Polygon Helios Ride Review

[@jimmybee4539]

Nice work Cam. Minor edit on the price of the higher specced A9X. It's $7,499 with the same Entity R5's or ~$9,499 with the Durace 60mm wheelset uprade.

[@CamNicholls]

Ah thanks for that!

[@rodmacpherson8383]

And if you go durace wheels you have to get the power meter. Would almost think it’s worth going for the entity wheels and spend the $2,000 saving on upgrading to a better Wheelset?

[@Wilmanmejia1025]

Hi Cam where can i buy that bike?

[@mataibartlett6417]

Bikes online needa give you a percentage of now bro. I bought the bike through bikesOnline and had it sent through to new zealand from a relative living in Sydney after watching this review and tossing up between a few other choices. 👌 the wait time was 2 months here in nz and I wasn't having that. Cheers cam. PS Still running the entity's atm till someone sponsors me with a better wheel choice🤣

[@three10media]

As a product manager, I love that you understand the concept of feature/value. It's totally overlooked by most consumers how difficult it is to make tradeoff decisions. I would have thought there would be research that suggests that most people buying the polygon helios already have a set of aftermarket wheels so investing more in the handlebars makes a lot of sense.

[@neilgoulsbra7103]

I have 2 of these. Bought the A8X as tested then got another A8X frame built up with Dura Ace and updated wheels. They are both awesome bikes.

[@tcakes247]

Nice Cam. Been dying for this review to come out ever since I purchased my Helios a few months ago. Good to hear your take on it ❤

[@lancenunn362]

Still enjoying your honest reviews Cam.Keep up the great work.

[@cakeEATER17]

I just bought this bike and am in complete agreement with this review. Very happy with the purchase. Wheelset is perfect for training rides and fast group rides but definitely leave something to be desired

[@fazidinamir]

A review that I've been waiting for! Thank you!

[@mfitzy9251]

Well done. A good honest review. This bike is on my radar hopefully early next year. Well definitely the A7X as I just love the colour of that bike. And still comes with a 105 Di2.....

[@daviddjerassi]

Another honest open evaluation lets please have another when you have had time to test it in a hard ride out IE a club ride Thanks Cam loved the video.

[@Halcyon-u5c]

The video is awesome! This superteam wheelset looks great and I'm very interested in it.

[@andrewgordon6179]

I saw this bike in blue at a bike shop today, and I was surprised at how nice it looked in real life.

[@AliAdam80]

Polygon offer INSANE value. I was looking for a well priced bike that came with shimano 105 mechanical. Nothing beat their strattos s5 at only 1,349 AUD. Scott are selling a 2000 AUD bike with SHIMANO TOURNEY!!!!!

[@CycoWarriorx]

Nice review… and an excellent breakdown on the wheels… and don’t feel bad - I can’t pronounce those swabbie tires either… 😂🍻

[@bhirawawisnumurti2417]

I've rode polygon bikes for about 11 years (mtb and road) they have good frame, good price too. The only issue I think is just the wheels quality except for the one that's equipped with shimano or mavic I think they're pretty decent

[@onthemoveot]

Lovely work yet again. I’m loving my A7X but appreciate your insight with the wheels. Will look to upgrade, because I need to buy more bike gear, right? 😂 Seriously I reckon it’s going to really unlock the potential of the bike by the sounds. Cheers:)

[@MrEmirbeytur]

Coming with full hidden internal cabling and carbon wheels plus Di2 Helios A7X is a full bargain for AU$4600. Thank you for your feedbacks for this brand.

[@rejickmukherjee9154]

These wheels are novotec r 5 i guess.. Cheapest carbon whewls available. This is still better that box section aluminum wheels that other brands are offering at this price point

[@superteamwheels]

The tires look light and great!

[@JonReid]

Great review Cam. Quality!

