Dented rim

Travis said:

Can dents usually be hammered out, or should I just accept that my rim,
which is worn by the brake pads to the level of the wear indicators
anyway, is fscked and just buy or build a new pair a wheels?

The rims sound dead anyway, but if you should happen to dent a newish rim
you might be able to fix it with a shifter. Set it to roughly the rim
wall's width and gently lever everything back straight. If the dent was
too nasty you'll end up with a lump anyway, but it might be rideable.

--
Dave Hughes | [email hidden]
Realize that the game of English is the
Calvin Ball of languages - mysticgoat

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Travis said:

THe other night I hit a rock and came off my bike, giving myself a
nasty sprain. The sprain is actually healing surprisingly quickly,
while it hurt like hell for a couple of days, I can now walk on it with
only a slight limp and provided I don't twist it again I think I'll be
back to 100% in a week at most.

But the thing which isn't getting any better is my front rim. It got
dented and now when I apply the front brake I get a big bump once per
revolution.

Can dents usually be hammered out, or should I just accept that my rim,
which is worn by the brake pads to the level of the wear indicators
anyway, is fscked and just buy or build a new pair a wheels?

Travis

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Travis, many dents can be dollied out. Panel Beating 101 - but dont use metal on metal. Go softly and use some timber between your hammer and the rim. You can always hit harder with the next blow, but you can't take a big hit back.

After you've done this you should check spoke tension and you may need to re-true the wheel.

If its a bad one, even if its dollied out you'll end up with a weak spot which will continualy cause these sorts of problems.

If the rim's nearly had its day, time for some new wheels. You'll find plenty of old posts about wheels. The one bit of advice you should take is that building up wheels will always build a strong set of wheels and you will always save $$$ against a "name" set of wheels - they just might not as cool as the "big name branded" set. Do yourself a favour and get some built up with decent components.

Travis said:

[snip]

Travis

The rim might be toast if it has a crease. If everything else is fine, a new rim and rebuild could be your best bet.

Ritch

Travis said:

THe other night I hit a rock and came off my bike, giving myself a
nasty sprain. The sprain is actually healing surprisingly quickly,
while it hurt like hell for a couple of days, I can now walk on it with
only a slight limp and provided I don't twist it again I think I'll be
back to 100% in a week at most.

But the thing which isn't getting any better is my front rim. It got
dented and now when I apply the front brake I get a big bump once per
revolution.

Can dents usually be hammered out, or should I just accept that my rim,
which is worn by the brake pads to the level of the wear indicators
anyway, is fscked and just buy or build a new pair a wheels?

Travis

If it's a mountain bike wheel you can replace the rim but save the old
one for when you convert to a disc brake. I've just converted to a disc
on the front and wish I'd done it ages ago.

Friday

Travis said:

THe other night I hit a rock and came off my bike, giving myself a
nasty sprain. The sprain is actually healing surprisingly quickly,
while it hurt like hell for a couple of days, I can now walk on it with
only a slight limp and provided I don't twist it again I think I'll be
back to 100% in a week at most.

But the thing which isn't getting any better is my front rim. It got
dented and now when I apply the front brake I get a big bump once per
revolution.

Can dents usually be hammered out, or should I just accept that my rim,
which is worn by the brake pads to the level of the wear indicators
anyway, is fscked and just buy or build a new pair a wheels?

Travis

See this recent thread (your thread actually - didn't buy the Perry
Comos?):

http://tinyurl.com/fyfek

I rebuilt an MTB back wheel last week with just a new rim and nipples,
using the old hub and spokes. It's come up very nicely first time and
was fun to do. I last built a wheel in about 1983. Your front wheel
should be easier, since it is symmetrical unlike a back wheel. This
approach only works if the rim you buy is the same inner diameter as
original, otherwise the spokes may need replacing too with ones of the
right length. Check your spokes are decent quality. If not, replace
them and the rim with something respectable.

