Halo Devaura 6D 700C wheelset

Offering a smooth performance with some aero benefits thrown in, Halo's £379.98 Devaura 6D 700C training wheelset is ideal for calmer winter days.

With a 24mm rim width, these wheels can take anything up to a 28mm tyre, much like their non-aero sister wheelset, the Evaura. That means you get all the benefits of a smooth ride, even with a hard, puncture-resistant set of winter tyres fitted, such as my set of Continental Gatorskins.

Road buzz is kept to a minimum, which serves to further boost ride comfort. You've also got the option of going with tubeless tyres with the Devauras, thanks to the supplied tape, but I'd always go with clinchers during the winter because it's so much easier to fix a flat.

> Find your nearest dealer here

> Buy these online here

The aero aspect comes from a 31mm rim depth (the Evauras come in at 9mm less), which helps cut through the air and does give a sizeable benefit on flat roads. You can really tell the difference, compared with a non-aero wheelset, especially when you want to maintain a speed of 30kph-plus.

The downside of the deeper rims are when you encounter crosswinds. The fact that the Devauras are only 31mm and therefore not 'deep' does mean you're not too susceptible to gusts, although when you have a constant wind to deal with, you can certainly feel the wheels catching and gently pushing you sideways.

This, I suspect, is compounded by the bladed steel spokes; while they contribute to cutting through the air as the wheel spins, they increase the side profile of the wheelset as a whole. Incidentally, those spokes come in a straight laced format on the front (20 of them), and 24 with 16/8 lacing on the rear. Both are attached to sealed bearing hubs, of which the rear gives a solid-sounding click on freewheeling.

Braking performance is solid, if unspectacular, served up via an alloy rim with a CNC braking surface. Braking power is good in general, although in wet conditions I found that the rims lost slightly more feel than I've come across before. It's not alarming, though, and there's still enough power to deal with sensible riding in inclement weather.

One of the most striking things about the Devauras I had on test were the nipples, machined in an anodised red colour. Originally I wasn't sure, but after a few weeks with them on my white Specialized Allez I thought they sat very well.

The wheels also wear dirt and grime very well (if washing your bike after every use isn't your thing!), and clean up like new. And if you don't want black, they come in red or white too.

The Devauras run natively with 11-speed drivetrains, but also have a spacer to extend usage to older 9 or 10-speed groupsets, across the range of Shimano, SRAM and Campagnolo. I run my Allez with a 9-speed Shimano Sora groupset and I had absolutely no complaints at all. Well, except that, as with the Evauras, they come without a quick release, or indeed a skewer of any kind.

> Check out our guide to the best road bike wheels here

If the Evauras are reckoned lightweight at 1,573g, then I must say the Devauras are too – coming in at 1695g for the pair (minus skewers). Yes, they are heavier than their counterparts, owing to the 31mm-section rims, but that's the price you pay. That does limit their climbing ability, and I also found them less responsive than my usual workhorse wheels, a pair of Mavic Aksiums. It's possibly unkind to call them sluggish, but because I do a lot of climbing on my commutes and am therefore exposed to that characteristic, that's how I tend to feel about them.

All in all, these wheels largely match up to their Evaura counterparts – except with greater aero efficiency at a slight weight penalty and, I think, less responsiveness. But if you want a winter training wheelset for predominantly flat riding, the Devauras are a good, solid option.

Verdict

A reasonable option for riders who enjoy flatter cycling, general commuters and those looking for a smooth, wind-cheating ride