when to replace rims?

luv2ride

When do you know when to replace wheel rims? I'm using some Ritchey Ds pro wheels with Miche Performane long drop brakes, and Swissstop green pads. They seem ok, but I just sold a bike with Tektro R580 brakes, new no name pads with barely used CXP22 rims and they felt way more positive.

I was wondering if my Swissstop greens might be contaminated, or whether my Ritchey rims are past their best? I could change the pads (expensive), but is there a way of checking the rims? cheers

ugo.santalucia

You replace them when the brake track is severely concave or when they crack... Not before, not after... Some rims brake better than others

Monty Dog

As well as the concave brake track you can get 'pulsing' of the brakes which feels like the wheel is warped and yet it still runs true. Leaving a worn rim too long can results in an abrupt and painful stop.

racingcondor

Many rims also have a wear indicator often -
- a little hole in the rim,
- cut out section or,
- hole that appears after a certain amount of wear.

Here's a picture -
http://www.fulcrumwheels.com/system/hotspots/images/wear.jpg?1346235939

Essentially the built in indicator is an obvious indicator rather than relying on people thinking to put a ruler on it occasionally. Unless you've done a good few thousand miles I'd put the difference down to better machining or a different alloy used in the new rims rather than wear.

term1te

I'll be a bit more cautious with rims now after one blew on me earlier this year. It was an Mavic Open Pro that had many a good year in it, but looked OK. One frosty morning I pumped the tyres to 120 psi and cycled to work. Left the bike in the sun all day, when I got back in the evening the rim had a 6 inch split. I guess the tyre heated up in the sun and the hot air produced too great a pressure for the rim. I replaced both rims just in case. I couldn't of stayed upright if it had blown whilst I was on the bike. The rim was less than a mm thick where it split.

racingcondor

I had a club mate with a similar experience about a year ago. Finished the club run and had a coffee (leaving the bike in the sun). Got on the bike to go home and 20ft down the road there's a noise like a gunshot and he comes walking back around the corner (luckily he was doing walking pace when it went) with a 1/3rd of the rim unpeeled.

I don't want to think about what could have happened if he'd been shifting when it went (or it had blown because of the heat from heavy braking...).