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Collapsing rim after 18 months- seen anything like it?
I only noticed this yesterday on my Vitus gravel bike- must be some rubbish alloy (pictures coming next). I've never had this happen before, and I have wheels over 40 years old . Unsurprisingly, there is nothing definitive to indicate the rim manufacturer
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51 comments
Had this on a DT Swiss rim (came with the bike from new); looked them up and they were cheap as chips so just put it down to the bike manufacturer using cheap components (usually it's things like headsets or BBs). Potentially factory wheels knocked up on a machine. Nice excuse to buy some decent hand-built wheels. Would be my reason to build a new bike up with known (good) components rather than off-the-shelf with some cheap components that last a year.
2 filthy UK winters by any chance?
Not that it's anywhere as safety critical but some of my silver Nokon beads were turned to dust over a few years, Good Bike too, so not used a huge amount. Though it was the bike I would fit my spike tyres to, front sus and ceramic braking surface, which helped in ice and snow, but of course, more salty filth.
I'm using a pre and post winter dousing in ACF50 for my new set for full run Rohloff cables, and in black anodised too, which may provide a better surface.
Wow. Either defective rims, or massively over-tensioned straight gauge spokes, perhaps?
Either defective rims, or massively over-tensioned straight gauge spokes, perhaps?
I checked these off the peg wheels when the bike arrived, and they were surprisingly smooth. I also squeezed the spokes and they seemed normal. Both wheels went a little out of true after a few weeks but I wasn't surprised at that, and they only needed minimal spoke adjustment. Surprisingly, that rear is still pretty true despite being completely wrecked! The noise from the hub only appeared a couple of months ago.
I'd expect a few broken spokes with the load from rider and trailer if the tension was quite over.
No broken spokes on these wheels, and I haven't experienced any broken spokes for 20 years. The tension in the new wheel, to my untutored feel, seems a little higher on the drive side (which may well be normal and necessary) but no excessive tension
my last set of gravel bike wheels went like that, not after 18months, more like several years,but I just assumed combination of metal fatigue, corrosion and one too many unavoidable hard impacts did for them in the end.
Front hub and rim seem fine, and this bike is almost exclusively used on the roads towing a trailer for camping trips.
Yep it was the rear that collapsed like yours, but assumed that's just higher weight distribution loads on the rear wheel, means it will fail first like this.
I still replaced both wheels though as the front had alot of aluminium oxide corrosion under the rim tape, but more importantly i had no faith in that wheelset anymore.
WTB rims, probably an i23 or i25. Pretty standard OEM fitment - even high end stuff like Santa Cruz use them.
Good point. It does indeed claim to be i23. I'll know to avoid WTB in future. The JoyTech hub is rubbish as well- it started making a noise and I found at least 2 too few drive side bearings and a knackered cone. JoyTech doesn't reply, so you can't get a spare cone.
Exactly the same happened to my wtb (i21?) rims (albeit after about 4 years). I can post the pics but the failure is identical. Lbs suggested high spoke tensions and I replaced the wheels.
Here's one pic. When I inspected the rim over half the spoke holes were failing in this manner. The bike had been used for 4ish years (7k miles) in all weathers and not cleaned particularly regularly
They're pretty low down the pecking order I think. Half to a third of the price of a DT Swiss rim. I've got a well-used one as a stopgap until my new Hope wheelset arrives, and will be keeping an eye on it as I'm a heavy rider doing most of my riding offroad.
I hope this wasn't in the middle of a ride !
Never seen anyhting like that before.
Yes- I noticed it first when returning from the Lakes. Fortunately, I always carry the gear in a trailer.
Just can't get these right way up on Android!
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Never seen an un-crashed wheel deform so badly WTJS. Bad luck.
By coincidence one of my Hunt 4-Season rims developed a crack recently, tiny compared to yours, but still a worry. Hunt have been completely open about the defect, they accepted responsibility immediately and we are in the process of sorting the problem without any cost to me, not even postage. Brilliant.
Never seen an un-crashed wheel deform so badly WTJS
Actually, it's surprisingly undeformed- rim remains pretty straight as I ride on it as part of an experiment. Pressure about 40 psi, but it's difficult to know the best pressure for damage limitation- higher for better force dissipation via the tyre, or lower for better air suspension over Lancashire's usual cart track roads.
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