After years of working with other bike brands around the world, the team behind Vielo has finally launched their first bike. A father and son team of Ian and Trevor Hughes, Vielo claims to focus on creating bikes specifically for the British market. Whether that means building in comfort for unmaintained roads, or designing the frame to adapt to British standards like moto-style brakes (front brake lever on the right), Vielo aims to build bikes that fit into their own style of riding.
The result is their first complete bike – the V+1. On the surface, the V+1 seems to follow a lot of the same design trends as newer gravel bikes like the OPEN U.P., and other light weight “all road” bikes, but there are a few things that make it unique.
Something most of us probably take for granted if you’re not running moto-style brakes is that most frames are designed with routing to accommodate the front brake from the left and the rear brake from the right. If you reverse the brakes as most riders in the UK do, then you’re left with less than ideal cable routing. To address that, the V+1’s internal routing is specifically tailored to UK standards.
The often wet weather of the UK is known to wreak havoc on bearings, so the PF86 bottom bracket uses special double row sealed cartridge bearings for a more durable BB and 30mm spindles. Similarly, the headset features double sealed bearings with additional protection on the lower bearing for longevity.
That wet weather also can mean the use of fenders so the V+1 has somewhat hidden fender mounts on the inside of the fork legs and the rear stays. However, it does sound like if you want to run fenders you’ll need to use their custom SKS mudguard system designed for the bike.
Disc brake only, the frame runs post mount 140mm while the fork is post mount 160mm, and the fork can handle up to 180mm rotors if more stopping power is required. Like most gravel or all road bikes, the V+1 runs a 100 x 12mm thru axle up front and a 142 x 12mm thru axle out back, both with Vielo’s A2T fast thread engagement.
The unidirectional carbon frame is said to weigh just 870g with “size scaled performance and geometry” paired with a 400g full carbon fork with a 1 1/2 to 1 1/8″ tapered steerer. To tackle the rough roads and off roads of Britain, the bike claims to have a “passive rear suspension” or shaped chain and seat stays to absorb some of the road chatter.
The V+1 has quite a bit of tire clearance, though it’s certainly no monster crosser. With 700c wheels you’ll be able to run up to 42mm tires, but you can also supposedly run 650b x 2.1″. Obviously, that will likely depend on the tire and rim combination though.
Built with a hidden seat post clamp with the bolt under the top tube, the V+1 also has the ability to run dropper posts – including the RockShox Reverb. There is apparently a special mechanical to hydraulic adapter that can be hidden inside the frame that allows a standard left shifter to operate the Reverb hydraulic post which is an optional upgrade at extra cost. There’s even a dropper post compatible clamp for a Tubus rack mount if you want to carry extra gear.
You’ll also find braze ons up top for strapless gas tank style bags for longer days int he saddle.
Speced with a 1×11 drivetrain and wide range SRAM Force 1 gearing, the V+1 only comes in two colors, but has a number of options. Pricing starts at £2,999 for the frameset, and £5,299 for the complete bike (add another £200 for a complete with a dropper post). This is apparently just the first of a complete line of Vielo bikes, but from the looks of it, they’re off to a great start.
