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review

Vision Team 35 Wheelset

8
£229.95

VERDICT:

8
10
Smooth rolling, knock-taking set of entry-level racing wheels that perform better than their weight would suggest
Weight: 
1,820g

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Vision's Team 35s are competent and durable entry-level race wheels, with the added bonus of being very comfortable for a set of semi-deep-section alloy clinchers. The black anodised finish gives them a cool stealth look too.

The Team 35s are a revamped version of Vision's long-standing T35 model, and with a recommended retail price of £229.95 they sit right at that level of a first serious performance upgrade for a lot of bikes.

> Find your nearest dealer here

> Buy these online here

At first glance they seem a bit porky at 1,820g, especially considering the quoted weight is some 100g less than that, but the good thing is they never feel sluggish out on the road. You notice it a little if things get really steep or you ask for some rapid acceleration from a standing start, so if you're searching for a climber's set of wheels, look elsewhere.

Otherwise, the Team 35s are hard to knock. Considering the depth of the alloy rim, you'd expect them to feel harsh, but they don't – something that can affect others, such as Miche's Alturs and Campagnolo Scirocco 35s, which feel much more buzzy over rough terrain with the same tyres and pressure.

Vision Team 35 Wheelset - rim detail.jpg

The Visions have a wider rim than was the norm on road wheels a few years ago, with an internal measurement of 18.9mm and 23.7mm externally. This gives the 23mm wide Pro-Lite tyres I was using a more rounded profile, measuring in at 25.3mm from sidewall to sidewall, which gives a minutely larger footprint for a bit more grip and added comfort.

Vision Team 35 Wheelset - rim bed.jpg

Getting tyres to fit onto that wider rim brings up no issues whatsoever, popping on with just finger pressure.

> Why you should switch to wider tyres

The rim itself has a CNC (computer numerical control) machined braking surface which, once the anodising has been scratched off by the pads – a hilly 40-mile ride should do it – offers smooth and controllable braking.

The hubs are also precision machined and are fitted with sealed cartridge bearings. The test period saw a fair few wet miles, but giving them a bit of a strip down I couldn't see any water ingress or grit, so it's fair to say they should make pretty good winter training wheels too.

The freehub on the rear uses a steel body, which is nice to see as softer alloy ones tend to get 'eaten' by the forces put through the cassette. There are a few notches on the body after 400 miles, but the sprockets slide on and off without issue.

Vision Team 35 Wheelset - rear hub.jpg

While we're on the subject of the freehub body, it's worth mentioning that there is only a Shimano/SRAM compatible version. The wheels also come supplied with a spacer ring in case you aren't using 11-speed.

As for spoke patterns, we're looking at radial lacing at the front (16 aero spokes), and a 2:1 pattern at the rear (21 aero spokes), with each wheel being handbuilt rather than by machine. The tensions felt equal all round, and there was none of that pinging you get as the spokes settle.

Vision Team 35 Wheelset - front hub.jpg

To aid durability, the spoke drillings on the rear rim are asymmetric – off centre slightly for the drive side to ease the massive amount of dishing required for an 11-speed wheel.

It all adds up to a very strong set of wheels, which stayed perfectly true throughout the test period.

> Check out our buyers guide to road bike wheels

In terms of value for money, the Visions aren't bad. They're £70 cheaper than the previously mentioned Miche Alturs, a wheelset I regard quite highly, with only a 40g weight penalty. The Team 35s are well built, durable and, as I said earlier, surprisingly comfortable for such a deep rim, all of which comes together to help justify that price tag.

Overall, they're a great set of wheels for general fitness riding and training, and not too shabby weight-wise for racing, especially if the course is vertically challenged. Durability is great, and the overall finish seems pretty hardwearing.

Verdict

Smooth rolling, knock-taking set of entry-level racing wheels that perform better than their weight would suggest

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Vision Team 35 Wheelset

Size tested: 700C, 35mm deep

Tell us what the wheel is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

Vision says: "Our Team components represent high performance and value for money. The all-alloy Team35 wheelset shares many features of our high-end wheelsets, including: aero bladed spokes, an asymmetric 2:1 rear lacing pattern, CNC machined braking surfaces, sealed cartridge bearings and hand-built quality. 35mm deep alloy clincher rims give aerodynamic benefits without an excessive weight penalty. CNC machined alloy hubs are durable and smooth-running. The Team35 is only available for Shimano 10/11spd cassettes and is an excellent training or entry-level racing wheelset."

The Vision Team 35 wheels feel very comfortable for a deep-section alloy rim and they roll smoothly too, contradicting their weight on the scales.

