Zipp 404 Carbon Clincher (2012)

josehernandez

I recently bought a Zipp 404 rear wheel from E-bay that was advertised by seller as being minimally used 2013 example. Following the purchase I did some research on the web and discovered that the wheel was in fact made in 2012 and featured the controversial non-radial drive side spoke lacing.
Somewhat concerned by this I contacted Zipp to ask whether the wheel was safe to use to be told:

"This wheel is certainly safe to use. If there were widespread catastrophic failure, a recall would have certainly been issued."

I am still concerned about using the wheel. Can anyone offer any advice on whether I need to get the wheel re-spoked ?

ugo.santalucia

The controversial pattern is radial on the drive side.

There is always an element of risk in riding a bike, however, it is safe to ride the wheel. The chances of a tyre bursting out of a generic rim at pressure are higher, to be honest... What I would do is to frequently remove the cassette and inspect the points where the spokes attach to the hub for initial cracks. Cracks do not develop out of nowhere: they start somewhere and extend until they result in the part failure... it's a bit like a cancer, if you can spot it early, it won't kill you...

Most hubs will never fail through the course of their life. Heavier and/or stronger riders are of course more at risk

josehernandez

"The controversial pattern is radial on the drive side"

Yup, sorry got a bit mixed up. Many thanks for your advice.
Out of interest how roughly how much would a re-spoke cost ?

ugo.santalucia

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19630735#p19630735]JoseHernandez[/url] wrote:

"The controversial pattern is radial on the drive side"

Yup, sorry got a bit mixed up. Many thanks for your advice.
Out of interest how roughly how much would a re-spoke cost ?

You can't re-spoke... the hub is designed to be built radial... if you want a cross pattern you need another hub and things get expensive