Launched in 2022, Lōgōs Components is Randall Jacobs’ latest endeavor, offering thoughtful carbon wheels with direct-to-consumer prices.
Jacobs is a former pro mountain biker and industry veteran who’s been involved with several big-name brands as a designer, consultant and advisor. In 2018, he launched his own direct-to-consumer bike company called Thesis, which offers a quality carbon steed at a great value. The bikes are made to order and customers can select the build, from gearing and wheel options down to the handlebar tape color.
Till this day, Thesis offers just one frame model: the highly versatile OB1, an adventure bike with an endurance road geometry. I actually owned a Thesis OB1 for a bit and was genuinely impressed with the bike’s versatility. From smooth tarmac to singletrack, I took that bike everywhere. It’s relatively affordable, reasonably light and comfortable. It also handles well, has generous tire clearance and all the eyelets one would want for bikepacking. It’s also perfectly capable of the occasional gravel race, and I raced Unbound Gravel on it in 2022.
With his first solo endeavor, Jacobs set out to create a true all-rounder: a well-priced, quality carbon frame with the versatility to transform into your specific needs simply by adding the right components. It only stands to reason then that Jacobs would set out to offer a line of wheels with that same Do-it-all attitude.
Introducing the Lōgōs Atara 650b gravel wheelset
The Atara 650b was made for those setting out to explore the world around us. From long-distance randonneuring events on cushy tires to shred the trails in your local city park, the Atara is a wide, lightweight yet robust workhorse ready to tackle it all.
“In starting Logos, it was clear to us that for most riders, the benefits that established premium brands like Enve offer aren’t worth the high price tag. For this program, we started with what we believed the ideal spec to be, and then figured out how to make that spec affordable,” Jacobs told Cycling Weekly.
Lōgōs Atara - The Spec
- 28 internal width
- 33W
- 24.5 deep
- Blended T700 & T800 carbon fiber
- No paint
- Spokes: Pillar Wing 20, straight-pull, 2-cross
- Nipples: Pillar brass exposed PB14
- Weight, claimed: 1325g +/-1.5%. Tape & valves add ~30g
- Weight as measured by CW: xxx
- Hubs: arche|os | F:12x100 | R:12x142 | 36T ratchet
- Brake compatibility: centerlock disc
- Tire Compatibility: 47mm - 2.4”
- Max Pressure: 45psi
- Max Weight: 130kg
- Decal options: sand or stealth back color
- Freehub Options: XDR | HG 11 | Campagnolo
- Price: $1,299
Lōgōs Atara - The Construction
Wide and light, the Atara rims feature a 28mm internal width that supports beefy tires only, from 47mm up to 2.4”. Lōgōs is a firm believer of wider tires, stating they offer greater traction, control and comfort.
The rims are made of a T700 & T800 carbon fiber blend that is shaped in precision-polished molds to deliver a raw carbon finish free of heavy cosmetic coatings for not only a nice, matte, paint-free finish but a high strength-to-weight and impact-resistance as well.
While featuring a standard spoke count, the individually-reinforced nipple seats and the wheel’s 3mm asymmetry is meant to create higher overall tension and a stronger wheel.
The hub is based around the now open dual-spring Star Ratchet design popularized by DT Swiss. Reliable, serviceable, robust and easy to use, this design is a perfect fit for a do-it-all adventure wheel.
“We could have reduced weight and quite a bit of cost by going with a pawl-based design. However, lower peak load ratings, lower resiliency to contamination and wear, generally poor serviceability, and higher rates of catastrophic failure made pawl-based designs a no-go for us,” Jacobs said.
In general, Lōgōs places a fair bit of importance on keeping its products rolling and out of landfill. All products are therefore built to be robust, serviceable and, of course, company-supported. To that end, Lōgōs uses non-proprietary and reliable components and backs its products up with lifetime warranty and incident protection.
Lōgōs Atara - The Ride
Out of the box, the Atara wheels look very clean with a smooth matte black finish and simple logo decals (more on those later). They appear light and, with a 28mm internal rim width, they’re certainly wider than any other gravel wheel I own.
The setup was as easy as it comes. I used some 650b x 47mm Maxxis Rambler tires and Topeak’s booster pump and everything played nice. I was up and running in no time.
While the 650b vs 700c debate comes and goes, there’s a reason the smaller wheel diameter has been the go-to for long-distance bike tourists and randonneurs since the 1950s and why modern-day bike ‘adventurers’ are rediscovering it. It’s simply more comfortable. The smaller diameter allows you to run a wider, higher volume tire (on most bikes), providing more traction and the ability to run lower tire pressures for an overall cushier, smoother ride. While many will argue that the smaller wheel diameter is slower, for many riders, speed is not a primary factor in their reasons to ride. With its lightweight yet robust carbon construction and tubeless compatibility, this Atara wheelset makes a wheel diameter of years past into a modern workhorse.
My rides on these hoops took place on my go-to play routes in and around Forest Park, which features rough pavement, gravel and singletrack. It also packs a fair bit of up in a short distance and plenty of quick turns.
Cruising out to the park, the quick handling and smooth roll became immediately apparent. The asphalt on this ride is very rough, broken up and littered with potholes. The wide tires act like suspension, taking the sting out of the otherwise quite jarring road and keeping you planted.
Once in the park, pavement makes way for gravel of all kinds and a few singletrack detours as well. It is here, on this terrain, that the wheels stood out to me most. The wheels absorb the bumps and glide over the roots and ruts confidently. They lack the nimbleness and speed a stiff wheel provides but make up for it in stability and compliance. Despite their competitively light weight, they also feel quite indestructible, and well-suited for the more adventurous rides and loaded bikepacking trips.
I’m a big fan of the Star Ratchet hub design and have been using the DT Swiss versions for some time. If you’re frequently swapping cassettes or going between SRAM and Shimano-equipped bike, there’s simply no easier or faster system. By using the open design, the Lōgōs arché|os hub brings that same user-friendliness and serviceability to its consumers at a lower price tag.
My only gripe with this wheelset, really, is the logo decals. They’re simple stickers that, while easily removed for customization, got damaged pretty quickly and simply look cheap.
Lōgōs Atara - Value comparison
At around 1360g (tape and valves included), the Atara is a competitive light yet robust workhorse of a wheelset that should last you many years of adventures. It’s also a competitively priced wheelset that’s both lighter and significantly cheaper than, say, Enve’s AG28s wheelset, and while $300 more expensive than the comparable Hunt 650b Adventure Carbon Wheelset, they’re wider and about 100 grams lighter.
Lōgōs Atara - Bottom line:
Lōgōs made these wheels “for the joyful exploration of the world,” and they will be great adventure companions indeed. Serviceable, built to last and take some of the sting out of the groad at a reasonable price, these carbon hoops tick all the boxes for those looking for max tire volume and a smooth ride.
