappy right out of the box | | Bottom Line: | i really love these wheels, apart from the fact the the stickers are crap, i have had no problems with them.. i have ridden them very hard for a year now and they have NEVER gone out of true.. for being as light as they are, they hold up very well.
sure, crossmax wheels are better, but they're too expensive for most of us.. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Clay
a Weekend Warrior
from Seattle
Date Reviewed: October 3, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Streets of Seattle, Tiger and Forest Mountain | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$250.00 | | Purchased At: | Wheelworld | | Strengths: | Looks, weight, disc capatability | | Weaknesses: | Some flex, and my rear hub freewheel assembly broke... Oh, and a sticker was coming off out of the box | | Similar Products Used: | Rolf Dolomites | | Bike Setup: | Trek VRX300, XT Crank, shifters and derailers. Hayes Hydraulics | | Bottom Line: | I like these wheels but there is some flex. I broke the rear hub while pedaling hard on a flat and now it only freewheels in both directions. Just sent them back to Mavic who says this is not common. I guess I'll see how it goes and make another post in the future. Otherwise no real gripes but I do plan on upgrading to Speed dreams with Chris King hubs. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Michael Corn
a Cross Country Rider
from Phx AZ
Date Reviewed: September 18, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Hawes | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$220.00 | | Purchased At: | Bike Shop | | Strengths: | No special strenghts except they "look cool" | | Weaknesses: | Flexy, not as light as advertised, poor build quality, spoke breakage, not as easy to repair as a standard 3 cross wheel. | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic/LX | | Bike Setup: | GT LTS (full suspension) | | Bottom Line: | I got a good price on this set but if I could turn back the clock I would buy something else. These wheels are definetly inferior to a standard XT wheelset with decent rims like mavic 517 or bontragers. I have had quality issues from the first ride. They are too flexy and I have broken 3 spokes in about 300 miles of riding. On my old set of lx/ritchey rims I broke 3 spokes in 5 years. I trust the 5 year old set more than I do these new rims. If you are looking for wheels do yourself a favor and have your local wheel builder HAND BUILD you a set of wheels and stay away from this machine built junk. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Matt
a Cross Country Rider
from Buffalo NY
Date Reviewed: September 9, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Strengths: | Strong, great hubs, pretty light. have been running rear with no tension on three spokes for a year, and it still runs true. before that, a spoke wrench never touched these wheels | | Weaknesses: | skewers, spoke rotates when truing (at the hub) but they're straight pull, whaddya expect | | Similar Products Used: | oem wheelset, sun 0degree xc light wheels i built myself | | Bike Setup: | 96 zaskar le, full xtr, lp riser bar, sid 100, sdg saddle, thompson, michelin hot s, platform pedals | | Bottom Line: | an excellent pair of wheels. i never, ever trued them until my buddy ran into my rear wheel at full speed whilst playing 'no dabs' over a year ago. messed up the wheel. what i find amazing is that even after i trued the wheel the best i could (shop employee) there is no, absolutely none, tension on three spokes. but it still runs true. and has for the past year. the front wheel just got ran over and then backed over. bent my syncros skewer to a 90 degree angle. again, wheel in poor shape, true the thing up, it runs true, and two spokes have no tension. and the hubs and great, i snugged up the rear once or tiwce and thats it. so, they are a cheap set of nice wheels that i have complete confidence in, and there is no tension on several spokes, and they still run true. what more could you ask a wheel to do for you? | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Gary Lunsford
a Racer
from Batesville, IN
Date Reviewed: July 30, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Hanging Rock, Ohio | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$229.00 | | Purchased At: | I think supergo or pricepoint | | Strengths: | A good allround use wheelset. I do notice some flex at times. | | Weaknesses: | Heavy skewers and hard to keep rear wheel true.... | | Similar Products Used: | About everything out there. Was co-sponsored by Sun RIms for 3 years.... | | Bike Setup: | This wheelset moves back and forth between two totally tricked out Cannondale Race machines. A caad4 hardtail and a super-V, both with Fatty ultras andthe best of everything. | | Bottom Line: | I bought this set 2 years ago and have about 1500 miles on them. I started out training on them for a year and this year I have them set up with Ti skewers, greenlite tubes and mosquito gold 1.85 tires and use them strictly for racing. After a multitude of crashes, jumps and hard riding, they are still in one piece. I do have to true the rear wheel every several hundred miles. But, the bearings, have never been touched. They are still as smooth as new, even after countless muddy rides and races followed by the ole' garden hose enema. I even rode them in the snow with Panaracer spike tires, doing high speed downhill runs at my ski area in sub zero weather. I think the trick was that I did break everything down and checked the spoke tension and put Pedro's synlube in hubs before ever using. I think that is probably why I have had success with them. Right out of the box, these wheels are machine built and are not always perfect as they cannot compensate for slight variances in the materials. I have been racing BMX, MTB and motocross for over twenty five years, and if there is one thing I have learned it is to check everything before you throw a leg over. A five minute pre-ride inspection is the cheapest fix you've got in the toolbox. A good rider knows to take shorts rides and recheck the wheels several times to allow the spokes and bearings to get the initial stress and become seated. Then you can begin the thrashing. When bike shops offer hand built pre-stressed wheels this is what they are talking about. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Pete Lang
a Cross Country Rider
from Asia
Date Reviewed: July 29, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Glad to ride anything | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Strengths: | Presently super cheap, smooth hubs, ample strong for rough xc use, good looking, Mavic. | | Weaknesses: | Honestly, none I've experienced in 2 years of use.
Oh yes, the skewers that came with them were darn heavy. | | Similar Products Used: | 517's, Rolf Dolomite's, 321's, 521's, Deemax's, Crosslink's. Also borrowed Crossmax's for 3months. | | Bike Setup: | Zaskar Team, 01 Sid XL, Complete XTR, Easton CT2 bar and seatpost, Easton EA70 Stem, SDG saddle and Crosslink's | | Bottom Line: | I didn't start riding till 3 years ago (I'm 33 yrs old) and started out with FS owning first a GT LTS then a Lobo then a San Andreas DHS. As with my other hobbies I tend to go over the top and try to get my hands on whatever was recommended to me as 'the best' available at the time (fortunately my company paid me well). I started out with the 321's laced to DT Hugi hubs then 521's then Deemax's. I began taking an interest in hardtails so I could ride more and used the Dolomites then not long after the Crosslink's. Believe me, the one accessory I worried on my hardtail at the time were the wheels since I was accustomed to 'DH' rims I expected the XC rims to be as strong as tissue paper. Of course I was wrong. After 2 years of almost daily work outs on my bike I have only had to true the rear wheel once. As for the hubs that some are complaining about - well I just built 521's onto XT disc hubs (brand new) and they by far do not spin as long nor smooth as my 2 year old Crosslinks. The Crossmax's are nicer, but for the current price of Crosslinks I'd buy another 2 sets in a heartbeat (problem is that there aren't any left in my area).
For those who might think I'm bluffing - I guess no one in their right mind would spend so much time complimenting these wheels if they weren't as good as I say.
Cheap, good looking, smooth and tough (for XC). Period.
