:Easton Haven vs. Haven

January 25th, 2012 | No Comments » |

For the past half year, I have been lucky enough to be riding on Easton’s Haven wheel sets. I say wheel SETS as I scored both the Aluminium AND the Carbon versions to use. Unlike many reviews, I have used both sets extensively under my 95kg (!) backside for months on end so feel comfortable in saying that they have actually been extensively, and thoroughly, used.

So, what is there to be said about these wonders? One would think I should be full of praise and joy. I did not pay for these wheels but they were paid for, so Easton did not ‘give’ them for testing. As such I am not obliged to say anything good about them if I don’t want to… but I do… for the most part.

If you are someone who missed the hype first time around, to recap just what the Haven’s are: The Haven’s are Easton’s top of the line mountain bike wheels, touted to be able to withstand the worst of punishment. The UST rims use a proprietary nipple system mated to (apparently off the shelf SAPIM 2.0/1.7/2.0) straight pull spokes, all laced to a purpose designed hub. Each wheel is put together by hand (there’s even a sticker that says so!) and represent the pinnacle in Eaton’s ability to design and make lightweight, tough as nails wheels.

They are not cheap and the carbon’s cost as much as some people’s fancy bikes!

The first thing thing that strikes one about the Havens, depending on which version you have, is that they look ‘money’. I have a set of the magnesium coloured aluminium’s and when combined with the graphics and very polished magnesium coloured hubs, they are hard to miss. The carbon’s are more subdued but the graphics again make sure people know what you are rolling on. Drill deeper though and I have to say I love the hubs. From 2011 on, the hubs, both front and rear, are switchable between various standards. The simple system of unscrew the tensioner, pull out the axle adaptor and put in a new one is pure simplicity. The tensioner too is also nice as many wheels that run on sealed bearings lack this feature, so if they become sloppy, they stay that way. The Haven’s can be adjusted to take up any slight wiggle that may develop over time.

Weight wise, light is the word. The Al’s are light, 1650grams for the set and the carbon’s are lighter again @ 1450 grams. So yea, these are performance driven wheels and the price tag says as much (even allowing for variations, or indeed CRC, they are not cheap).

Enough of the techno guff. How do they hold up I hear you ponder?

When I first put the Al Haven’s on a proto frame I was running, I was convinced the wheels were ‘soft’. On the trail they squirmed and flexed and generally were just a little yuk. I though was under a misconception as it was the crap tyres that I was using that had the sidewall stiffness of a wet noodle (I like Conti tyres that have firm sidewalls and ride ‘stiff’). When I got around to putting new Conti rubber on the wheels in a tubeless config. the wheels came to life. Their weight meant that they rolled fast, accelerated faster and their stiffness had them tracking like they are on rails. Overall they ended up being everything Easton has been claiming. Got to say I was pretty chuffed.

But all was not well.

I had been running the carbon’s on my carbon hardball, you know just for that totally overblown, ridiculous look (I even have matching Haven carbon bars!). The carbon wheels run the same construction and parts set up as the Al rwheels, so by all accounts they should perform every bit as well as the Al versions. And they do, even better… to a point.

You can easily notice the different between the two wheels. While the Al’s are stiff and fast, the carbon versions add extra snap. If you don’t know what I mean by that, generally your average wheels will be ‘there’; they will do the job but won’t have much in the way of life to them, ie. they are somewhat lifeless. Performance wheels have spunk. They tend to be lively and add a dynamic feeling to the bike. The carbon Haven’s are lively and snappy - they react to… everything, giving a bike a very lively feel. Riding them you feel like you are riding a GP bike! Like the Al, they track like they are on rails but being 200 odd grams lighter (that’s 200 off the rolling mass), they accelerate even faster. I feel like a fake on these wheels as they seem to spend a lot of time laughing at me.

The carbon’s though, started popping spokes.

First one went. I noticed it by chance and even kept riding the wheel for two weeks missing said spoke - the rim remained dead straight. But then another and another popped and now the rear wheel has three missing spokes. It’s hard to say if it’s the wheels, the construction or a bad batch of spokes but if I had paid the national debt of a small country to buy these, I would have not been happy. Granted Easton offers a no questions asked warranty (that’s how confident they are) but still, three spokes on a brand new wheel?

On the other hand the Al’s have been flawless, which makes me think that maybe it’s something to do with the spokes themselves, a bad batch maybe - that happens and I can buy that as an excuse. Regardless, I have not replaced the spokes yet as I am using the Al and keeping the carbon’s for a new upcoming build, so can’t comment right now on the replacement process. On the outside, it looks simple enough and does not seem to involve anything fancy.

Overall, the Haven’s are one product that live up to the claim of the manufacturer. They are light, strong, look good and are well designed. Other than the carbon’s issues with spokes, they seem very well made. Would I actually buy these is the likely next question. Over any of the offerings from Mavic at similar prices, yes. My Crossmax wheels were woefully shit. Over a set of hand built custom wheels? that’s a harder call. My man Dave built a set of wheels recently that are not that far off the mark weight wise and are every bit as bling, maybe blinger, but for a lot less than the Haven’s.

Personally I think I’d go the custom wheels… Hope hubs make a lovely loud sound. But if you like wheels that come with a warranty and have the cash to spend, you can’t go much past the Al Haven’s. I personally can’t recommend the carbon’s though. Not because they are not good, they are. But at their price I just can’t see how they are any better than the regular version other than being 200 grams lighter - and there are better/cheaper/easier ways to save 200 grams on a bike.

Easton.com

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UPDATE: So a touch over a month since I wrote this, close to the end of a ride I hear a resounding crack!, to find that my rear Al Haven has let a spoke go, this one mid shaft. Unlike the carbon rim though, the wheel went well out of whack. Impressed? Not in the least. I have never had a set of wheels, expensive wheels at that, go through spokes like this… well, other than those Mavic bits of rubbish I had back in 2000 or so which popped straight pulls at an alarming rate.

The net result of this is that I am going to have the carbon rims re-laced to a set of 32 hole Hope hubs (yes, it can be done) and be done with it. The carbon rims are flawless but I want a set of wheels I can spec the spoke type on, not be locked into using a near impossible to find lightweight straight pull number.

Tags:carbon,easton,haven

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