Rough joint on Mavic rims?

I just took delivery of some wheels I ordered with Mavic EN521 rims and am surprised by how rough the the welded joint looks. The milling away of the welding flash has actually left a visible depression in the rim walls, which isn't the most confidence-inspiring thing I've seen. I gather that this is fairly normal for welded rims, but these are supposed to use Mavic's 'SUP' technology which, according to Sheldon, means that the rim is made thicker than normal, welded and then machined down uniformly to leave a smooth join. Are these depressions something to be concerned about?
0
Posts
There is no secret ingredient - Kung Fu Panda
London Calling on Facebook
Parktools
One side:
The other:
Both rims are the same, right down to the asymmetry between sides. The photos, if anything, exaggerate the depth of the gouges. I suspect what I'm looking at is normal, even if it doesn't jibe with Mavic's description of the SUP process, but a second opinion never hurt...
VOODOO CANZO
Come and see me at https://www.facebook.com/biketyke/
There is no secret ingredient - Kung Fu Panda
London Calling on Facebook
Parktools
Ribble Sportive 7005
P1020436 by fastmongrel, on Flickr
This what the joint should look like. This is a 6 year old Mavic rim and you can barely see the welded joint.
I'll send Merlin an email and some photos when they open again. I'm ordering from Australia so it will probably be a while before I can get a resolution. Thanks for helping with this everyone.
Cheers
Adie
'I have spoken to our wheel builders and mechanics here and shown them the photos. I can assure you that there is no fault with these rims. We have built hundreds of these rims and they are all the same with this heavy weld area on the rim. I can understand your concern with the look of these rims, but this is the same on every en521 we have built and all the stock on our shelf. With the heavy guage of this rim the weld is very large and leaves an indent in the join. We have shown pictures of this to mavic and they have agreed that this is the finish left by the welding process on this rim.'
VOODOO CANZO
Come and see me at https://www.facebook.com/biketyke/
Tried contacting Mavic direct for an opinion?
Why did Merlin share the pics with Mavic - because they did not manufacture the rim and because they are as concerned as most people in this forum. I think that the rims are poor that the weld will not compensate for the grinding and that the strength is compromsed
Send them back and a link to this forum and maybe someone who lives near Merlin can check the stock items and get back to the forum?
Cotic BFe
DMR Trailstar
Canyon Roadlite
I want to, but they don't make it easy, Mavic's site gives no contact info and just fobs you off on to the retailer
Given that it's a custom-built item, I'm not sure I can return the wheels unless Mavic concedes that there's something wrong with the rim (if there's something wrong...).
VOODOO CANZO
Come and see me at https://www.facebook.com/biketyke/