Hope this helps. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris
a Weekend Warrior
from Bilthoven, The Netherlands
Date Reviewed: July 26, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Houffalize, Belgium | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$200.00 | | Purchased At: | Local bike shop | | Strengths: | Relatively light
Straight pull spokes
Bearings run smooth
Front wheel is bomb proof | | Weaknesses: | Rear wheel is definately not bomb proof | | Similar Products Used: | Rigida DP 22 @ LX hub
Sun CR18 @ STX-RC hub
Mavic X221 @ GT hub | | Bike Setup: | Giant ATX 900 frameset, Z1 Drop-off, XT, Kore, Magura HS33 | | Bottom Line: | The front wheel is and stays perfect. The rear wheel is a piece of junk IMO. The 1st problem I encountered was the freewheel body which totally collapsed during a vacation at Gran Canaria. This is *not* the place to look for spare parts, for a mountainbike at least. The second problem appeared with the bearing itself. When adjusted for smooth running, there was room on the bearing, and when adjusted for getting rid of the room, the wheel wouldn't run smooth anymore. However, the hub internals are replaced quite easily. The third problem I encountered is not specifically CrossLink related: I landed under an angel after a jump. I totally wrecked the rim, which stays now under this certain angle :-(
I could have the rim replaced, but my LBS advised me to get new spokes instead. Even in Europe the straight pull spokes are expensive, so I guess I will go look for something like 517's @ XT. (Other suggetsions are welcome!)
After all I can't say the rear wheel is top notch, the front wheel is good. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Alex
a Cross Country Rider
from Boston, MA
Date Reviewed: July 19, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$250.00 | | Strengths: | Nice hubs | | Weaknesses: | awkward to replace spokes, weak rim | | Similar Products Used: | lots | | Bottom Line: | The rim (28 hole) has worn through too quickly. Phoned
Mavic and they won't give me the ERD so that I can replace the rim with a different rim. A-holes. I'll just have to measure it and see if there is a suitable on out there.
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris Kaye
a Weekend Warrior
from Jacksonville Beach, Fl.
Date Reviewed: July 6, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Devils Backbone, Hunter Creek - NY | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$220.00 | | Strengths: | Strength, Smooth hubs, Good looks | | Weaknesses: | I have lots of faith in these wheels.. no apperent weeknesses | | Similar Products Used: | misc garbage wheel sets | | Bike Setup: | wheels and a frame | | Bottom Line: | These wheels have never let me down.. At a hefty 190lbs I dont take it easy on them.. for over two years they have remained true and strong.. After many crashes and incidents I still love them!!!! Good wheel for the $$$$$ | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Grasshopper
a Cross Country Rider
from San Diego, CA
Date Reviewed: June 16, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Marshall Canyon, La Verne | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$200.00 | | Purchased At: | SuperGo | | Strengths: | Strong, Light, Well Built, Cheap. | | Weaknesses: | Heavy Nipples | | Similar Products Used: | CrossMax (Used, Not Owned), Wienmann 519 | | Bike Setup: | GT Outpost, XTR/XT/LX, 2000 SID XC, Avid Single Digit 7 Brakes, EA70 Bar, CT2 Seatpost, SDG Satelite Seat, Panaracer Fire XC Pro Tires | | Bottom Line: | In My Eyes The Best Wheelset On The Market Is The CrossMax. But Damn Those Are Expensive. These Ride Very Similar With Only The Rim Wall As A Noticeable Difference. The Hubs Are Almost Identical And The Lacing Is Identical. The Biggest Difference Between The Two Being The Price.
I Am A Light Rider (145lbs), Maybe That Is Why I Have Had No Problems With Them. I Have Never Had To True Them In The 2000 Miles I Have Put On Them. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dennis
a
from Murrieta Ca
Date Reviewed: June 1, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Chiino Hills | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$399.00 | | Purchased At: | wheelworld | | Strengths: | Wheels look really good. | | Weaknesses: | Anything and Everything | | Similar Products Used: | Cane Creek Wam, Mavic 517 | | Bike Setup: | GT XCR 1.0, XT - XTR | | Bottom Line: | The wheels flex. God damn I hate that. Spokes are weak, hub came from the factory loose. I can fix most problems as they come up but you cannot fix the flex. I bought these on a special deal from Wheelworld with Formula Evoluzione disc brakes. What a friggin waste of money. Both these products are absolutely the worst I've ever used. Of course Wheel World turns their back after the sale is done so I'm screwed. Trust me, stay away from Wheelworld, Mavic and Formula. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Edward Baguer
a Cross Country Rider
from N. Newark, NJ
Date Reviewed: May 27, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Rocky Point, LI | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$250.00 | | Strengths: | Cartridge Bearings, Lightweight | | Weaknesses: | Weak rear spokes, poor customer service and warranty issues | | Bike Setup: | Litespeed Toccoa | | Bottom Line: | This wheelset just plain stinks. The rear spokes broke on three different rides leaving me with long walks back to the trailhead. The rear rim started to crack along the spoke outlets. I had my local bike shop send the rear wheel back to Mavic to fix it. It should have been a warranty repair but they claimed it wasn't. I read on their website that the warranty is void unless Mavic proper does the repair work. This includes changing spokes. It took them from Nov. to March to fix and return my wheel to me. They also had the gaul to charge me $70-80 to fix something that was obviously a manufacturing or materials defect. Buy anything but a set of Mavics. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Saucy
a Cross Country Rider
from Webster, NY
Date Reviewed: May 18, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Price Paid: |
$270.00 | | Purchased At: | Jenson USA | | Strengths: | Strong, true, light, durable. | | Weaknesses: | None... well I guess they were a little heavier than advertised, but still plenty light. | | Similar Products Used: | A million different kinds of wheels... | | Bike Setup: | They were on a Mountain Cycle Moho and a K2 3000 | | Bottom Line: | I just sold these wheels to a buddy after 3 great years of riding and racing on them. The only problem I ever had was the freehub got all gummed up in a muddy race, but it cleaned out fine. I wrecked hard enough to trash a frame and fork and the front wheel just needed a little truing. Overall these were just awesome wheels. The only reason I got rid of them is because both my bikes have discs now. Can't say enough good things about these wheels. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Charly
a Cross Country Rider
from Clemson
Date Reviewed: May 18, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$249.00 | | Strengths: | Rear hub works very well. | | Weaknesses: | Spokes strength in the rear wheel are very very week. It broke again for the third time in less than a year! urgh...very annoying... | | Similar Products Used: | brontrager/517 ceramic | | Bike Setup: | FSR enduro pro | | Bottom Line: | Well, after the spoke snapped off 3 times in less than a year. Do you think I would buy another set of crosslink??? Hmm...let me think... NO! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Robby
a Cross Country Rider
from Berrien
