When to replace roadie wheels?

[trailgumby]

A dumb question from a so-called expert

I've done probably north of 15,000km on the Pro-Lite Braccianos I reviewed in Jan 2014 and noticed recently that the rear rim brake track in particular is feeling a little concave. I haven't measured, but I'm guessing by about 0.15 to 0.2mm.

There are no high spots and braking is still smooth, which is a credit to the brand but I'm thinking they may need relegating to trainer-only duties soon. Unfortunately there are no wear indicator holes on these rims.

Any thoughts on how I tell when it's time to replace?

[Mulger bill]

Before your time on the skinnies mate...
http://bicycles.net.au/forums/viewtopic ... 34&t=54104

[trailgumby]

Ta. Replaced with another set of Braccianos, this time from Cell Bikes in Stanmore.

[caneye]

that was quick!

no thumb-twiddling, ummmm ... ahhh ... ummm .. maybe ... like many others

[Duck!]

I'd have said they're probably still fine with that amount of wear, given that indicator dimples or grooves on rims that have them are closer to 1mm deep.

[Mulger bill]

Ta. Replaced with another set of Braccianos, this time from Cell Bikes in Stanmore.

What shape are the blocks in?

[trailgumby]

Pretty good. I might need to face them off with a sanding block, though. They're SwissStop Blue, replaced not that long ago.

[eeksll]

would it be possible to drill a small hole to see the thickness? Can you even get drills that small?

15000 seems very short for a wheel.

[hamishm]

15000 seems very short for a wheel.

Not for a rear wheel, ridden in the wet with a decent weight rider on board. No idea if that fits the OP's description but I went through a couple of Open Pros in about 12,000 each.

[Nate]

would it be possible to drill a small hole to see the thickness? Can you even get drills that small?
15000 seems very short for a wheel.

yep - jewelers drills, or "electronic tungsten drills" on ebay.
ebay ones are nice & cheap, can go to fractions of a mm

[AUbicycles]

I wouldn't bother drilling, with the tyre off you can already see how thick the wall section is.

If the rims do suffer from wet riding and braking, try to clean the rims and brake pads from grit and dirt more regularly to take away some of the abrasive effect and also regularly ensure the brake pads are correctly aligned to avoid them digging out groves.

trailgumby, if you sand them back - take it easy when you start out and brake, if the surface is rough it may need time to wear in and I would be cautious incase it wants to suddenly grip. If it were disc brakes, I would suggest to ride around with the brakes half-engaged... not sure that this would be the right approach for rim brakes.

[MelodyWheels]

I use a disc brake vernier caliper to to get an accurate measurement of rim wear/concavity on rims... always with the tyre off.
I encourage riders not to risk it if there is any uncertainty with the wheel... or at least retire the well to something like home trainer use.
The thing is there is no real consistent standard for assessing brake wear. Obviously your brake wear indicators are the gold standard, but on some rims they dont exist and on others they can be misleading. Because the wall thickness of the brake track can also vary massively between rims 0.5mm on one rim maybe not much wear, but on another it's way too much. Shimano duraace alloy wheels in particular are incredibly thin on the brake tracks so dont expect much life out of them. Tell tale signs of imminent failure include excessive concavity brought on about by air pressure. Don't be the person who squeezes every bit of life out of a wheel and is lucky the rim doesn't catastrophically fail.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BS0QScygLz1/

[BJL]

15000 seems very short for a wheel.

Not for a rear wheel, ridden in the wet with a decent weight rider on board. No idea if that fits the OP's description but I went through a couple of Open Pros in about 12,000 each.

I'm around 100kgs and my rear Open Pro (32 spoke) lasted about 16,000kms. Brake track was concave (not excessive though) so it was on the way out but could have lasted a bit longer. It was the half a dozen cracked spoke holes that really killed it (common issue with Open Pros). The front is still fine and has a way to go. I'm now looking for stronger rims for rebuild as the Ultegra hubs are barely run in.

[hamishm]

I got to the point where there were mini-bulges in the Open Pro braking track which I could feel as pulsing when braking.

The front outlasted 3 rear rims. I only changed the front when I went to a dynamo hub.

[Thoglette]

lasted about 16,000kms..

Distance travelled is completely and utterly the wrong metric for rim life estimation.

Unfortunately, we also have no idea how often nor how hard we stop; nor have any idea about the relative merits of brake pad types or the abrasive properties of crud thrown up onto the rims.

The only thing you can do is measure the original thickness; measure subsequent wear and keep an eye out for the warning signs.

FWIW I rarely wear out rear rims (I break them ) but instead wear out the front (I'm a lapsed sports motorcyclist)

[zero]

lasted about 16,000kms..

Distance travelled is completely and utterly the wrong metric for rim life estimation.

Unfortunately, we also have no idea how often nor how hard we stop; nor have any idea about the relative merits of brake pad types or the abrasive properties of crud thrown up onto the rims.

The only thing you can do is measure the original thickness; measure subsequent wear and keep an eye out for the warning signs.

FWIW I rarely wear out rear rims (I break them ) but instead wear out the front (I'm a lapsed sports motorcyclist)

Its Sydney road sand, and it seems pretty consistent in its ability to kill rear rims, my rear pads outlast my front pads by 2:1 or more, but my rear rims go concave over similar distances to TGs experience.

[BJL]

lasted about 16,000kms..

Distance travelled is completely and utterly the wrong metric for rim life estimation.

I do live near The Dandenongs so you can guess where the bulk of my riding is done. And if it's not The Dandenongs, it's usually some other mountain! And I'm far from the greatest descender on the planet so I'm on the brakes more than most. And being 100kg doesn't help. I don't usually ride in the rain though but sometimes I get caught out (like most).

But I do know 50k's in The Dandenongs will wear my rims more than the 200kms out to Yea on flat roads. It was more the cracked spoke holes that disappointed me. My fault for not doing my research first. But two bike shops recommended the Open Pros to me and I didn't know any better back then.

But you can't discount that some rims will last longer than others in exactly the same conditions. It's the old adage when it comes to rims - Light, Strong, Cheap, pick two.

[jacks1071]

A dumb question from a so-called expert

I've done probably north of 15,000km on the Pro-Lite Braccianos I reviewed in Jan 2014 and noticed recently that the rear rim brake track in particular is feeling a little concave. I haven't measured, but I'm guessing by about 0.15 to 0.2mm.

There are no high spots and braking is still smooth, which is a credit to the brand but I'm thinking they may need relegating to trainer-only duties soon. Unfortunately there are no wear indicator holes on these rims.

Any thoughts on how I tell when it's time to replace?

I've got plenty of rear rims here $62.35 + postage if you need to make it new again.

[trailgumby]

Wish you'd mentioned earlier! I've since purchassed a new complete wheelset from a competitor as it looked like you were running out the stock and only had Campy rear hubs

[jacks1071]

Wish you'd mentioned earlier! I've since purchassed a new complete wheelset from a competitor as it looked like you were running out the stock and only had Campy rear hubs

You could have bought the Campy ones cheap and put your existing free hub on them. Anyway ask me next time

[trailgumby]

Wish you'd mentioned earlier! I've since purchassed a new complete wheelset from a competitor as it looked like you were running out the stock and only had Campy rear hubs

You could have bought the Campy ones cheap and put your existing free hub on them. Anyway ask me next time

I did think about that. What have you got that's similar for disc brakes? Thinking 12mm thru axles front and rear.

[jacks1071]

Look at the Kotavelo D21 Wheelset

It is the same rim as the R21 and R21HD models, very light, wide, strong. And I have the 12mm axle options.

http://kotavelo.com.au/store/kotavelo-d21-wheelset.html