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the wheel?

FEATURES

''Alloy 35mm deep clincher rim - CNC bracking surfaces

''CNC machined aluminum hubs

''6 sealed cartridge bearings

''Aero bladed spokes

''Artisanal built, entirely by hand

''Includes QR and rim tape

''Rims – sandblasted black anodized (The black braking surface is an aesthetic finishing, it will change color during use)

''Front and Rear hubs – black anodized

''Spokes – black

''Color graphics options – gray

SPECS

'' Alloy free-hub body for Shimano 10-11sp

'' Spokes (F/R): 16 radial front wheel; 21 rear wheel, 14 cross 3 drive side and 7 radial non drive side (2:1 Ratio)

Rate the wheel for quality of construction:
 
8/10

The Team 35s feel very robust in use and there was no pinging of spoke tensions in the early miles, plus they stood up well to lots of wet and gritty rides.

Rate the wheel for performance:
 
7/10

They suffer a bit under acceleration because of their rotational weight but the Team 35s roll really nicely and absorb a lot of road noise. No issues with stiffness either when really stamping on the pedals.

Rate the wheel for durability:
 
8/10

They stand up to knocks well, remaining true throughout the test period.

Rate the wheel for weight
 
7/10

1,820g seems pretty good for a wheel of this type, and unless you spend a lot of time in the hills they don't seem to feel heavy.

Rate the wheel for value:
 
6/10

A pretty fair price when compared against the likes of Campagnolo's Scirocco 35, a wheelset that is a little lighter than the Team 35 but offers a similar ride feeling and quality.

Did the wheels stay true? Any issues with spoke tension?

No issues whatsoever.

How easy did you find it to fit tyres?

Various 23 and 25mm tyres from different brands saw no issues whatsoever.

How did the wheel extras (eg skewers and rim tape) perform?

Rim tape was already fitted when the wheels arrived and it performed without issue. The skewers are a simple cam lock design which did the job, plus you get a freehub spacer for 9/10-speed systems.

Tell us how the wheel performed overall when used for its designed purpose

Vision touts the Team 35s as a good training/entry-level race wheel and I reckon that's pretty much on the mark.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the wheel

Comfortable wheels considering their deep profile and aero spokes.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the wheel

No Campagnolo freehub option.

Did you enjoy using the wheel? Yes

Would you consider buying the wheel? Yes

Would you recommend the wheel to a friend? Yes

Use this box to explain your score

Going by the numbers it'd be easy to discount the Team 35s as being overweight and sluggish, but ride them and you realise how good they are. They accelerate better than expected, and once the anodising has worn off they stop pretty well too.

Overall rating: 8/10

About the tester

Age: 37  Height: 180cm  Weight: 76kg

I usually ride: This month's test bike  My best bike is: Mason Definition

I've been riding for: 10-20 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: time trialling, commuting, club rides, sportives, fixed/singlespeed

As part of the tech team here at F-At Digital, senior product reviewer Stu spends the majority of his time writing in-depth reviews for road.cc, off-road.cc and ebiketips using the knowledge gained from testing over 1,500 pieces of kit (plus 100's of bikes) since starting out as a freelancer back in 2009. After first throwing his leg over a race bike back in 2000, Stu's ridden more than 170,000 miles on road, time-trial, track, and gravel bikes, and while he's put his racing days behind him, he still likes to smash the pedals rather than take things easy. With a background in design and engineering, he has an obsession with how things are developed and manufactured, has a borderline fetish for handbuilt metal frames and finds a rim braked road bike very aesthetically pleasing!

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16 comments

Avatar
AlaskaTim | 6 years ago
0 likes

This reviewer, God bless his/her little heart, lost me at the first paragraph.   I see that others invested in reading it.   I didn't.   It is an industry confession.   Here, "The black anodised finish gives them a cool stealth look too."

Because of all the military contracting going on all over the world, the "Steath Look," or SL-X is a popular social element, and we can also see this in the "metro-sexual," dark, grey, drab look that has seeped into the fashion of the times.   

It is, however, a very dark force.   How many cyclists in the UK last year were struck and killed by vehicles?   Okay, how about in the USA?   Drivers now are even running down bicyclists and attempting to kill them.   The police do little and the courts do less.