Date Reviewed: May 17, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$220.00 | | Purchased At: | Universalcycles.com | | Strengths: | strong.stay in true.fairly light.look good. | | Weaknesses: | stickers come off really fast.heavier than advertised. | | Similar Products Used: | matrix wheelset that came on bike | | Bike Setup: | trek 7000 | | Bottom Line: | mavic is a good company. if people have a valid gripe or problem with the wheels, i'm sure that mavic will take care of you. i bought these wheels as an upgrade, and they've been great. they've stayed in true very well. i'd recommend it to most anyone that isn't racing a lot and wants an affordable upgrade on their bike. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
David
a Cross Country Rider
from Georgia
Date Reviewed: May 2, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | They don't give you cancer or HIV | | Weaknesses: | Weak, cheap, poorly assembled hub, won't hold together in serious riding. | | Similar Products Used: | LX, XT, | | Bottom Line: | Don't buy these wheels, You will regret it, I promise, look elsewhere. Get a set of LX wheels or something. Mavic really has a sh_tty set of wheels here. I had a lot of high hopes in them and tried to get over the broken hub body I had to replace after dealing with some French ass_hole, the constantly loosening cassette, and the huge amount of flex. But no more, I hate those wheels, they have never satisfied me and have caused nothing but a pain in the a_ss. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris
a Cross Country Rider
from Innsbruck, Tyrol, Austria
Date Reviewed: April 10, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Tyrolean mountainbike trails | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Purchased At: | Sport Neuner | | Strengths: | light
durable
reliable
| | Weaknesses: | cheap skewers | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic X-222 with Coda hubs | | Bike Setup: | '98 Cannondale F-1000 | | Bottom Line: | It's a very well-built wheelset. Never had any problems with it. The hubs are easy to adjust and service. My wheelset staid true for 2 years now. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Nathan Scott
a Cross Country Rider
from saratoga ca USA
Date Reviewed: March 17, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | powerline in tahoe | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$239.00 | | Purchased At: | supergo | | Strengths: | stay tru-light-fast-strong-look good The hubs didn't get contaminated after a winter of riding in the mud.They gave my bike more precise steering. | | Weaknesses: | the crossLINK stickers are starting to come off. | | Similar Products Used: | Sun sub4 - weak, they're all bent up | | Bike Setup: | Cannondale super-v 900 with a x-vert on the front. LX ht splined crank-XTR brakes-monkey lite riser-LX derailleurs-titec hellbent seatpost-636 pedals-THE fender and a kore stem. | | Bottom Line: | They are strong,lite,and gooood lookin. and not a bad price. I've been ridding mostly cross country with these wheels. I've taken them of a some 4 ft drops and run them into a few things i should have avoided and they are as tru as when i first rode them. I don't think they are a freeride wheelset they're to lite ,but they are suprisingly durable. yep. Happy trails, spring is near! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chad
a Racer
from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Date Reviewed: March 16, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | Alter Ego Sports | | Strengths: | Light and rigid. Satin smooth sealed cartridge hubs. Stay true forever! | | Weaknesses: | Decals peeling. Finicky spokes. | | Bike Setup: | '99 Schwinn Homegrown Factory | | Bottom Line: | Kind of expensive, but well worth it. These wheels have been raced on for 2 seasons and only needed minor truing once which is almost unheard of. They're not the lightest wheels available anymore, but they're still incredibly light. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
jeremy
a
from iowa
Date Reviewed: March 5, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$229.00 | | Strengths: | quality
reilaibilty
weight
steering acuracy | | Weaknesses: | unique parts
skewers | | Similar Products Used: | a few various stock 3 cross wheel sets | | Bike Setup: | spicer, bomber z3, all XT | | Bottom Line: | I am not a heavy rider at, 160 average. These wheel greatly improved the stearing accuarcy, and well as my acceleration. They are smooth rolling and the sealed cartrage bearings are a no brainer. I am used to truing my old wheels every 4 rides or so, just to keep them perfect. I check my crosslinks that often and in a year I have not broght a spoke wrench near them. I like my bike to be high performace and low maintainance, these wheels fit right in. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Kev
a Racer
from Reno/Tahoe
Date Reviewed: February 27, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Flume Trail, Tahoe east side | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$299.00 | | Purchased At: | Wheelworld.com | | Strengths: | This is the "white" hub/rim disk only wheelset. I am hoping to have better luck with these than I did with a rear "CrossRide" wheel purchased through Performance. As refelected in other post on this board, my "CrossRide" wheel went funky after a brief ride down a flat road and was never true again. So far the "CrossLinks" are holding up OK and I'll hope for the best. I would have to think they would have gone squirrely by now for what they've been through. (As reference- I have a Mavic SUP217/Hope TI-hub that is 4-5 years old and has been 'slightly'trued twice). | | Weaknesses: | White hubs/wheels ... my cool bike now looks like a Huffy | | Similar Products Used: | CrossRide. | | Bike Setup: | Jamis Dakar Expert,XT,XTR,Raceface | | Bottom Line: | This will be a great deal if the wheels hold up. Seems like they do or they don't. I wonder if these wheels are all pre-built before going to retailers? Even so, I'm sure Mavic subcontracts the assembly effort out. That could explain a "QC" issue. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Carl Morse
a Racer
from Hortonville
Date Reviewed: February 21, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Old Style | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$219.00 | | Purchased At: | Supergo | | Strengths: | I like them So Far | | Weaknesses: | I don't trust the real weights they so are true. | | Similar Products Used: | Zac 19 | | Bike Setup: | Zaskar | | Bottom Line: | Does anyone know the weight of the Rim Strip that Comes Stock on these. It looks Black and heavy. Please e-mail me with the REAL weight of the rim strip. Thank you. I like the crosslinks anyway. It is winter and i just built the bike and put about 1 mile on it. Hasn't broke yet(like anything would in one mile) but i can't try it until summer. I hope it doesn't break like you others say. Thamks if ya have the weight of strip. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Joe Schield
a Weekend Warrior
from Lee's Summit
Date Reviewed: January 23, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | South Mountain Park | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$219.00 | | Purchased At: | Supergo | | Strengths: | Light, Decent price | | Weaknesses: | For light cross conrty riders | | Similar Products Used: | XT-X221, Formula-X317, Specilized-X221 | | Bike Setup: | Formula-X317 on XCR 2.0 | | Bottom Line: | I weight a little over 200 lbs. I cracked my rear hub in about 4 months after I purchased the wheels. They roll very smooth, by didn't last long. Now I am testing the warranty department and exchange process for quality. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ray Jaimez
a Cross Country Rider
from Austin, Tx, USA