[@rocstar76]

I'm happy with my A9x. The more i rode it after buying, the more i liked it. The paint is pretty sick too. With it being such good value i invested in some Aldhu carbon cranks as i needed to go down a size. Changed the wheels straight away as well. Without pedals etc it weighs 7.05kg, which isn't bad

[@MozerDozer404]

The color of your bike is absolutely amazing!!

[@KolzManz]

@rocco5466 - I am considering the A9X as well. Which wheelset did you change to get down to 7.05kg (without pedals)? The stock configuration with the Entity wheel on Large weighs 7.7kg. Cheers

[@rocstar76]

@@KolzManz I'm running Creative wheels, which Cam has in a few videos. I'm also running a different saddle, Rotor Aldhu carbon cranks and a different lightweight handlebar. I need different size cranks and handlebar so went for lighter. Bike is now 7.25kg with pedals, cages and computer mount in a M. Also Galfer Wave rotors, which were already on my wheels. I think that's it.

[@KolzManz]

@@rocstar76 Awesome - thank you for the additional information - the weight is pretty sweet 😀. Thank you again Rocco!

[@HUNHali]

Hi Cam, I know it takes a lot of time and effort to do the tests on the same day, but please try to stick to it whenever possible. Of course I value your experience on the wheelsets, but I feel like the conditions can change so much in a week that it's quite hard to compare the results this way (temperature, wind direction, speed, gusts, cars...). Also I think 3 runs would be better per setting compared to 2, you could be a lot more confident in the data that way (again, I know it takes a lot of effort, otherwise I would have done these as well). Thanks, and keep up!

[@MaxwellPowers666]

I have no interest in purchasing any of the Chinese bikes you've reviewed. But if I was I'd find these reviews invaluable. Regardless I've watched all them because the content is interesting and entertaining. Taking all the time to collect, build, inspect, review, and finally edit it all for 7-10 minute videos is a very nice service you've provided. Good on ya, mate!

[@geralddycycling9933]

I own this bike and it's awesome! No complaints at all.

[@Risayogi]

I’m from Indonesia and I’ve been using overseas bicycle brand because when I started cycling, Polygon road bikes models were not that good, compared to their more established MTB line-up. I always recommend Polygon as a first bike whenever some of my friends ask which road bike to buy as their first bike, because Polygon’s entry level road bikes are crazy cheap. Now that their performance road bikes line-up look beautiful and fast, I’m considering heavily buying Polygon Helios when the time comes to upgrade my road bike. Thank you for your review.

[@M.F.Hafizhan]

Permisi, kalo untuk RB super-budget pemula, mending Strattos S2 ya? Ato mungkin dari merk lain ada alternatif yang lebih baik, seperti dari United, Pacific, Genio, Thrill, dst?

[@thomasullmann7447]

I just got my Falath Evo and the steerer tube looks like it doesn't have any fibre glass anymore ( I cut it myself and didn't see any interface between two materials). BB went in well and overall construction looks good. If the wind dies down today I'll be taking her out for her maiden voyage.

[@CamNicholls]

Great to hear. Enjoy new bike day 🤩

[@turtletramp]

So for a recreational rider that wants a solid all round bike at a great price this seems like a no brainer to buy.

[@FARWINDY]

Great video. Looking forward your further reviews on FARSPORTS wheels.

[@Jaime-vf6eu]

I'm rolling some 50mm hoops, I rate them super highly, however maybe it's because I do too much training indoors, but they felt a bit sketch on some heavy descents in the last couple of days. Originally I thought they handled wind pretty well, but I was copping a fair amount of buffeting and some heavy turbulence at 60kmh+. More so when I was in a shit position behind a car in their turbulent wind. Still rate them though.

[@74_Green]

From what I have noticed this season, a lot of the world tour are trending for a slightly higher front end position. I believe the thinking is they can produce more power for longer with more comfort, aero penalty being offset. Another bonus of the less extreme position is the lesser chance of strain injuries.

[@timdixo]

I’ve heard this commented on before. I suspect may be partly down to the fit limitations of integrated cockpits. In the past the pros would commonly slap on -17/20 deg stems for a low front end but that’s now problematic with the current one piece trend.

