craigster_jd said:The rear rim on my commuter has cracked rather terminally, to the extent
that it is now unrideable. (For pics, check 'here'
(http://tinyurl.com/dtdkg/))
That's a nasty rim failure. Do you know how it happened? You hit a
big bump? It "just happened one day"? Looks like the result of a
pretty good smack, although it could be excessive spoke tension
combined with a weakness in the rim. Low spoke count wheels have much
higher spoke tension, so the rims have to deal with a lot more stress
around the spoke holes, but that's an abnormal failure, I'd reckon.
How long have you had them?
Quoted message said:It's part of a Xero-Lite XR-2 wheelset, and because of the low spoke
count (20) it seems my options for getting it repaired are much
reduced. Also the budget is pretty tight at the moment so I'm looking
to get the bike back on the road as cheaply as possible for the last
few months I plan to be in the country (around $100 would be nice).
So:
- Does anyone know any places in Australia which deal with Xero
wheels?
- Would a wheel of this type even be repairable?
- If so, could anyone recommend a low cost 20 spoke rim which would be
suitable?
- Any other options (not involving expensive custom-built wheels)
Without knowing anything much about Xero's, I'd guess that you'd be
best served by getting a wheel built by your LBS, a 32 spoker or so.
If you don't need it to be light, I'd expect you'd get away with a half
decent front wheel for around $150 or so, if you can scrounge a hub
from somewhere cheap. Rebuilding a 20 spoke wheel will be tricky,
fancy rims are not usually easy to get, and if they are available,
they'll be quite expensive.
Quoted message said:No need to point out that these are stupid wheels for a supposed
'commuting' bike - they are what the Ridgeback came with and I've
learned my lesson. As soon as funds allow I'l get myself some decent
wheels made up.
Decent wheels are often cheaper than fancy wheels, and usually stronger
and lighter than a lot of exotic stuff. They just lack "cool" 🙂
A lot of low end roadies these days come with stupid wheels (Shimano
R550's, Bontrager selects etc). They look fast .... but aren't really
up to the job. With wheels, it'd be nice if you did get what you paid
for!
What's a ridgeback anyway? Who makes it?