Date Reviewed: January 18, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Rocky Hill Ranch in Smithville,Tx | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$229.00 | | Purchased At: | Supergo | | Strengths: | I have had no problems with my Crosslink wheelset. The first thing I did was replace the skewers with some Ti. Salsa skewers. These wheels rarely need truing and I pound the hell out of them on the rocky, chunky, and hard packed trails. I guess Mavic's quality controls system needs to be improved on as I read the other reviews. | | Weaknesses: | None so far. | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic Crossland (still use with no problems), LX w/Mavic X138, and XT w/Mavic 222 | | Bike Setup: | 95 Team RTS with full XTR, Chris King headset, and Judy SL front shock. 97 Diamondback hardtail with same setup. | | Bottom Line: | Great wheels for the money for some riders and a bad deal for others. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
joel
a Cross Country Rider
from ventura
Date Reviewed: December 28, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$250.00 | | Strengths: | look cool,strong | | Weaknesses: | none yet | | Similar Products Used: | mavic 517 | | Bottom Line: | been riding these wheels for more than a year without any problems at all, can't remember the last time they needed truing and i'm a big boy at 205 ridding some pretty hard stuff. i also raced them all season with no probs, definetly worth the money and don't know whats up with the set the guy had that kept breaking spokes but mine are solid and the yellow hubs are cool. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Steve
a Weekend Warrior
from OR
Date Reviewed: December 12, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Strengths: | Keeps its true very well, reasonably light weight for XC rides, looks pretty cool too, solid investment for a XC rider. | | Weaknesses: | Not the best choice when you just want to let loose on DH courses. Lil' skinny rims... | | Similar Products Used: | other Mavic's, Bontrager, a few others | | Bike Setup: | Santa Cruz Heckler, XT, Judy Race, Thomson, Pro Taper, Panaracer, Avid Arch Supreme brakes. | | Bottom Line: | These wheels have lasted a long time and given me minimal problems with tuning. Every now and then you need to true them like most other wheels. But this wheel set stays in true surprisingly well. Like I said earlier they are good and light. Mavic = quality. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
xcrider
a Cross Country Rider
from southern california
Date Reviewed: December 6, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$219.00 | | Purchased At: | supergo | | Strengths: | + Pretty cheap for a complete wheelset
+ Look pretty good | | Weaknesses: | - Much heavier than advertised, this is *NOT* a light wheelset
- Rear won't stay true for more than 1 ride
- Spokes break when riding *up* hill
- Spokes cost $2.00 a piece
- Replacing spokes requires a special tool and removing the cassette, even on the non-drive side | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic 238, Bontrager | | Bike Setup: | Litespeed hardtail | | Bottom Line: | Save your money and get something else. I replaced a pretty cheap set of Bontrager rims with this wheelset, and have regretted it almost from the start. The front is a great wheel, but the rear is a joke. I don't ride hard, never jump off anything, and take it very easy over the bumpy stuff. Heck, I never get air at all. OK, so they are (much) heavier than advertised. That would be fine if they were more durable, but they just aren't reliable at all. I've broken 2 rear spokes, one going *up* hill, and the rear won't stay true for more than 1 ride. Oh yea, to change a spoke all you need to do is use their special tool to open the hub, pull the cassette (even if the broken spoke is on the non-drive side!), unthread about 3 little pieces of metal, install the new $2.00 spoke (yea, 2 bucks a spoke, can you believe it?), and put it all back together. A frustrating, expensive, 1 hour operation, that can't be done on the trail. What crap!
They may be reliable for a very light rider on a full suspension bike riding on the street, I don't know. But to anyone else, my recommendation is to avoid these wheels! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Julian
a Weekend Warrior
from Toronto
Date Reviewed: December 5, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Purchased At: | Silent Sports Bike Shop | | Strengths: | Complete package out of the box ... light & strong with Incredibley smooth bearings. All of the design features of the higher priced Crossmax without the wallet busting add ons (ceramic coating & Max decals) | | Weaknesses: | hmmm ... well none to speak of so far except that there seems to be a real divide amongst owners ... some have great sets and others have lemons ... seems that hardtail owners don't get the reliability out of the rear wheel. I'm full squish and haven't had any bearing or cassette problems. | | Similar Products Used: | Hubs: Hope ($$$) /Shimano (Reliable but chunky) /American Classic ( Not bad but flexy ) /White Ind (Problematic bearings )
Rims: Mavic (517,231 & DH) | | Bike Setup: | Silent Sports Eldorado FS w/ Fox Vanilla RC rear suspension (5" travel) and Manitou X-Vert (Triple Crown) ... XTR/Thompson/King/Qranc hardware | | Bottom Line: | It appears that the construction of the wheels is typical Mavic ... well engineered and top manufacturing finish.
There's a big clearance on these wheelsets by .Com companies as there's been a change by Mavic to the product line essentially making the "crosslink" old news. This is always a tactic by manufacturers to get people to upgrade.
By supporting your local bike shop you get a larger voice to deal with apparent warranty issues. I've ridden Mavic rims until the sidewalls have been see-through and will continue.
If the wheel works don't touch it, if it doesn't fix it ... it's not rocket science! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
James
a
from Kuala Lumpur
Date Reviewed: December 5, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$200.00 | | Strengths: | Has the looks. Trick straight pull hubs. | | Weaknesses: | All bark and no bite. I weigh 160 lb and do a lot of rough riding. Each time I blast down hardpack clay with stutter bumps or the equivalent, the rear wheels go out of true and needs to be sent to the LBS. The bearings are of poor durability. Just 3 month of riding and I've got to change a new set. You should've seen the gunk that went past the seals in the main casette body as well. Also, I don't see why Mavic has to give us that flimsy plastic adjustment tool. I've broken the 3 of the tooths already when I slipped adjusting it. The front wheel doesn't stand up much to abuse either.
And from the reviews I've read, I fear that they might be true after all, at the rate things are going. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano LX hubs/araya rims circa 1994. These babies lasted me 6 years. (And weigh less than the crosslink) | | Bike Setup: | Bianchi hardtail/XTR/XT/SIDSL | | Bottom Line: | If you ride hard and don't pamper your gear. Skip these pseudo wheelsets. Spend your dosh on X517 and XTR hubs. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mark Kadillak
a Cross Country Rider
from Kamakura, Kanagawa-ken, Japan
Date Reviewed: December 2, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Miura Peninsula | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$250.00 | | Purchased At: | Universal Cycles | | Strengths: | looks good
| | Weaknesses: | Very poor design and construction esp the rear hub. Rear hub is a joke. The thing is mostly plastic. Can't keep the rear hub from rattling. The rims are no problem ( I'm not into jumping etc.)
| | Similar Products Used: | Bontrager | | Bike Setup: | Klein Attitude, Marazochi Atom 80 fork, King Headset, Thomson Seatpost, XT drive train and brakes | | Bottom Line: | This is a fine wheelset if you are a slender woman or a skinny guy who just plans to ride around town and look good. If you are a serious rider forget about it. Now I understand why they are on sale all over the NET. If you need a reliable wheelset then look elsewhere.
Take a poor design and make it in plastic and you have a very weak hub.
