I like mine, the swallowtail knockoff, though I only have about 1,000 miles or so on it. I weigh a whopping 215 pounds and have tensioned it once after about 50 miles. It may not stand up to the original but it is better than any other stock / sub $50 saddle I have ever used. Your ass may have something different to say.
i wasn’t too impressed with the only velo-orange product i have laid my hands on/owned. (v-o constructeur front rack)
Update: I finally did hear back from VO (after 7 days, 3 emails and 2 Twitter posts featuring my views on my @Velo_Orange experience). Apparently Chris (the owner) had been in Taiwan so whoever was supposed to respond to emails, didn’t. Classy. Anyways he did reply and basically said I could return the wheel if I wanted, per their 1 year defective merchandise return policy.
I know about buying wheels on the internet, but the previous times I’ve done it (through QBP and Harris Cyclery), the wheels have been pretty good. The thing is VO touts their wheels as “handbuilt in America” and imply they are some kind of decent quality. The front wheel has been fine after the truing but the back has just been nothing but trouble. Granted it could very well be the shop I had true it, but (until now) I’d thought the guy working there was pretty up to snuff on wheelbuilding.
Anyways, I finally got a reply, and voiced my opinion to them. I can return the wheel if I’m still dissatisfied and they heard me out. I can’t ask for more than that (though I’d like to think I could expect a bit more). Combined with my initial order experience being a little weird and less than warm n’ fuzzy, I’m not in a big rush to order from them again. Would rather funnel money to Rivendell or Harris or… basically anywhere else LOL
What didn’t impress you about it? From memory, you sold it before you even used it. What did you get that was better/better value for money?
[quote=surfimp]Update: I finally did hear back from VO (after 7 days, 3 emails and 2 Twitter posts featuring my views on my @Velo_Orange experience). Apparently Chris (the owner) had been in Taiwan so whoever was supposed to respond to emails, didn’t. Classy. Anyways he did reply and basically said I could return the wheel if I wanted, per their 1 year defective merchandise return policy.
I know about buying wheels on the internet, but the previous times I’ve done it (through QBP and Harris Cyclery), the wheels have been pretty good. The thing is VO touts their wheels as “handbuilt in America” and imply they are some kind of decent quality. The front wheel has been fine after the truing but the back has just been nothing but trouble. Granted it could very well be the shop I had true it, but (until now) I’d thought the guy working there was pretty up to snuff on wheelbuilding.
Anyways, I finally got a reply, and voiced my opinion to them. I can return the wheel if I’m still dissatisfied and they heard me out. I can’t ask for more than that (though I’d like to think I could expect a bit more). Combined with my initial order experience being a little weird and less than warm n’ fuzzy, I’m not in a big rush to order from them again. Would rather funnel money to Rivendell or Harris or… basically anywhere else LOL[/quote]
Srsly? Unless I was paying a goodly amount of money to a local wheelbuilding hero I would expect wheels to arrive in not so perfect tension/true. Htfu and buy a stand and do that shit yourself. I think it’s something any bike person should force themselves to learn anyway.
The issue wasn’t that the wheels didn’t have “perfect” true / tension, or that they need some tweaking after a little riding. That’s a reasonable expectation with nearly anything (although the wheels I bought from Harris were true & perfect out of box and have never changed).
The issue was that the rear wheel especially was a complete clusterfuck after like 10 miles of riding and has been very difficult to get to stay true since. And I took it to the most knowledgeable local wheelbuilder I know, the guy who (just fyi) has taught me the basics of wheel truing & tensioning. I have used those skills to true up other wheels successfully, and those wheels that I’ve trued have stayed good without need constant adjustment. And so, when I wasn’t able to get that to happen with these, I took them in. And then took them in again.
So, although it’s easy to sit back and blast out with HTFUs and whatnot, in this case, it’s not really applicable atmo.
P.S. - If the above comes off as harsh, please forgive me; it’s the pent-up frustration, not anything against you (Wotan) or the suggestion to learn how to true & build wheels.
fair enough then. Guess you got some faulty product. Sorry for my accusation.