So, with the official "Drab & Dark" profile of all this "stuff," all the defense attorney needs to do is hold up the wheels, the pants, the arm warmers, the drab-black rain jacket and say confidently,

"Your honor (My Lord), it was the rider him/herself who put this suit on, and by doing so was cupable in the fact that seeing this even here in the courtroom is arguably difficult.   Your honor, this is a two wheeled ninja suit, and everybody knows why ninja's wore black - it helped make them invisable, which is what they were trying to achieve.   My client couldn't see the deceised, and part of the responsibility for that rests with the deceised. "

That Stealth look belongs in the military in the jungles at night where it belongs.   It isn't cool to bring this fashion into the world of cycling and put it on a person or a bicycle.  It isn't cool; it is in fact totally irresponsible.  

 

 

 

 

 

Avatar
Grahamd | 7 years ago
0 likes

I think you should declare if you have a vested interest in Hilly Cow Wigwams smiley.

 

Avatar
tritecommentbot replied to Grahamd | 7 years ago
0 likes
Grahamd wrote:

I think you should declare if you have a vested interest in Hilly Cow Wigwams smiley.

 

 

The finest wigwams in the land! With cows, and ah, on a hill..  

Avatar
tritecommentbot | 7 years ago
0 likes

Alright so finally got to take them out today. Something feels different at speed compared to the Racing 5's and there's a nice whooshing sound that I didn't expect. Couldn't really bomb around in them too hard, just rebuilt the whole bike and not entirely sure if it was going to hold up. Braking when dry is amazing though that could be down to my new brakes, but when wet it didn't feel so good. Again maybe the brakes, first time they've been used since install.

Some pics and weights cos I'm sure people will start Googling for these wheels as they look good and are relatively cheap. Much noisier freewheeling than the R 5's.

Racing 5
Front wheel 774g
Rear wheel 973g
Front QR 61g
Rear QR 66g
Totes: 1874g

Vision Team 35s
Front wheel 810g
Rear wheel 1010g
Front QR 57g
Rear QR 63g
Totes: 1940g

I'm on a gate.

If I get more feedback or have any props with them I'll edit it in.

Avatar
tritecommentbot | 7 years ago
0 likes

Yep another reason why discs brakes are boss.. we can have cheaper blacked out wheels.

Went and ordered these Vision Team 35s any way just now. Can get them around 170 delivered from a Euro store ProBikeShop, so went for it. Heart over head. By the time they're all messed up maybe I'll win the lottery and buy some Boras Ultra 50s eh  4

Avatar
bendertherobot | 7 years ago
0 likes

Agreed. I had Fulcrum Racing 3 which were substantially lighter than the Quattro but I feel that the aero and rim width of the Quattro offset any losses there. I had FFWD F4r which rolled really well (because they had lush bearings) and I'd say they were a tad better than the Quattro but then they were 4 times the price. 

I had Archetypes which are just great. Discs luckily so didn't have to go through the pain. I now have Pro Lite Revo (2 pairs) on the CX bikes and they are a great wheel. 

 

Avatar
bendertherobot | 7 years ago
1 like

Anodising makes me cry. I mean, they look great initially, and they end up looking like other wheels. Then there's that part in the middle where they look like, well, everything is wearing off! 

Avatar
bobbinogs replied to bendertherobot | 7 years ago
1 like
bendertherobot wrote:

Anodising makes me cry. I mean, they look great initially, and they end up looking like other wheels. Then there's that part in the middle where they look like, well, everything is wearing off! 

Agree with that BTR.  I have some lovely handbuilts with Archetype H+ Son rims.  They looked great to start with, they look ok now...but they didn't half look gash for a while.  I would have been happy buying them with just a plain alloy braketrack but maybe that adds to the cost?  No idea.

 

I have come to the conclusion that a good wheelset is a good wheelset, and weight is just one of the factors. (and 100g here or there really does not affect feel/speed).

Avatar
tritecommentbot | 7 years ago
0 likes

Think they'll do a 2016 Team 50 or Team 45 like this? They used to make a T42.

 

Maybe get these Team 35s this weekend to replace my Fulcrum Racing 5 LGs just based on looks. Both are pretty budget wheels. You think I would notice the extra weight on the Vision wheels? Are the Vision Team 35s worse than the Racing 5 LGs anyone think?

 

 

Avatar
bendertherobot replied to tritecommentbot | 7 years ago
2 likes
unconstituted wrote:

Think they'll do a 2016 Team 50 or Team 45 like this? They used to make a T42.

 

Maybe get these Team 35s this weekend to replace my Fulcrum Racing 5 LGs just based on looks. Both are pretty budget wheels. You think I would notice the extra weight on the Vision wheels? Are the Vision Team 35s worse than the Racing 5 LGs anyone think?

