Halo Retro wheelset

If you want some traditional-looking hoops for your classic road bike or Sunday tourer, then you can get some handbuilt wheels but there's not many off-the-shelf options. The Halo Retro wheelset is one such wheelset, and they're good too: stiff, not too heavy and, maybe most importantly here, good looking.

The rim is designed to ape classic hoops from the 1970s and 1980s but it's a modern, box-section alloy extrusion with stainless steel eyelets. The polished finish lends it a look not dissimilar to a steel rim though, and the laser-etched decals are discreet. The hubs have an open-flange design (except on the drive side of the rear hub) and they're laced up with butted stainless spokes. The freehub has an alloy body and will handle up to ten sprockets. Or as few as seven.

The overall look of the wheelset is undeniably classic and they looked the ticket on my 1986 Raleigh Scirocco. In terms of performance, they feel undeniably modern. The build is tight and the wheels are nice and stiff, and weight-wise they're a very reasonable 1800g all-in. They roll very well and they've stayed true throughout testing. The freehub has a solid-sounding click and looks to be the same as used on the SpinMaster rear hub, which I've put a few thousand miles into now.

The only downside for me is the braking surface. It's swings and roundabouts, this: the polished sidewalls look more classic, but a machined braking surface would massively improve the braking consistency on the wheels. I'd like to see Halo offer the wheelset in both polished and machined versions, personally. That way, everyone's happy.

In terms of value they're not dissimilar in price and weight to entry-level race wheels such as the Fulcrum Racing 5, so I wouldn't say they were expensive. They're well built and good-looking wheels that'll look great on a certain type of bike. If you've got a bike like that, these are worth a look.

Verdict

Classic looks with modern performance, a good new wheelset for a classic racer or Sunday tourer