Any one here actually rides the '04 Camagnolo Vento G3 wheels?
I am considering those for my new bike.. They aint light (2000g for the set), but Im 220lb guy, and i need strong wheels. :) . They do look cool tho..
http://www.campagnolo.com/pics/VENTO_sc.jpg

Two (and a half) problems I see with "boutique" wheels (I own Electrons - they are my only wheels). First, many of them push the envelope on reliability in an effort to be different or light. First (and a half), because of the first issue, they often change frequently during their product life cycle and it becomes nearly impossible to get parts or repairs.

The real complaint I have about them is that they are grossly overpriced. A company comes out with a wheel that is nearly the same as can be built with stock components, and they add $300 to the price of a comparable wheel. For example, MAVIC Helium clinchers were red, Open Pro, low spoke count rims/hubs that you couldn't buy, but were not substantially different than a 32 (or 28) wheel you could have built or build for $350 less. Campy doesn't sell 24 spoke hubs and rims, otherwise, you could build their wheels yourself at a far lower cost. No one would every consider paying someone $300 to build a set of wheels or $350 for a set of rims, but that effectively is what you pay when you buy something like this. On top of this, you can't get replacement parts (spokes, rims, hubs) except through the manufacturer's rebuild operation or at outrageous prices. Last I heard, 48 spokes for my Electrons would cost me $80+! As much as I like Campy stuff, this is the last set of factory-built wheels this sucker will ever buy (at least at these prices). Rant, rant, rant.

So, in order to get these chi-chi wheels, we end up paying through the nose and don't get much or any performance advantage. And please don't tell me about the quality of "factory built" wheels. Even ignoring the problems people have had with the factory wheels, you can't convince me that the boys in the factory are any better than a good bike shop or an experienced builder. If a good wheel can be built by a factory technician, given the same parts, I can build one too, perhaps a better one. And then, if I break a spoke, I can replace it. If I dent or crack a rim, I can replace it. I'm not dependent on UPS and a 3 week vacation from riding to get a spoke replaced. IMO, you'd be much better off buying or building wheels with stock parts.

My complaint is that Campy produces wheels with low spoke counts in both the Climb Dynamic and Aerodynamic groups, but don't make those hubs, rims, and spokes available separately. MAVIC pulls similar tricks. The only two explanations that come to mind are that 1) the general public and the LBS can't be trusted to build wheels with these "leading edge" components or 2) Campy wants to be able to offer an exclusive pre-built wheel that the consumer can't get anywhere else. As someone who has built his own wheels since 1968, this really burns my beans! Based on the strength of the Velocity Deep V, CXP30, etc., I see no problems in building strong wheels at the 24 (rear) and 18 (front) spoke count.

It's pretty obvious to me. MAVIC hit on a great marketing idea when they came out with the Cosmic. (now there may have been some others before that, but I'm not sure): A factory built wheel at a premium price using components that were not available separately. Others soon followed suit. If Campy offered just the parts, would (could) you justify a hubset for $450? Or a set of alloy rims for $200 each? I doubt it. Since there's no special assembly required, they'd be hard pressed to charge hundreds of dollars for building the wheel, so the only choice they have is to only offer the built wheel, which is what they intended all along - and they can ask just about what the want for it.

Kerry here has it spot on... U are paying WAY overprice for a wheel that doesnt do half of what a DA/open pro does.
this being said, i ride Ksyrium Elites, and i paid over 500 for them. And why? because i love the looks. Thing is when i got them, i thought that even though they were expensive, they were a relatively decent-weight wheel which was stiff and comfortable.
However what u are looking at now is what i believe to be the lowest end wheels campy has? sure they look cool, but two kilos starts to be a lot.
So basically my message here is that factory built are NO better than a hand-built, and that u pay mostly for the looks and for the stickers. There are loads of people, like me, who are willing to do that.

Of course you're right that boutique wheels are overpriced. I avoid some of the extra cost by searching for the best deals. The most I've paid for a Campy Eurus wheelset was $585 and I paid $640 for a pair of 2004 Ksyrium SSC SL.

If I couldn't get a good deal on the boutique wheel of my choice, I'd probably just build a set of 28H wheels with black spokes and rims and call it good enough. Campy does sell 28H Record hubs at a reasonable cost.

Campy DOES sell any of the parts that they use for building their boutique wheels. Check out that spares catalog on their website. I'm sure that the individual parts would cost far more than the price of a complete new wheelset, so that's not a solution to the overpriced problem.

--<SNIP>--
The real complaint I have about them is that they are grossly overpriced. A company comes out with a wheel that is nearly the same as can be built with stock components, and they add $300 to the price of a comparable wheel. .
--<SMIP>--
But the Ventos are ony $199.00 for the set (!!)... as sold at cbike.com (http://www.cbike.com/campy.htm) (Scroll to the bottom)
I thought this is good value for an entery level wheel.. and they look cool..:)

They were part of a good deal on a bike that works wonderfully for endurance riding so that probably colors my assessment of them. I have turned 2 spokes a quarter turn each in the three years I've had them which is a fine level of durability to me. They were light for the dollar at the time I got them for less than I would have paid for Open Pros with the Chorus hubs that were part of the gruppo. I have, based on my experience with the Electrons, recommended Protons to friends who wanted something a little slicker looking than conventional 32 spoke wheelsets. I don't feel that I was a sucker for getting them.

I do agree that most of the boutique wheels are pretty but pricey alternatives to very acceptable products. It seems silly to me for all but a few elite riders to pay any more than the price of OpenPros and really good hubs, but most of the world thinks it's silly to pay $2000 for a bike.

But the Ventos are ony $199.00 for the set (!!)... as sold at cbike.com (http://www.cbike.com/campy.htm) (Scroll to the bottom)
I thought this is good value for an entery level wheel.. and they look cool..:)

well, even for that money, I would get a pair of handbuilt wheels that would certainly perform equal to the Ventos. plus if you ever had to repair your wheels, the Ventos would cost you a bomb. I don't think much of entry-level botique wheels. at the higher levels, they're sort of justifiable.