 

 

Just get Quattro LG. Lighter than the Visions and really good. They spin up to speed fast and hold speed really well.

Avatar
tritecommentbot replied to bendertherobot | 7 years ago
0 likes
bendertherobot wrote:
unconstituted wrote:

Think they'll do a 2016 Team 50 or Team 45 like this? They used to make a T42.

 

Maybe get these Team 35s this weekend to replace my Fulcrum Racing 5 LGs just based on looks. Both are pretty budget wheels. You think I would notice the extra weight on the Vision wheels? Are the Vision Team 35s worse than the Racing 5 LGs anyone think?

 

 

Just get Quattro LG. Lighter than the Visions and really good. They spin up to speed fast and hold speed really well.

 

Those would be nice but.. they don't have the blacked out surface. Even temporarily I'd enjoy how it looks. Really want something that looks cool and I don't mind wrecking until I'm ready for something posher. 

 

How big a difference between the Vision Team 35s and the Quattro LGs in terms of performance?

Avatar
bendertherobot replied to tritecommentbot | 7 years ago
0 likes
unconstituted wrote:
bendertherobot wrote:
unconstituted wrote:

Think they'll do a 2016 Team 50 or Team 45 like this? They used to make a T42.

 

Maybe get these Team 35s this weekend to replace my Fulcrum Racing 5 LGs just based on looks. Both are pretty budget wheels. You think I would notice the extra weight on the Vision wheels? Are the Vision Team 35s worse than the Racing 5 LGs anyone think?

 

 

Just get Quattro LG. Lighter than the Visions and really good. They spin up to speed fast and hold speed really well.

 

Those would be nice but.. they don't have the blacked out surface. Even temporarily I'd enjoy how it looks. Really want something that looks cool and I don't mind wrecking until I'm ready for something posher. 

 

How big a difference between the Vision Team 35s and the Quattro LGs in terms of performance?

Impossible to say without a back to back. The Quattro are £184 most places now. Lighter, though I doubt there's much in that. What I would say is that they are good wheels, don't feel their weight at all, I climb on them very well. And they do appear to be a bit aero. The LG rim width does make tyre shape better as well. Lighter and cheaper than the Vision basically. You could always felt tip the rims in for a few weeks.

Avatar
tritecommentbot replied to bendertherobot | 7 years ago
0 likes
bendertherobot wrote:
unconstituted wrote:
bendertherobot wrote:
unconstituted wrote:

Think they'll do a 2016 Team 50 or Team 45 like this? They used to make a T42.

 

Maybe get these Team 35s this weekend to replace my Fulcrum Racing 5 LGs just based on looks. Both are pretty budget wheels. You think I would notice the extra weight on the Vision wheels? Are the Vision Team 35s worse than the Racing 5 LGs anyone think?

 

 

Just get Quattro LG. Lighter than the Visions and really good. They spin up to speed fast and hold speed really well.

 

Those would be nice but.. they don't have the blacked out surface. Even temporarily I'd enjoy how it looks. Really want something that looks cool and I don't mind wrecking until I'm ready for something posher. 

 

How big a difference between the Vision Team 35s and the Quattro LGs in terms of performance?

Impossible to say without a back to back. The Quattro are £184 most places now. Lighter, though I doubt there's much in that. What I would say is that they are good wheels, don't feel their weight at all, I climb on them very well. And they do appear to be a bit aero. The LG rim width does make tyre shape better as well. Lighter and cheaper than the Vision basically. You could always felt tip the rims in for a few weeks.

 

Wrong guy to suggest taking a sharpie to a rim. I'd actually go and do it! cheeky

 

Alright, going to think about it for a bit. 

Avatar
BBB | 7 years ago
1 like

The truth is that without a well equipped lab and some standarised testing methods, bike and wheel reviews are just that, pseudo scientific subjective BS. 

My favourite bits (usually on forums) are always: "The wheels roll smooth/well" and "They spin up to speed fast and hold speed well"

 

 

Avatar
Vejnemojnen replied to BBB | 7 years ago
1 like
BBB wrote:

The truth is that without a well equipped lab and some standarised testing methods, bike and wheel reviews are just that, pseudo scientific subjective BS. 

My favourite bits (usually on forums) are always: "The wheels roll smooth/well" and "They spin up to speed fast and hold speed well"

 

 

 

those tests are carried out by the germans at tour magazine and roadbike.de  1

Avatar
Jamminatrix | 7 years ago
0 likes

It would be nice to see a photo of what the rims look like after the anodizing has been worn off the brake surface...whether they look cheap, or still look decent.

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