Are my rims worn?

roubaixtom
roubaixtom Posts: 316
edited February 2015 in Workshop
Hi,

I have a 2006 S-works roubaix as a winter bike with rival fusee wheels. I noticed today when changing a tyre that the braking surface is con caved on both wheels, does this mean they are worn?


Cheers

Comments

  • sigorman85
    sigorman85 Posts: 2,536
    I would get a professional opinion from your bike shop as its not worth the risk .... Do a search on the net for wheel collapsing it' looks prety messy
    When i die I just hope the wife doesn't sell my stuff for what I told her I paid for it other wise someone will be getting a mega deal!!!


    De rosa superking 888 di2
  • keezx
    keezx Posts: 1,322
    If you can see about 0,5 mm "light" it is time to look for replacement.
    In the maintime you can testy the rim by inflating 2 bar or 25 PSI more than normal.
    If the rim does not fail it's fit for purpose.

    BTW, it will be predictable what the opinion of a bike shop is.....
  • There may be a wear indicator on the wheels that will tell you if they're OK or not. It's normally a very small hole that if it's gone means they're worn. Not sure if these wheels ever had one though. Alternatively you can use a vernier calliper or micrometer to measure the width (will need to use something of known width like part of a spoke to get into the concave part). 1mm is just about OK, anything less and they're done for.

    Mate had a rear wheel go during a club ride a couple of weeks ago, luckily not going fast but it was a long walk home.
  • Bobbinogs
    Bobbinogs Posts: 4,841
    Yepp, visibly concave is a warning sign that they need to be checked. I bought a relatively cheap pair of calipers off the web some time ago specifically for the purpose (Jewellers spring measuring calipers which have a spring mech and looping jaws that are really good for rim measurement). The general guidance is "Caution below 1 mm, dangerous below 0.7".

    I have just had to bin my winter wheels after 2 seasons because they were down to 0.8. I really wanted to get another month out of them (not least because I only replaced all the ball bearings last month) but accepted that 0.8 was as far as I wanted to go!