[@bondsjustin6739]

Actually saw my favorite Superteam wheelset, used for 3 years, still very strong😛

[@deejtan]

Thanks for the honest review, Cam. Still a good value bike in my opinion. 👍

[@PuneethBedre]

Cam - “Shoowaaaalb”

[@oculusquest6703]

I bought the exact same bike, Loving it with 2 months of use, unfortunately I have got a headset and top tube movement, will take it to my local bike shop to see if they can do anything about it. Overall very happy with the bike, respond to this comment if you would like an update.

[@energylab6277]

how did the repair go?

[@qkzeng3352]

Hi Cam, this wheel looks very special, where can I buy it.

[@MichaelHurley-r1h]

Hi Cam. Please,what is your inseam measurement. Thanks

[@JFomo]

Will you be reviewing those Superteam wheels soon?

[@CamNicholls]

Was going to wait and see if there was interest.

[@JFomo]

@@CamNicholls I'm interested 🙋‍♂️

[@onthemoveot]

I’m interested 🤛

[@Rose_Butterfly98]

I doubt the sizing would be an issue, Polygon isn't exactly an emerging brand. They've been a mainstream brand for a very long time in Southeast Asia. They have their own shops so they can go direct to consumer, you get special discounts on some things like maintenance and sometimes even wheelsets at their shops if you have a Polygon, Marin or Wilier I currently have 3 of their bike, a Siskiu D7, a Collosus T8 and a Strattos S8D. Also had a Plateau 3.0 a Helios C3 but the Plateau linkage brokw and I sold the Helios when I got the Strattos. The wheels are the same weight as the Fulcrum Wind 55db though. Is it really that heavy? They're can't compare to the Arayas on my old helios but those were high end climbing wheels. A confusing thing that polygon did back then that we could never understand, the wheels essentially cost 70% of the bikes price.

[@donbosco2830]

Hey Cam. I've been waiting for this video! So excited. In your Money video you mentioned partnering with Assioma. Will you have any discount codes? Difference between me buying them this weekend or waiting until you drop something on them. Keep up the great work!

[@CamNicholls]

No discount codes but we are a reseller through the RCA. So if you’re Aussie based we can help you out. Email through the rca website

[@abhimawa1]

Nice review Cam. I’m interested in getting one. That Vision Metron 5D: isn’t that the one fitted on Jumbo Visma team bikes? Those Cervelos of Jonas Vingegaard & friends

[@benjamjo]

Loved it! thanks mate

[@PeterPutz82]

Nice one Cam, thanks.

[@glennoc8585]

I was hoping someone would at least look at polygon and it's looking pretty good

[@JC-pw9bn]

Well said! As a Skydio 2 and then 2+ I am fortunate I sold mine a few months ago. I agree with you 100% on what you have said in this video. The reason I sold it is because it just became ‘blah’. I find reading their announcement as pathetic. They make it sound like they are such a saint to the drone makers and all they care about is finding lost children. Other drones do that as well. And now for them to admit they are working with the military…its all about greed. They were not doing anything for their consumers and had no intention of ever making their software or consumer drones better. Only thing I will add is….Hey Skydio, don’t let the door hit your greedy ass on the way out!

[@cakeEATER17]

What the FUCK are you talking about

[@oculusquest6703]

My seat post keeps slipping, I way 70kg and even with proper carbon paste and correct torque, along with the extra tightener. I have also had issues with the headset, bearings, and brakes.

[@MichaelHurley-r1h]

Cam,what is your inside leg measurement? Considering a medium Thanks MichaelAx8

[@HarryTzianakisTheGodOfSpeed]

Yooo00 Cam!! Great job!. I'm sure they didn't pay you enough for this. The bike looks very similar to the Cannondale I guess.