I'm getting Chris King hubs and still deciding on the non-Mavic rims to use. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
snopro
a Cross Country Rider
from Northern Michigan
Date Reviewed: November 8, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$229.00 | | Purchased At: | SuperGo | | Strengths: | Front and rear wheels are bomb proof. comes with some cool stickers | | Weaknesses: | None yet. Have not seen any cracks in the rear hub body as other have seen. | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic X-217 w/ '98 Shimano XT hubs | | Bike Setup: | 1998 Schwinn Home Grown Carbon Suspenion, Rockshox Judy XC w/total air, Shimano XT & XTR, Kore Elite stem, Yeti downhill bar, titec seat post, F & R Wild Gripper HOT S | | Bottom Line: | A GREAT wheel set for a low price. Riden them every day have not noticed any problems. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Paul
a Weekend Warrior
from Nashville,TN, USA
Date Reviewed: November 5, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Hamilton Creek, Nashville,TN | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$220.00 | | Purchased At: | Supergo | | Strengths: | strength, durability, looks | | Weaknesses: | poor skewer design | | Similar Products Used: | LX on 221's | | Bike Setup: | GT XCR 1000 w/XTR stuff, Race Face crankset, TIME, Easton bar and stem, Marzocchi Z1 Xfly. | | Bottom Line: | I weigh almost 200 lbs. and almost never have to true these wheels. The old 221's were never straight after a good run through the rocks and roots of Hamilton Creek. I even ran over the front wheel in my truck, straight across the hub, and adjusted 3 spokes no more than 1 turn and they were straight again. I love these things. The hubs showed no signs of damage and don't make any noise. Just like new. I just wish they were disc compatible. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
mike
a Racer
from clarkston, mi, usa
Date Reviewed: October 6, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Bottom Line: | I've had these wheels for about 5 months now, and have only experienced one broken spoke on the drive side rear wheel. Spokes weren't too hard to get, but cost me about $10.00 for a set of ten, i also got the nondrive spoke set as well, just in case. i weigh anywhere between 190 in race season, and 210 off season, and they have taken a lot of abuse. Before i bought them i read some of the reviews, and thought, "well i'll just get a new set if they fail." For 200, you may as well buy two sets, and when they fail, just trade them on and off. I am pleased with the product. Didn't have the hub problems though. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Scott
a Racer
from Connecticut
Date Reviewed: September 30, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Bluff Point | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$219.00 | | Purchased At: | Supergo | | Strengths: | Good solid wheels. No hub problems, strong wheels, lightweight as well. | | Weaknesses: | Few. Skewers are sorta shifty, but I didn't buy these for the skewers. Light, strong and if you take care of them, quality wheels. | | Similar Products Used: | Sun CR-18, Spinergy SPOX, Spinergy Rev-X-Roks, Spinergy Roks XE | | Bike Setup: | GT Hardtail, mostly XTR besides hubs and cranks (XT cranks) Marzocchi z4 Flylight Air fork | | Bottom Line: | Good wheels. For 219, buy them. It seems to me some of Crosslinks made are better than others, and it seems I have the better. Strong, light and dependable, i reccomend these wheels. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jim N
a Cross Country Rider
from Medford,NJ,USA
Date Reviewed: September 21, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Jim Thorpe | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$350.00 | | Purchased At: | LBS | | Strengths: | Front wheel is strong and stays true. | | Weaknesses: | Rear hub sucks the big one. | | Similar Products Used: | Crossmax, Bontrager Racelites, cheapo crap | | Bike Setup: | Spooky Darkside,Atom Bomb,Race Face I Beams,King headset,XTR V's,Ringle' stem and post,XT shifters,WTB Velociraptors,MonkeyLite Easton bars | | Bottom Line: | The bottom line is Mavic sucks. Mavic Customer Service sucks. The rear hub/freewheel body sucks. Charged me for a new freehub while the pieces of sh@t were still under warranty and had complained 3 times before. A-holes work for Mavic's Customer Service Dept.I'd rather go to KMart and buy a set of rims before I buy Mavic again. I hate the French anyway.......Mavic Blows. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mark Brothers
a
from Raleigh
Date Reviewed: September 12, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Dunn Road (RIP) | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | price
stayed true for me | | Weaknesses: | none so far | | Similar Products Used: | cheap heavy stock wheels | | Bike Setup: | GT Lightning, Indy SL, mutt components all the way from XTR to STX-RC. | | Bottom Line: | These are great wheels for the price. And now you can get them cheaper. I'm not sure how many miles I have put on them, but I have had them for two seasons now and they are still true. Sure, they are not as good as Crossmax, etc. but remember my first sentence?
I haven't had to deal with customer service, so don't know about that. And I'm still using the stock skewers. For folks that can't afford to spend big money on the coolest, latest and lightest, I think these wheels rock. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
DP
a Cross Country Rider
from Garden Grove
Date Reviewed: August 29, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$250.00 | | Purchased At: | Supergo | | Strengths: | Silky smooth hubs. Wheels stay true. | | Weaknesses: | None so far. | | Bike Setup: | '99 GT XCR1000 | | Bottom Line: | Purchased these wheels to replace the low-end factory wheels on my stock bike which were under-tensioned and kept loosening up (LX w/221's). The price was fair for this product. Very smooth hubs. Rims are as true as when I bought them. Very supple and responsive. Good balance between strength and flexibility which I think means they will be durable. I only have ~300 miles on them so far though. Time will tell how reliable they will be. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
MIke Nemecek
a Cross Country Rider
from Overland Park, KS, USA
Date Reviewed: August 26, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Porcipine rim, moab | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$200.00 | | Purchased At: | Bike Store | | Strengths: | Strong, pretty Light, Stay ture!
| | Weaknesses: | None yet. Except the Bike store ripped me off Kept the skewers. thats ok though here they suck | | Similar Products Used: | Spins, 517's | | Bike Setup: | GT XCR1000, sid, raceface cranks,killer bike | | Bottom Line: | These things are great, I dont know what all these people are doing, but im 215 and abuse the crap out of parts and after a year of riding, I have not had to true the wheels once.they are still completely straight, and I have had absoloutly no problems with the rear hub. any one who says mavic sucks is an idiot. Who's better? without spending 400.00 on hubs?
These are inexpensive for the quality. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jay Enge
a Cross Country Rider
from Nixa, Mo. USA
Date Reviewed: August 19, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | The Berryman | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$230.00 | | Purchased At: | Universalcycles.com | | Strengths: | The front wheel seems solid. I have had it trued but no real complaints about the front wheel. | | Weaknesses: | The rear wheel is a hunk of junk! My second ride ,which was a in town pavement ride, I had spokes backing out. Ive had the rear trued up at least four times. Then after riding them for about Five months the rear hub started to loosen up on every ride and the hub itself makes popping noises under pressure. Two months ago I sent it to Mavic, BIG MISTAKE! Mavic claims the wheel is not under warranty and the nipple, spokes and rim need to be replaced for $85.00 but they rebuilt the hub. And Universalcycles.com was not a lot of help either. It took them two weeks to get an RA# for me to send the wheel to Mavic which I still have'nt seen. So even though Mavic is a huge wheel company and they make good stuff their customer service sucks and their crosslinks too. I WILL NEVER SHOP AT UNIVERSALCYCLES.COM OR BUY MAVIC WHEELS AGAIN! | | Similar Products Used: | Sun rims Shimano hubs | | Bike Setup: | Carbon with XTR brakes, Manitou fork, Sram 9.0 rear D, XT front D, LX hallow tech crank, body geom. saddle and Thompson post. 24 pound hardtail! | | Bottom Line: | The bottom line is don't ever buy crosslinks and if you like good customer service don't shop at Universalcycles.com. Im selling my crosslinks ,when ever I get my wheel from Mavic, and buying some Bontragers. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Daniel Sims
a Cross Country Rider
from Greensboro NC
Date Reviewed: August 10, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Hobby Park, Owls roost | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Strengths: | Strong. has stayed trued since I had them. Like the style | | Weaknesses: | Cheap skewers | | Similar Products Used: | sun Rims,Mavic 217 with lx hubs | | Bike Setup: | Cannondale frames set with fatty sl. XT components | | Bottom Line: | I've had these rims for over 1 1/2 years through lots of abuse and have yet had them mess up or go out of true. the Skewers are cheap though. but so far no real complaints | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jay
a Cross Country Rider
from Saipan
Date Reviewed: August 7, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Price, solid...so far, looks. | | Weaknesses: | Decals starting to peel off. | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic 221 | | Bike Setup: | GT XCR3000 - Answer Pro Taper, Race Face Turbine, Marz Z1 CR, etc | | Bottom Line: | I weigh in at 250 lbs and have yet to have a problem with these wheels despite a fair amount of abuse(knock on wood). After reading all of the negative reviews I went and checked my wheels closely for signs of failure but I cant find anything wrong. Spokes are all tight and there are no signs of cracking anywhere. For the price they seem unbeatable so far - go get you some! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Kenyon
a Cross Country Rider
from Tucson, AZ
Date Reviewed: July 24, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Starr Pass | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | Initially better and possibly lighter than some stock rigs. True, rigid front wheel. | | Weaknesses: | Cheap, heavy skewers. Poorly built rear wheel that won't stay true and suffers chronically from loosening spokes. | | Similar Products Used: | XT/Araya old, heavy stock wheelset | | Bike Setup: | Gary Fisher hardtail, Manitou fork. | | Bottom Line: | Buy a different set of wheels. There is a reason this product is being discontinued by the manufacturer, and is being clearanced by shops all over the net.
