Road Cycling - Problem with my new Mavic Ksyrium SSC SL's

I just received my new Mavic Ksyrium SSC SL's on Friday and made the maiden voyage yesterday. Was riding in the wind but they definately felt really smoothe, but I could feel a slight pulsation when I applied my brakes. Today I went for a 40 mile ride and noticed the pulsation seemed a bit worse. So I put my bike on the stand and spun the wheels. The front one seems good from what I can eyeball, but the rear is really wobbling very bad. Checked a bit more and found 2 loose spokes- Almost ready to come out at the rim. So I'm thinking I need to have someone check the trueness on the wheels...Here is my question...Can I send them to Mavic or the place I purchased the wheels? Or do I cut my losses and eat the fee of having them trued? This really sucks!!! What do I do??

bring them to your lbs. if they're new, thes service or replacement should be free. also, if you bring them to your lbs, they'll carry the cost of shipping back to mavic for replacement or repair.

Oh yeah....I didn't mention it in my post..I purchased these on Ebay and not my LBS. Does that mean I need to send them back to the place I purchased them ? That would suck really bad. I just purchased a new '03 S-Works yesterday and these wheels for a ride I'm doing in 2 weeks, so time is against me.

Same problem I had with a pair of Ksyriums I bought off of eBay. So I had to eat the truing cost. However, I also bought new tires and tubes and had them mounted, so my LBS threw in the cost of the truing for nothing. Must not be too much trouble if they did so. Also, I bought a second pair of Ksyriums (easier than switching cassettes all the time) and it was about the same thing. Needed a truing after the first or second ride. But both sets now have 1000+ miles of banging into potholes and general all around road riding and have remained true and straight. I would say that the Ksyrium is by far the most popular wheel set in our club and most of us are very happy with their performance. At least after the initial truing (for me, that is). And I weigh 200 pounds and don't give them a break when I ride. Lots of potholes and railroad tracks, bridges with gratings, etc. Besides, the $150 I saved on eBay would have covered the truing cost five times over.

Maybe you should have bought them at your lbs. Then you would have someone who actually cares to complain to.

-Ryan

Considering you bought them off e-bay, I would just take them to your LBS and pay to have them trued. I have had my Ksyrium SSC for about 2 years now and they only needed trued once after about a year or more.

Maybe you should have bought them at your lbs. Then you would have someone who actually cares to complain to.
-Ryan .

Sorry Ryan, I bought the wheels for $609 with no tax and my LBS would have been $799 + tax, but you are right , it's very important to support your LBS. I have spent good money at my LBS and I have a few $$ to spend there this week. I spend as much as I can locally and in many times I spend more there because of their service. So I'll bring them the wheels and pay them to true them when I make my purchase.
Thanks for the advice everyone!

BMAN, you don't need to apologize to anyone for buying something off the internet. If you can save that much money, you'd be a fool not too. In fact, I'm sure some of the money you did save will be spend at your LBS on other things.

I support my LBS wholeheartedly. I don't buy a squeeze bottle on the internet to save $2 for instance, but certainly on big ticket items, you need to shop around. When you go to purchase anything, be it a fridge, a PC, a car, whatever, you shop for a combination of the price and service and you adjust either one until your comfortable. Since you didn't buy the rims at your shop, the one thing you give up is convenience and service. As long as you pay them for their time and for the service of truing your wheelset, and don't take advantage of them, (like people who go in and take up hours of their time and expertise, then buy the same bike online) you have nothing to be sorry for.

... oh yeah... my opinion only.

The Ksyrium wheels are about as stout a wheel as you can get but, the integrity of the wheel is centered around the correct amount of tension and even spoke tension. If these wheels are not properly tensioned they will not stay straight and can be quite problematic. The spoke nipples also need to be thread locked. One of the issues with these wheels is that the spoke nipples have a rather coarse thread on them and just a small adjustment goes a long way. When you bring these wheels to your LBS, make sure they know how to deal with them, if not properly worked on a bad situation can be made worst. Like I said, spoke tension with these wheels is the center of their structure. Before a wrench is put to a Ksyrium wheel the tension of every spoke should be checked and recorded, any spoke adjustments made should be done based on the tension data collected initially. Once properly built to Mavic specification, they are a durable, just about bomb proof wheel. The quality of the build is the key.

Interesting, all the posters here (that I can see) are USA based. I think things are slightly different here in England.

I buy everything from my LBS (assuming he supplies it; I can't get Specialised Armadillos from him, for instance, essential on the winter bike). I find that he will just about always match an on-line or mail-order price, and can often get things they can't.

For instance, when I wanted a pair of TT wheels I waited a while and he acquired a barely-used pair at half the proper price and phoned me when they came in. The overall package I find much better than 'shopping around'; I (along with many others) get 'looked after'.

Doesn't it work that way in the States?

[i]I find that he will just about always match an on-line or mail-order price, and can often get things they can't.

For instance, when I wanted a pair of TT wheels I waited a while and he acquired a barely-used pair at half the proper price and phoned me when they came in. The overall package I find much better than 'shopping around'; I (along with many others) get 'looked after'.

Doesn't it work that way in the States? [/B]
It works that way with me, I match mail order if I can, I believe that if you treat your customers fairly, they will remain your customers, if not, they will go elswhere.