[@mataibartlett6417]

How did you find the fit,geometry for your height cam. I'm 177 tall, with an inseam of 835. I purchased a Medium. hoping the stacks not to low for me give or take room for spacers to lift the bars up. I'm running a medium atm finding it hard to even get into the drops as the seats high for the stack height😅

[@helmetculture]

Cam I already bought a teammachine because of you 😅 so I'll watch this one for the algorithm 😊

[@CamNicholls]

Haha cheers mate

[@mavericklimsk]

Polygon makes very nice bikes. I know because I have 2 of their bikes.

[@db613]

You should say at the beginning of the video besides for the full Shimano is that amazing handlebar which is worth $400+

[@Hill_Walker]

Now he's selling out to shapes!

[@CamNicholls]

Haha. I’ll take anything. You know that

[@jonpoon3896]

Cube next

[@jeremys2159]

Looks like a great build - the metron bars are a very nice touch but the main issue with them is the chances of getting the fit right with the stock offering is extremely low. Would be nice if they had options there for different reach/width.

[@CamNicholls]

Yes that’s a good point actually, thankfully for me it was right. Thanks for sharing on the thread

[@julienrobert3938]

Just one question, what do you think of the Shimano 52-36 x 11-34? I'm currently on 52-36 x 11-30 on 11 speed di2 ultegra, and think tonmake the change to 12 speeds with 11-34 cassette to get more range as i'm looking to do more mountain climbing. I think with kne more gear gaps will be ok between speeds, but i'm a bit qcared still. Looking forward to your answer Cam. Cheers and long live your channel.

[@Mububban23]

Your knees will thank you for adding more hill climbing easy gears!

[@wantasok]

How is it compare to Giant TCR Advance Pro...

[@williamgay8100]

How was slamming the stem on this build? Interested in the bike but I'm gonna have to cut the stock steerer down. Is it hard or managable at home?

[@royanderson3478]

Cam ? Any good $$$? Or I'm buying a specialized SL8

[@julianmojica2719]

Hi, hi! U should make a video where you say which has been the best "project" for you, i mean the best bycicle u have tested! Just my opinion

[@user-cx2bk6pm2f]

The A9X version with Durace is currently on special for about $800 more. Damn... what a bargain.

[@kurtabrahams4456]

Hi Cam Have you owned a trek? What do you think of trek?

[@DanTuber]

The pricing for all their Di2 bikes are pretty reasonable.

[@darrengee2412]

With just on a 1000Kms on my AX9 I am very happy :) I swapped out the Swalbe 28s and installed Continental GP 5000 S TR running tubeless 25mm on the front, 28mm on the back. My seat post slipped first time out until I greased the clamp as recommended in the assembly video and then the recommended torque setting worked fine. I replaced the seat with my favourite Specialized Romin evo and for me the handlebar/stem system fitted well. Not looking at changing up wheels just yet but changing the tires really made the bike come alive. Bike feels great in a sprint, climbing and on fast downhills.

[@simonleighrobertson]

Hi mate why 25mm on the front and 28mm on the rear ? Why not just 28mm on both ?

[@darrengee2412]

@@simonleighrobertson the 25 on the front fits the profile of the rim for a more aerodynamic system in my view. The 28 on the rear is slightly larger than the rim with but has less aerodynamic effect and provides comfort in my view 😀

[@robbietownsend236]

Ummm...where's the follow up review??? Thinken of getting one during EOFY sales, but I'd like to hear your feedback first.

[@tyroneoosterberg6342]

Don’t understand how you can “test” the bike on a totally different wheel set up to all the previous bikes tested and then say it’s scored higher… Wheels play an incredibly important part in the way a bike feels and ride’s probably even more so than the frame! To be fair I would call the test pointless. Changing such a big component would affect the results as you admitted, so why even test then? Furthermore you had the elves bike scanned at your carbon guy befor you even took it to your bike builder last time, you even went ahead with the 1st scanned after the carbon guy said how incredible the frame looked. No consistency in this test/video when compared to the others at all! This should just have been an individual review on the bike and not compared to others as it’s been tester and treated completely differently!