I have escaped (for now!) the major freehub disintegration reported by others, but I have suffered from at least five broken spokes on the rear wheel, opposite the drive side. The breakage occurs at the head end of the spoke, leaving the head to grind around inside the hub itself. And of course, Mavic is notorious for inaccessibility when it comes to warranty work.
While the price was reasonable, and the front wheel has done well, I will not buy Mavic products in the future due to the overall poor value in the wheelset. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Charly
a Weekend Warrior
from Clemson, SC
Date Reviewed: July 17, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Issaqueena, Clemson | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | niffty colors. Front wheel is always true...atleast so far... | | Weaknesses: | Plastic hubs??? Rear wheel would not stay True!!! | | Similar Products Used: | Bontrager stock, mavic 517 ceramic with Bonty hub. | | Bike Setup: | Specialized FSR Enduro Pro | | Bottom Line: | I got the set, because my 517 kept falling apart. One of the spoke in the rear wheel came loose after 3 hours of riding! It come loose once a month, which is very aggravating. However, one of my friend is also using crosslink. He has been using it for over a year now, and has never had any problem. During the last race, he ran head on into a pine tree and broke his fork! Surprisingly the front wheel is still true!!! I have a picture to prove that. It's available at people.clemson.edu/~ssander
My advice to you is too look around, and see if you can get the cheapest deal, supergo now has them for $199.98! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
John
a Racer
from Beckley, WV, USA
Date Reviewed: July 2, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | The dirt one. | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Good front wheel stays true and runs smooth. | | Weaknesses: | Rear hub comes loose every race, stays about as true as a druk walking a straight line. The spokes backed out on me and just about fell off after one race. | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic, X222, 517 | | Bike Setup: | Homegrown Pro, XTR/XT, Sid with total air cartridges. | | Bottom Line: | The front wheel seems bombproff. The wheelset has been used minimally over the past 6 mo really just for racing and the rear spokes back out, the hub comes loose after every race and I have had several different mechanics work on them so I know it is not just me. At least they were cheap, but I would not recommend them even for light riders like me (155 lbs). | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Emo
a Cross Country Rider
from Ashland,OR
Date Reviewed: May 7, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | The Happy Trail | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Good value at less than $250.00 until you break the #$@**&freehub!!! | | Weaknesses: | Broke the frickin' freehub in less than a month! Warranty response? | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano hubs and Mavic rims. | | Bike Setup: | Specialized S-Works XT/XTR | | Bottom Line: | I would just say that unless you're a spinner or lightweightlook elsewhere for a good racewheel. My front wheel is holding up fine. IF Mavic recognizes and rectifies the obvious manufacturer defect in my rear wheel
(the rear wheel freehub cracked!) my thus far "high"-esteem for this company's product will remain true.
P.S. Time will tell if my front wheel will hold up OR if Mavic warranties my cracked freehub that chundered after only 3 weeks of normal use.
I give 3 flamin' chilis for value because they were cheap mail order (I spent $230.00on'em.
On the overall I gotta dock 3 flamers because my rear freehub body and bearing cracked (catastrophic hub death) after only !!!3 Weeks!!! of normal use. If they back their product I'll think they're the bomb. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Todd Magee
a Cross Country Rider
from Ogden, UT
Date Reviewed: May 4, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Skyline | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Cool looks, seem to stay true | | Weaknesses: | Weight, cheap parts included (like skewers and rubber rim tape) | | Similar Products Used: | mavic 517 rims w/ XT hubs | | Bike Setup: | Stumpjumper M2 | | Bottom Line: | Mavic must not buy the same scales the rest of the world does (maybe it's a french thing), because these are portrayed as light wheels when you buy them. In the end they weigh about 1/2 a lb. more.
They look cool and are strong (so far), but after hearing all the customer service problems with Mavic you better have some other type of wheelset handy as a backup. I have to admit, if you can buy them under $250 then they're not a bad value. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
your mom
a Cross Country Rider
from wahington, dc
Date Reviewed: April 21, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | No problems w/ freehub
pretty strong- no hops or flat spots after 9 months | | Weaknesses: | not so light (for the price)
need regular lateral tweeking
cheapo rubber rim strip | | Similar Products Used: | LX/Sun XC | | Bike Setup: | IF, Manitou SX, XT/XTR, Time ATAC, King NoThredset | | Bottom Line: | You pay $250+ for a wheelset that comes with a cheapo rubber rim strip that completely rots out after back-to-back rainy days. Cutting corners on inexpensive yet important parts doesn't speak volumes to the overall quality of the product.
That said, not bad wheels. They suffer plenty of abuse in the hands of one of the mid-atlantic's sketchier riders and generally hold true. If you're concerned with weight look elsewhere; buy them from a shop that will call Mavic for you if something craps out. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Eric
a Cross Country Rider
from Milwaukee, WI
Date Reviewed: April 18, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | John Muir in WI, Fort Duffield in KY | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | Look nice, have stayed true through lots of rough Wisconsin Rock Gardens at high speeds. | | Weaknesses: | damn freehub locked up on me... Mavic Customer service... they were going to make me pay for a new rear hub... B@stards! | | Similar Products Used: | Ritchey Vantage Pro with old Shimano DX hubs <-- best wheelset I've owned... 8 years old and still straight as an arrow. | | Bike Setup: | GT Ricochet frame built up with XT/XTR crosslink front, spox rear, Manitou SXTi | | Bottom Line: | If the freehub was built better these would be some good wheels... the front is still rolling smooth and straight. 5 flaming turds for the front, 1 for the rear since it's still true but the freehub sucks | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Slide
a Cross Country Rider
from Yuma, AZ
Date Reviewed: April 10, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Noble Canyon, Big Laguna | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Fast, stay true, relatively light. Look cool. | | Weaknesses: | Not quite as light as I expected. | | Similar Products Used: | XT/517 | | Bike Setup: | Schwinn Homegrown Pro | | Bottom Line: | Good wheels. I have raced them twice now and ridden about a dozen times in lots of rocks and some fast downhills, with no ill effects. They required a little tensioning after the first couple rides (normal) but I haven't noticed the large truing problems noted elsewhere. There is one spoke right by the valve stem that keeps coming loose, but it's easy to fix. Still not sure about replacing broken spokes, but we'll cross that bridge when it comes. By my feel (not on a scale, mind you) my XT/517 wheels are about the same weight if not lighter than these. These definitely look cooler, however, if that matters to you. At $199 I'm happy. Would be 5 stars if lighter | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Gary
a Racer
from College Station, TX,USA
Date Reviewed: April 9, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | any single track | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Stayed true, cost, bearings. | | Weaknesses: | FREE HUB!!! CUSTOMER SERVICE!!! | | Similar Products Used: | LX hubs with 221 | | Bike Setup: | GT with xtr drive train. | | Bottom Line: | These wheels stayed true for ever. might be do to luck of the draw. I consider myself a aggressive rider and ride an average of 25 to 30 miles a day, and weigh 180.