Wow, you've really been a crash bandicoot lately. Have you taken to
wearing body armour? Hope you are OK.

donga

Donga said:

Travis

See this recent thread (your thread actually - didn't buy the Perry
Comos?):

I haven't bought the Pro-Lite Comos yet. I was seeking opinions on
them and got a fairly neutral set of opinions to the effect that nobody
had any experience using them but I shouldn't expect too much from a
$300 wheelset. I might give them a go, unless I decide to build a set
of wheels.

The wheels I'm currently riding are Bontrager X Lites. I've heard a
number of nasty things said about Bontrager hubs, ranging from them
being poor quality through to comments about a unique spoke pattern
being required which makes them incompatible with other brands of rim.

I've heard plenty of good things said about Mavic Open Pro rims. i
think I'll get those, but does anyone have any suggestions for an
appropriate set of hubs to go with them if I can't or shouldn't reuse
my Bontragers?

And for spokes, I hear a lot of good stuff about DT Swiss around here.
Where is the best place to buy them?

Quoted message said:

Wow, you've really been a crash bandicoot lately. Have you taken to
wearing body armour? Hope you are OK.

I'm a competitive type. I was originally a scientist (even though I'm
now in finance) so naturally I've locked on to Tim as my opposite
number in Melbourne and the guy I've got to beat. :-)

As a matter of fact, I've been walking around normally on my ankle
today, with only mild discomfort. I'm surprised by how quick I got
over what originally appeared to be a serious sprain because last time
I did this ankle my recovery was several months. Hurt like [censored], but
only for a day or two.

I'll rest it tomorrow, but will ride to work on tuesday and see how it
goes.

Travis

Travis said:

I've heard plenty of good things said about Mavic Open Pro rims. i
think I'll get those, but does anyone have any suggestions for an
appropriate set of hubs to go with them if I can't or shouldn't reuse
my Bontragers?

And for spokes, I hear a lot of good stuff about DT Swiss around here.
Where is the best place to buy them?

Travis, more support for the handbuilt wheels versus boxed sets in this
thread from rec.bicycles.tech:

http://tinyurl.com/qblta

Shimano Ultegra hubs (you ride Japano I think?) get a good rap for
quality and value for money. 32 hole is fine unless you are a big boy
and need 36. You can probably save money shopping on the internet for
hubs.

Buying rims on the internet is more of a problem because of high
freight cost offsetting savings.

All shops should be able to get you DT Swiss spokes and nipples. It's a
bit complicated getting these on the internet because you need to have
the hub and rim and measure up to get the right spoke length.

Some internet shops sell handbuilt wheel sets for great prices but I
think the freight might rule this out. Getting your local LBS to build
them is a good idea because they are down the street if there is a
problem.

Taking all these things into account, I have bought hubs myself and
then got the LBS to supply rims, spokes, nipples and build.

donga

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Donga said:

Taking all these things into account, I have bought hubs myself and
then got the LBS to supply rims, spokes, nipples and build.

donga

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It has been my experience that some LBS are reluctant to build wheels with all parts sourced from other places (ie, cut price internet sites). The only reason being that they lose margin they might make on the components. I've always found this strange - they should just ensure that their labour charges mean that they aren't working for nothing. I'd be prepared to pay for a recognised quality wheelbuilder.

Donga said:

Buying rims on the internet is more of a problem because of
high freight cost offsetting savings.

Buying rims from OS isn't cost effective. However a couple of the Aust. online shops have Open-Pros. I buy mine from Phantom cycles.

Quoted message said:

All shops should be able to get you DT Swiss spokes and nipples.
It's a bit complicated getting these on the internet because you
need to have the hub and rim and measure up to get the right
spoke length.

I've found LBSs absolutely hopeless for spokes. I'm yet to find a reliable source for double butted spokes of any flavour. I just buy mine over the net. Branford bike are a good mob for spokes, and even have DT revs. Google search for spocalc to calculate the spoke length. Spocalc has a pretty good list of measured hubs and rims.

Quoted message said:

Getting your local LBS to build them is a good idea because
they are down the street if there is a problem.

I advise to build them yourself. Very easy, you can take your sweet time and do them right, and then if they attention down the track you'll know what you're doing.

Cheers,

Suzy

suzyj wrote:

Post of the week, thanks!

donga