[@helmetculture]

Is this Chris Miller Cycling burner 🤭🤭🤭🤭

[@CamNicholls]

I tested all those other bikes with different wheel + tyre set ups. For example, the previous Elves review I used three different wheels + tyre set ups and they were all pretty good. I just felt the Entity wheels really let the Polygon down. So I’m not quite following what you’re saying. Also, the consistency in scans is when a frame is provided unbuilt. I have never unbuilt a bike and taken a frame in. Just a fork as per the example in the video. As you could imagine the costs are prohibitive, so unless there’s a compelling reason to do this, I can’t justify it.

[@rocstar76]

No matter what you do Cam, b!itches gonna b!tch

[@tyroneoosterberg6342]

@@CamNicholls that is my point. If you testing a bike (frame) but testing them on different wheel sets and tires then what is the point. To be fair testing should then be done on what the manufacturer has built! Otherwise you technically testing a custom build with a frame… and not necessarily the brand/frame… If you going to test a frame in particular which that’s what you say you doing then all other components should be kept as standard as possible across the brand otherwise you testing a system and not a frame… that is 2 very different tests… if a bike is bought as a system it should be tested as a system not changed as o be the best it can be and then tested. I’m sure you can agree those are 2 very different tests… A bike that was weighing 8kg that has been altered to way 7,4kg will not only be faster but performance (handling) would be much different. All I’m saying is in order for you to rate and compare the bikes on to each other they would all need to be built the same with only 1 variable (the frame) otherwise you testing systems and not frames…

[@CamNicholls]

@@tyroneoosterberg6342 very easy to go into rabbit holes here, and the rating system is far from perfect but it gives people something that’s easy to digest. I test all bikes with different wheel / tyre combinations to ensure I’ve got a good grasp on the frame. In this case I did say I was ‘cheating’ with the review because of the different wheels I leveraged for the final ratings but the majority of other reviews I’ve completed on the channel ‘the wheels’ haven’t let the frame down. That was not the case here so I made a point of it.

[@DPbike]

Great review as usual. Love the 'scchwalllb' haha :) ausgezeichnet! Perhaps I sense a slight p*ss take to attempt to stem yet more comments on how it 'should' be pronounced...... ;) I should invite you to test some wheels in Wales and let you have a go at the place names!

[@hellfish4000]

I think it looks good. Shame about the wheels. Be nice if you could option it with ultegra wheels like they let you do with the dura-ace model. Given you need to spend another $1500 on wheels something like the Merida reacto 8000 is better value.

[@suphul1]

7x9mm saddle rails will fit ?

[@jimmybee4539]

Cam, did you have to use a spacer to get your 12spd cassette to work on those Superteam wheels?

[@CamNicholls]

No that's for 11 speed set ups

[@jimmybee4539]

That's what I thought@@CamNicholls but after fitting my 12 speed Ultegra cassette I quickly discovered it wasn't spinning even close to straight despite being mounted properly. After much back and forth with Superteam was told to try a 1mm spacer which has fixed the issue.

[@simonleighrobertson]

Cam how do local bikes shops except these online bikes when it comes to servicing etc ? Do you think this is an issue ?

[@CamNicholls]

I think if you get attitude from a bike shop because you’ve bought online it’s the wrong bike shop.

[@edmundbao2561]

how tall are you sizing for M?

[@mrwezbo]

Impressive weight reduction with just the tyres and tubes...gives you something to think about 🤔🤔

[@pierrex3226]

Why would unbranded carbon handlebars be crap? Not an easy thing to test in the era of integrated cables where swapping them is a nightmare

[@CamNicholls]

Not saying unbranded bars are crap. But often cheap bars are put on mid tier aero bikes.

[@pierrex3226]

@@CamNicholls Would love a video on why branded handlebars are better. I've had branded carbon rims (Campag Bora 1) and unbranded ones (full T800 with Sapim Xray spokes from Farsports), and i can't tell the difference. I wonder why branded handlebars would beat T1000 unbranded with the same design for eg. Because let's be real, i'm never spending several hundreds of $ on a branded set when i can get unbranded T1000 for 75 usd + shipping, but if i'm missing out, i want to know :) I'm about value, but i'm fine spending when it matters.