The problem that I had with them is that I keep breaking the free hub body. The first one they had no problem sending a new one. But, then when the other is starting to go in a weeks time, they are giving me trouble. So, Mavic lost a customer. I am selling my wheels and buying form a company that will stand behind there products.
I also have a freind that had his lock up completly. I know it isn't weight because he only weighs 140... So, I guess I might of just got a bad pair but be warned! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
SAL
a Weekend Warrior
from Los Angeles
Date Reviewed: April 9, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | THE LOGS | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | high-tech look | | Weaknesses: | Not for heavier/ rough riders. Wheels are flimsy | | Similar Products Used: | Old school xtr hubs laced to old school araya 395 rims. This was the very first wheelset I built myself, in 1992. They were bulltetproof, hardly ever needed truing. They saw action on three different bikes. sadly i sold them with my last bike. | | Bike Setup: | Ellsworth Truth | | Bottom Line: | I needed wheels for my new Ellsworth Truth and saw these wheels hanging from the ceiling at Supergo. They looked really cool and the price was right, $249 for the pair. I was intrigued by the idea of radially laced/two-cross wheels being able to hold up to my 210 lbs. I figured that wheel technology has come a long way since i built my first set of wheels in 92, ---Well i've only done two rides on these wheels, and the radially laced spokes on the rear wheel are all loose, and the front is also starting to go out of true. Yeah these are cross country wheels, so i went on two leisurely rides with them on my new bike, but in two rides these wheels are ready to get tacoed. I'll have to retension and retrue these flimsy movie prop wheels so i still ride them and get my moneys worth, but I will soon lace up a pair of XTR/mavic 517 / three cross. I guess if you want it done right you have to build them yourself. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Adam
a Cross Country Rider
from Missoula, MT
Date Reviewed: April 4, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Looks trick, low friction, good braking | | Weaknesses: | Spokes break like twigs, poor customer service from Mavic. These wheels are pretty heavy for the money. | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic 217, XT hubs | | Bike Setup: | custom built Cannondale CAAD 3 | | Bottom Line: | A spoke broke of at the threads on my second ride on this wheel. I wasn't able to get a replacement spoke for several weeks because they were on back order. Finally I called Performance, who I bought it from, and they arranged for me to return it to them. Mavic was absolutely no help at all. I wish I would have stuck to a cheaper, lighter, traditional XT/517 combo. However, the wheel rode nice. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Nick
a Cross Country Rider
from Missouri
Date Reviewed: March 23, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | Looks cool
Quality rim
Smooth hub | | Weaknesses: | Price
Weight
Cost of replacement parts | | Similar Products Used: | King/517, Hugi/517 | | Bike Setup: | Trek 8900, Rhino Racing cranks, RF BB, XT Shifters/levers, XTR r. derailleur, Thomson post,,, | | Bottom Line: | These wheels aren't too bad of a value, but for about the same price you can get some XT/517's which would be a whole better in the long run. My main complaint is the cost and availability of replacement spokes-~$2 apiece.
They have stayed true pretty well, but most good quality rims should do this. Hub runs smooth, no problems with freehub. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
DT
a Cross Country Rider
from MI,USA
Date Reviewed: March 3, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | Looks sharp.
Spins fairly quietly.
Straight spokes.
Wears well.
Stays true. | | Weaknesses: | Weighs much more than claims.
Plastic outers on the hubs. (maybe not a weakness..?) | | Similar Products Used: | Sun 0, CR-18. Maya | | Bike Setup: | K2 carbon | | Bottom Line: | I bought these for the price ($220) and comments in mtbr.com (read the reviews in the "Rims" section as these "Wheelset" crosslink reviews here are new). They spin smoothly, and seem to have very low bearing friction compared to shimano LX/XT hubs. (XTR may be better, don't know, can't afford them.)
Mavic claims in adds they weigh about 1600g together, but the real weight is closer to 1800g (half a pound over!!). These weights are without the skewers. In the manual, they have the more correct weight, listing 750g and 1090g (ouch!) or something like that (not including the skewers). I guess the ad is a lie. The nipples are brass and could be switched for alloy, saving a good few scores of grams. But you'd have to true the wheels afterward. I don't want to try trueing straight spoke wheels.
They do stay true. Of course, I rarely have quality rims that go south (cheap ones do of course). I've ridden them decently hard...
Lastly, they look very trick. The rim is not actually black anodized, but looks like dark gun-metal blue. The spokes are straight, black in front and straight on non-drive side, crossed on drive side in back. The hub outers are plastic, making me worried they will break easy. But after some hard riding, no problems. Why plastic? The weight saved isn't that much...
Overall, would I buy these again? If I couldn't afford Bontrag Race lite with Chris King hubs ($500-$800), then yes (I can't afford much over $300). Also, CrossMax is the same thing, with ceramic coats, lighter spokes and alloy nipples. They're going for about $180 more (at ~$400) than the crosslinks. I doubt the $180 is worth the extras unless you're a weight weenie or need ceramic coating. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Rob Rogers
a Cross Country Rider
from Ashland, Oregon
Date Reviewed: February 24, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Time-Warp / Alice in Wonderland | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | From LX hubs on Mavic 222, the Cross-Links felt great! Lighter, more fluid feeling to the ride. Wheel weight does make a difference, and these are noticeably lighter. | | Weaknesses: | Not staying as true as I would like them to; I was hoping they would be a bit more Bomb-Proof than they are. I have had to true them a few times in the short amount of time that I have been riding them. | | Similar Products Used: | LX-XT hubs, Mavic 222 rim, | | Bottom Line: | Light weight......Great on the Climb
To Delicate??.....For fast decline.
Time will tell more.
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Luis Rodríguez
a Cross Country Rider
from San Juan
Date Reviewed: February 21, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Cambalache and Susua Forest | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Ligth and solid. Excellent for its price. I pay only $229.00 | | Weaknesses: | What??????? | | Similar Products Used: | Whellsmith/XT | | Bike Setup: | Haro Scape Full xt (11-34, Avid 40 Arch Rival, Manitou LT Pro, Continental traction pro (r) Continental Explorer pro (f) | | Bottom Line: | Good aceleration, solid and good looking rims. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Platypus Egg
a Cross Country Rider
from Fullerton, CA.
