Bicycle Mechanics - Rim Seam Issue

Question on a poorly aligned rim seam sidewall: OEM (inexpensive) 26" wheel, which came with a noticeable offset in the “pined” rim seam (not welded). This is causing a very significant pulsing of the brakes (linear pull) to the effect of rendering the machine unsafe to operate.

Exploring the topic yields reference to a tool called the “Bicycle Research RS1 tool”. Does anyone have experience with this tool? It appears not to be intended for correcting a sharp lateral rim sidewall offset but rather for impact created damage only.

Since the seam offset is limited to one side only, would filing/sanding the offending metal to create a flush sidewall surface work? Or am I structurally damaging the wheel when I remove any material from it. Are we looking at percentage of wall thickness loss as a necessary critical to measure of reparability?

What I’m trying to carefully to ask is what are the standard operating procedure(s) for repairing this type of imperfection of wheel rim manufacture. Should the rim simply be returned for replacement or are there elementary remedial measures that can correct minor flaws of workmanship/quality.

I have now carefully examined dozens of rims as a result of this issue and noticed some are of such superior quality that unless I knew to look 180 degrees from the valve hole I would not of found the seam without a 10x loop. Thus is seam quality a reliable diagnostic for rim quality or simply one more variable that must be scrutinized diligently?

Guess this would be a non-issue on a wheel built with a disk brake rotor, providing yet another valid reason to be an early adopter of disk brake technology. Any thoughts?

Thank you for any wisdom on this.

If it's the front wheel simply reverse the wheel on the bike, turn it around.

If you don't like that idea and/or it's the rear wheel just take a (small) crescent wrench adjust it down tight next to the seam on the offending side and re-align it. In other words bend one side till it matches the other. Filing slighty afterwards can help as well.
I've had good results with (hundreds?) of wheels.

Ride Smooth
Pat

Hey Faith,

I think your options are pretty clear.

Least Costly
Try the cresent wrench option. See if you can align the rim better, give it some sanding and see how it acts.

Next Costly
By the Bicycle Research Tool and see if that potentially does a better job of aligning the seam spot. Obviously give that one a sanding too.

Most/Least Costly
If you can replace the rim, do so. If you have to pay to replace the rim, then make that your last resort.

This is all opinion, since I've never had to do this. I've only had MAVIC rims, which I've never had a problem with.....

Resolution of rim seam offset problem. Rim side wall braking surface (exterior) is 10mm wide, however the interior was capped with a 2mm “bead”; followed by 3mm of flat area, which transitioned immediately into a sloping shoulder down to the trough. Owing to this interior geometry it was not possible to easily grasp the sidewall with a crescent wrench.

Removed the offending material as follows: first pass to remove coarse material with a small triangular file. Had to switch to 240-grain sandpaper owing to the rim’s slight concave profile. Followed up with 320-grain sandpaper, which generated a finish matching the texture of the original surface. Seam no longer present to the touch, and only wish that the original wasn’t a black anodized finish to begin with… Oh well, at least it’s an interesting conversational item.

It appears that the rim may have been originally designed for a presta valve rather than Schrader. Rim hole boring removed approximately 1mm of interior reinforcing shoulder material either side. The amount of material I had to remove was an order of magnitude less.

The rim vendor is a mystery, no identification marks, however the hub is a Joy Tech SSF if that’s any indication. I have noticed that many models (not all) of Mavic rims are jointed by welding and machined to a very high degree of precision on the rim seam sidewall. Mavic appears to be a very quality conscience vendor, and after examining hundreds of rims recently, it is readily apparent that Mavic is clearly top tier.

Thank you Pat5319 and Alan for the excellent guidance, it is greatly appreciated.

Originally posted by faith
only wish that the original wasn’t a black anodized finish to begin with… Oh well, at least it’s an interesting conversational item.

Take it for a ride in the rain, using the brakes at every opportunity. The "treated" part of the rim will subsequently be camoflauged.