[@steinanderson]

would you buy this or build up an elves falath evo?

[@CamNicholls]

Personally I’d buy this. Way better for the type of riding I do.

[@donwinston]

I don't get the drab colors. WTF? Also the top tube length and reach is very short in the XL size.

[@wenschobert]

Is there a way for me to send you a text message on how to pronounce Schwalbe in German language correctly? Thanks for the insights into the polygon

[@wenschobert]

Just to get this straight: I don't care how you pronounce it as long as it's understandable (it is)... Watching this I just had the feeling you wanted to get it right so badly, like it would pain you if you'd get it wrong... Just in case: no need to be shamed and it's not far away... It's just that a and e are pronounced way different in English and German (while your a sounds almost like our e, German A would kinda be like the first half of what you say if you'd spell an R. So "Shw R lb A" without the rolling sound in the R would be how I'd try to explain it to English speaking people

[@facingup1624]

@@wenschobert he was made fun of for not being able to pronounce it way back. It seems to be a thing on youtube. Almost nobody gets at all close to saying it right.

[@SuperDodoe]

Nice!

[@P4P5]

That saddle tho 😂

[@CamNicholls]

Haha

[@zymphad7377]

I reckon you'll get far better weight savings with rim and mechanical than spending additional $1200 on wheels.

[@charng]

shouldn't you go for large mate?

[@CamNicholls]

Nah, I’m normally on the border and go down vs up

[@protonjicari5990]

This is a great bike compared to the Chinese bikes reviewed on this channel, a big player on bike industry on the rise then?

[@HuskyKyurem]

Nice saddle 😅

[@tomereckhous1175]

nice review, not too bad for that price. Not sure about the scweeelbe pronunciation, you got to say it in a German accent. BTW what you thoughts on the TPU inner tubes, maybe an option for future review.

[@interceptor7905]

Is this classed as a dentist bike now?

[@hansschmidt3144]

nice review. thanks a lot. just one thing: as a german, it almost hurts me inside hearing you say SCHWAUULLLB. you can check google translate to hear how "Schwalbe" is pronounced ;D

[@user-cx2bk6pm2f]

This makes the new Specialized SL8 look ridiculous at $20k.

[@KM-jo3wh]

Ahh, so THAT's how you pronounce "Schwalbe", thanks!😀

[@ca8746]

deja vu

[@GeorgeD1]

Schwaaauuullllllghb! 😁

[@gwatson7124]

Nice bike. Happily, it doesn't come with that god awful saddle 😂

[@CamNicholls]

Haha

[@anthonyhomercycling]

Propel

[@db613]

Merida reacto less money and a world tour brand

[@Spartan9567]

I'm still filthy over Bikes Online killing Cell Bikes.

[@CamNicholls]

Cell bikes fan?

[@Spartan9567]

@@CamNicholls Sure am, I still have an Omeo from back in the day.

[@georgepepper5993]

Quit insulting Eagles Cam!

[@CamNicholls]

😂

[@StanEby1]

Yay! I'm glad somebody is noticing Polygon. For high quality at a good price, we don't have to resort to China and thus funding the CCP's push for global domination. All the best. Go Polygon! 😊

[@chrisobyrne5675]

Agree, a good looking and elegant bike….right up until you put that monstrosity of a saddle on! 😂

[@yatharthchaturvedi2874]

Schwa😮😮aaabab😮😮wleeeeee😮😮

[@paulwhitfeld4858]

Schwaaaalbe 😂❤

[@lukasandersson9617]

SCHWAAALBEEEEEEEEEE 🤣

[@OldSchoolPowerlifting]

Indonesian pride!!!

[@K9SupplyTV]

Schwalbe!

[@TheMoodyedge]

Looks stupid with the seatpost mostly inside the frame.

[@NimrodGilAd]

It's pronounced "shVAHLbeh" (which, BTW, is German for Swallow)