Ultegra 6800 Rim Wear

rowlers

Evening Folks,
18mth old Ultegra 6800 wheels, that has covered approx 2000 miles. Generally used in crappy weather on my "All Weather " Deda Acciaio.
This seems very fast for them to wear!?
Any one trashed a set so quickly? I can't believe its normal.

Second question, can I re-rim them with a different rim? Obviously no the Shimano as they are £££ and hard to get hold of.

Bobbinogs

This is one of those "it depends" queries I'm afraid. When it comes to rim wear there doesn't seem to be a standard answer as the roads and type of local grit can make a big difference, as can rider weight, as can weather, as can braking technique, parcours, etc. I have found that wheels like the 6800, RS81, etc., do seem to have very thin brake tracks which is fine when trying to shave off 50g to fly up a hill (well, according to some magazines) but this does mean that some wear stats can be disappointing. I ride in most weather and seem to generally get about 5,000 miles out of a rim, but some folks think this is very poor whilst others cannot believe they last that long!

I would check to make sure you are regularly cleaning the rims (quick wipe over with a baby wipe after a mucky ride is sufficient) and taking a weekly check on the pads to make sure grit is not becoming embedded, etc.

When it comes to a rebuild, it is usually very difficult with factory wheels due to spoke design/number/pattern so your two probably options are a new cheap back wheel or biting the bullet and getting some decent handbuilts, which is what I did a couple of years ago as I got fed up with throwing away perfectly good hubs because of worn-out rims.

rowlers

As I suspected, this will be my only foray into factory wheels. Handbuilts, from now on...

Alex99

rowlers wrote:

Evening Folks,
18mth old Ultegra 6800 wheels, that has covered approx 2000 miles. Generally used in crappy weather on my "All Weather " Deda Acciaio.
This seems very fast for them to wear!?
Any one trashed a set so quickly? I can't believe its normal.

Second question, can I re-rim them with a different rim? Obviously no the Shimano as they are £££ and hard to get hold of.

It is possible that you can re-use the hubs. It depends no whether you can get someone to build them. I presume they are 20h rear and 16h front, so unless you're a fly weight, you need a stiff rim that can take some high spoke tensions to make a durable wheel.

davidof

Don't think they are worth trying to rebuild.
I have the 6700, 10,000km, they look pretty much like new to me but I don't brake much. :-)

ugo.santalucia

rowlers wrote:

As I suspected, this will be my only foray into factory wheels. Handbuilts, from now on...

Ha! You thought that 50% discount was a bargain... that'll teach you!

Buckie2k5

Rubbish brake pads that are not properly cleaned will pick up metal shavings and kill a wheel in next to no time. I done the same using standard shimano pads. Swapped to koolstoop salmons and with a good scrape to get rid of the crap thats collected on every now and then my wheels last for ever. Onto 2nd set of bearings now and rims still going strong.

ugo.santalucia

Here we go... somebody had to chip in with the koolstop/Swisstop talk, because of course SHimano can't do pads...

meanredspider

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Here we go... somebody had to chip in with the koolstop/Swisstop talk, because of course SHimano can't do pads...

Need someone to add the "disc brakes" comment?

rowlers

ugo.santalucia wrote:

rowlers wrote:

As I suspected, this will be my only foray into factory wheels. Handbuilts, from now on...

Ha! You thought that 50% discount was a bargain... that'll teach you!

You got me there, the exact reason I bought them, rather then re-rim my Miche hubs.. (Which I shall now be doing!)

buckmulligan

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Here we go... somebody had to chip in with the koolstop/Swisstop talk, because of course SHimano can't do pads...

I think it's a fair point; obviously it's only one part of multi-faceted problem, but in my experience pad abrasiveness is a significant factor and Shimano pads are amongst the worst. Not to mention the fact that they don't actually stop you very well.

I'd agree with others... handbuilts or discs

robbo2011

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Here we go... somebody had to chip in with the koolstop/Swisstop talk, because of course SHimano can't do pads...

Have you actually used Swissstop pads for any length of time to form a judgement?

I have used them from new with my Ksyriums, 29'000km so far and the rims are still going strong. Pads last 10-20'000km as well.

Seems pretty good to me.

if the OP's wheels are only lasting 2000 miles then I would suggest he gets a set of handbuilts with heavy, thick walled rims (assuming he doesn't want to change to discs).

Alex99

robbo2011 wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Here we go... somebody had to chip in with the koolstop/Swisstop talk, because of course SHimano can't do pads...

Have you actually used Swissstop pads for any length of time to form a judgement?

