Pro-Lite Vincenza Carbon Tubular Wheelset

The Vincenza wheels from Pro-Lite are a versatile set of time trial or triathlon wheels comprising a 50mm deep front with a 90mm deep rear. A neat hub swap option allows you to turn the rear into a fixed wheel and all the necessary kit comes in the box.

The Vincenza wheels feel solid the first time you use them. These aren't cheap, generic Chinese hoops that buzz and rattle over every bump. Here the carbon feels like it has a depth to it with a stiff characteristic and a subtle bit of shock absorbency added to the mix.

Along with wheel bags and quick releases you also get carbon specific brake blocks. Pro-Lite don't mention any specific rim coating for better braking but stopping power is more than adequate and how often do you brake in a time trial anyway?

The rims are made by Pro-Lite themselves out of T700 carbon using a high pressure vacuum process and with a 20.5mm wide tubular rim width they are pretty traditional as the rest of the world goes wide. At 1830g for the pair they are competitive in the weight stakes especially considering the £899 price tag.

The C50T up front uses twenty aero stainless steel spokes from Sandvik in a radial lacing pattern and it certainly feels tight. Hard efforts accelerating out of the saddle don't produce any brake rub and the 50mm deep rim isn't affected by heavy cross winds. In fact they seem to spin pretty well at any yaw angle without the stalling effect you get on some wheels of this depth.

The hub uses two EZO bearings from Japan which are highly regarded and these certainly feel smooth. The hubs are sealed so they should continue to run this way too. Trueness was a little disappointing out of the box with a bit of a kick laterally on one point of the wheel. It was easy enough to tweak out but if I'm paying nine hundred quid for a set of wheels I expect them to be running perfectly.

The rear C90T uses the same hubs and bearings though you'll find four EZO bearings this time. Again they run smoothly with no resistance felt in the freehub either. That freehub is available is Shimano/SRAM or Campagnolo options and it's easy to swap out should you change groupsets on your bike. They are 11-speed compatible plus you can use 9 and 10-speed cassettes with the supplied spacer.

If you fancy a bit of track use the Hot Swap rear hub means you can remove the freehub and replace it with a 15mm axle and fixed internals. It's supplied with track nuts and all the tools you need to get the job done quickly, especially once you've swapped it over a couple of times.

You get the same spokes and brass nipples on the rear, although there is twenty four of them with a two cross pattern for stiffness. Again the rear was a little out of true but nothing that couldn't be fixed in five minutes.

As a kit the 50/90 depth options is very versatile and with the lowish weight they can be used on hilly courses as well as pan flat dragstrips without penalty. I loved the overall feel of them while racing and they are robust too. Some of the road surfaces for club events have been pretty dodgy and I've whacked a pothole or two at speed with no ill effects.

Verdict

Highly versatile aero wheels with a lovely road feel, durability and weight is impressive too for the price