Date Reviewed: February 7, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | San Juan Trail | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Bombproof rims! | | Weaknesses: | Freewheel Hub! Freewheel Hub! Freewheel Hub! Freewheel Hub! | | Similar Products Used: | Rolf Dolomite, Bontrager Corvair, Mavic 221 W/ XT Hubs. | | Bike Setup: | A. Trek 7500 almost stock cept' SRAM Plasmas, XTR Drivetrain, 747 pedals, and Kore Stem. (oh yeah and for about 30 minutes a set of Crosslinks.)
B. Schwinn Mesa Only thing stock is the frame. (oh yeah and for about 3 rides a set of crosslinks.) | | Bottom Line: | The bottom line is this. Everyone else i know that has this wheelset does not have problems with them. I think i got a bad set and have suffered poor customer service from Mavic too boot. After three rides on the brand new set the freewheel hub broke apart and pretty much seized up on me during a ride (ball bearings have only one place and one purpose). Took them back to the LBS only to wait 7 or 8 weeks for the repaired (not replaced) rear wheel to come back. Finally I slap the thing on head for the trail but ohhhhhhhhh nooooooooo only 30 minutes back on it and the same exact thing happens. Now to retrace my steps, on the initial meltdown we (myself and the dude at the LBS) tore the hub apart and found a retaining collar had snapped causing the ball bearings to fall out all over the place. This probably occured while i was attempting a rather simple jump and smacked the rear wheel pretty hard. I thought for sure bent rim, but no they are strong no doubt.
Anyway after examining the hub after the second meltdown I saw the exact same collar snapped again, leading me to believe the folks at Mavic did not feel it was nescessary to replace this vital (.30 cent) part. Anyway the wheels are good (hub sucks).! I will never buy another product manufactured by a company (Mavic) that does not support their product. I hope anyone who reads this does'nt have problems with their product (feel lucky) as you will most likely endure the same careless service. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Barrie Ross-Dow
a Weekend Warrior
from London
Date Reviewed: February 7, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Very strong, look cool and reasonably light. | | Weaknesses: | Could have been a little lighter. | | Similar Products Used: | Stock wheels on 1998 Trek 6500zx | | Bike Setup: | Trek 6500zx, Race Face cranks, XTR/XT/LX mix Crosslinks 99 Rock Shox SIDs | | Bottom Line: | Good value wheels for the price, these cost only £150. I like the straight pull spokes and these wheels are still as true as the day I bought them despite a considerable amount of abuse. I realise I could have bought lighter wheels for the price but I doubt they would have been stronger. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
jer
a Racer
from Bettendorf
Date Reviewed: February 4, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Value
strenght
stiffness | | Weaknesses: | no ceramic | | Similar Products Used: | stock crap. | | Bottom Line: | I was looking at XT and 517's. still got the same 517 rims and great proven mavic hub, with strait spokes...result...stays true, great control, stiff and strong. You can build a lighter wheel, but you will be truing it a ton and buying extra spokes. I will stick with my old reliables, rave and forget about it. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jack
a Cross Country Rider
from Manhattan Beach, CA USA
Date Reviewed: February 3, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | No clear favorite at this time. | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Favorable Weight/Cost Ratio
Look so good that even the clueless take notice.
Surprisingly Rugged
High rate of spin | | Weaknesses: | Pointy Skewers | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic 517's w/ XT Hubs
Mavic 222 w/ Specialized Stouts | | Bike Setup: | 1999 Cannondale F-1000 w/ IRC Mythos XC
Then on to my thoroughly upgraded Specialized FSR XC(20")w/WTB 2.1 Velociraptors | | Bottom Line: | When I first bolted on the Links I was a bit skeptical. At 6'5"/220 pounds I'm no lightweight, and these fine looking frenchy things were noticeably lighter than the 517/XT set I had just destroyed. The guru at my LBS (a fellow Clydesdale) insisted they were the way to go, and he offered full store credit on another set should the CrossLinks not perform. I'm pleased to report that after 6 months of serving time on both my hardtail and full suspension rigs they continue to perform admirably. My only gripe is with the skewers and their pointy handle - hard on the palm when you're cranking them closed and tough to grab with gloved fingers when you're prying them open. Overall, these rims work. Too bad they're being discontinued. I see them all over in mags and on the web at $229 a set. Unless you holding out for tubeless, you better go get a set before they're gone. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Max
a Racer
from Rhinebeck Ny
Date Reviewed: January 18, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Willams Lake | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Price, durability, weight, stiffness | | Weaknesses: | NONE yet | | Similar Products Used: | mavic 517,317,Bonti's | | Bike Setup: | stumpy comp | | Bottom Line: | Great pair of wheels but could use a ceramic rim coating. Very durable I have jumped sets of stairs and done aggressive trials as well as CC racing and they are still in true. I have yet to true these wheels. I weigh 115 but the way I ride them makes up for that. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jim Wheeler
a Cross Country Rider
from Cupertino CA
Date Reviewed: January 12, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Wilder Ranch | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Looks and Price | | Weaknesses: | none found yet | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic, 217's & 517's XT and Nuke Proof Hubs | | Bike Setup: | M2 Comp Pro, Cross Links, XT drive train and Paul Stoppers. | | Bottom Line: | I have ridden my Cross Links for about 6 months and I have not had to touch them with a spoke wrench yet. I am a very heavy rider at about 210 lbs and I love to jump anything on the trail. In just the last two years I have trashed a set of XT hubs and a rear Nukeproof Superfly.
The Cross Links and the Cross Max are about the coolest looking rims out there, but the Cross Links are the only ones at a reasonable price point.
I did replace my skewers with Salsa Ti Flip-Offs, but just because I had them from the last set of rims. Not, sure how much the old skewers weigh but Salsa definitely look better.
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Matt
a Cross Country Rider
from Knoxville
Date Reviewed: January 12, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Looks pretty cool. Price. | | Weaknesses: | Rear doesn't stay true. Cheapo skewers. | | Similar Products Used: | LX/Mavic 238 | | Bike Setup: | Litespeed Obed | | Bottom Line: | (NOte: due to some obvious Franco-American conspiracy between MTBR and Mavic, the previous reviews of this product were wiped clean, so I'll try again.)
My major complaint centers (no pun intended) on the fact that the rear wheel WILL NOT stay true for a whole ride. I weight a mere 160 lbs, so I'm no clydesdale. Yet, I find myself truing the rear wheel every time I ride. The benefit is the increased training effect of riding with a rubbing rear brake.
The other positive comments I have are the bearings are smooth and the wheels just look cool with black spokes, grey rims/hubs, and rim stickers.
However, the skewers are not very good. They are heavy and appear to be made out of wrought iron or something of that quality/weight.
The price was pretty good ($249), but if I were to do it all over again, I'd probably opt for a custom XT/517 setup or something like that for the same money or less. Or maybe I'll boycott the French rims and buy Bontragers next time. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
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