I have used them from new with my Ksyriums, 29'000km so far and the rims are still going strong. Pads last 10-20'000km as well.

Seems pretty good to me.

if the OP's wheels are only lasting 2000 miles then I would suggest he gets a set of handbuilts with heavy, thick walled rims (assuming he doesn't want to change to discs).

It's very subjective depending on where you live, what the descents are like and how much gritty crud there is on the roads through winter. That said, I like salmons too, but they don't last me 10-20 kkm.

clickrumble

Not Ultegra, but I've worn out Mavic rims in less than 2,000 miles. Roads around here are quite hilly and covered with flinty mud in wet weather (South Downs area), which produces an excellent aluminium grinding paste. So if you're like me and ride in all weathers you're going to wear out rims. I replaced my mavic wheels with Ultegras and I've changed my braking to be not so heavy on the brakes in wet weather and using only the front except in emergencies.

svetty

I've never found after-market rim pads to be any better than the stock Shimano ones. The BXP blue ones are softer than Shimano so more mushy lever feel and not quite as much braking retardation but they are probably slightly easier on the rims.....

veryslowtwitch

1st question: yes I have just killed a set of cheapo shimano 501s after a year and a few k of winter riding. Rim wear indicators are gone. So yours are not exceptional but were a pretty expensive buy.
2nd question: I agree with other replies that it is not really worth the hassle and cost of rim change. It is a real shame because the shimano bearings are lovely and would probably last indefinitely.
No idea what the best pads are for rim wear. Winter grit and salt and rain is a real grinding paste and is likely to be main culprit.
A radical alternative to nice handbuilts is to buy a set of 501s or equivalent and replace every year or so. You can get them for 80 quid delivered with skewers. It means that you can have confidence in nice brand new wheels and build up a large collection of skewers. But if you're big or touring then you'll need something more substantial.I now think of winter wheels as disposable items and only use nice wheels in summer.

diplodicus

veryslowtwitch wrote:

You can get them for 80 quid delivered with skewers. It means that you can have confidence in nice brand new wheels and build up a large collection of skewers. But if you're big or touring then you'll need something more substantial.I now think of winter wheels as disposable items and only use nice wheels in summer.

Very much this 8)

philbar72

diplodicus wrote:

veryslowtwitch wrote:

You can get them for 80 quid delivered with skewers. It means that you can have confidence in nice brand new wheels and build up a large collection of skewers. But if you're big or touring then you'll need something more substantial.I now think of winter wheels as disposable items and only use nice wheels in summer.

Very much this 8)

agreed. training wheels for winter and training. fancy wheels for nice days out or racing/ tting.

rowlers

Lesson learnt, I genuinely thought they would be more substantial than this.
I'm more gutted that I can't reuse the hubs. I imagine there is many, many miles left in them. Such a waste...

ugo.santalucia

rowlers wrote:

Lesson learnt, I genuinely thought they would be more substantial than this.
I'm more gutted that I can't reuse the hubs. I imagine there is many, many miles left in them. Such a waste...

I wonder if there is a way to re-coat the rims... :roll:

rowlers

ugo.santalucia wrote:

rowlers wrote:

Lesson learnt, I genuinely thought they would be more substantial than this.
I'm more gutted that I can't reuse the hubs. I imagine there is many, many miles left in them. Such a waste...

I wonder if there is a way to re-coat the rims... :roll:

Hammerite?

thomasmorris

I'm on 24,000 k on my rear 6800... South Downs, used on my 'one bike for year and then on my winter bike for the last 18 months.

Got about 15,000 k out of the front. Then am on 8,000k on the new front.

Used a mixture of shimano and wiggle cheapo pads plus one set of swisstop. Didn't really see a difference in wear with any, only shimano and swisstop seemed better braking... but I still use wiggle as they have adequate stopping and are supper cheap (it's on a winter /commute bike now after all).

But, i had the same disappointment when replacing the front as the hub is still silky smooth, but the cost of replacement rims and the lack of aftermarket alternatives with low spoke count make the wheel effectively disposable items.

muso_stu

Agree that it would have been a shame to just throw away a good quality hub, so just rebuilt my rear 6800 wheel with:

Alex Prime rim
Sapim leader straight pull spokes (302mm DS, 304mm NDS)

If it turns out to be reliable and the hub lasts and lasts, I might go for a posher rim next time round. It's a cheap and cheerful winter wheel as it stands.

The fact that the original Shimano spokes are so different to the conventional Sapim ones (diameter and depth of nailheads are very different) makes it feel like a bit of a bodge: will be keeping a very close eye on it.

Will update if it goes 'a bit wrong'...!