TrojanHorse

I just had one of those "Oh S**t" moments...

I went for a ride yesterday and hit some unknown obstacle pretty hard (one of the guys I was riding with said it looked like a metal plate or bracket or something). We were going about 30 and it nearly ripped the handlebars out of my hand - I did lose my grip with my left hand. I hit the obstacle with both wheels (aw great). Stopped, let my heart rate drop from 400 back to normal... wheels seemed true, tires were inflated so we took off again.

About 5 min. later I had a loud flat in the rear and it appeared to be a delayed pinch flat if that made sense. Fixed that and finished the ride, the front again appeared OK.

Front went flat overnight and I was in the process of replacing the tube and noticed this: (the third one gives you the best relative view of the size of the damage. There is a similar little dimple on both sides of the rim)







I rode another 10 miles downhill on this thing with no issues but of course I'm not confident about repeating the experience.

How serious is that? Can it be easily repaired by me? Should I chuck the wheel and start fresh?

bobotech

I will take the wheel if you want to chuck it. LOL

Some triathlete or some racer had a very nice Mavic askium wheel on Craigslist for 10 dollars a couple of months ago. Had a worse flat spot and dent than yours.

I massaged the dent straight using ball peen hammer and a pliers and adjustable wrench. Then I loosened the 2 spokes nearest to the dent (it was only a 20 spoke wheel). Put a 2x4 across a bench and then put the wheel though the 2x4 where the dent was. Banged it a bit to round the wheel back out. Trued it back up.

PUt a new tire and tube on it and my kid uses it daily. Loves that wheel, no hop, no leaks, nothing.

Your wheel looks less damaged than my son's wheel.

Kimmo

I'm surprised you didn't notice it through the brakes.

If you can't actually feel it at all through the brakes, it's just cosmetic and you might make it worse trying to fix it. If you can feel a pulse, you should attempt to carefully straighten it out; judicious use of an appropriately-sized shifter should do it... I'd wrap a rag around it too, or maybe put electrician's tape over the rim first.

But it'll never be good as new, IMO - the above post sounds like a miracle.

TrojanHorse

The front brakes were noisy after that smack but I didn't notice any vibration or anything. I should call Easton on Monday and see what they'd charge to re-rim it - there's more of a chance I can slide wheel repair past the family finance committee than buying a whole new wheel(set).

I have a long flat ride planned for tomorrow, I guess I'll tire up the rim and see how she goes. I can always call the SAG wagon.

*sigh*

FBinNY 

You can easily fix this with a pair of pump pliers (Channellocks) a file and some metal (cone wrenches are perfect) .

Basically you'll use the pliers to gently squeeze the outward part of the blip back into line so the braking is smooth, and touch it up with the file (or emery board). Use the cone wrench or other flat piece of metal to spread the load on the good side so only the damaged side moves. It's an easy job if you not mechanically declined, and take it slow and careful. Don't over squeeze it because you don't ant to work the metal back and forth. Once you get it close, quit while you're ahead and finish it with a file, or sandpaper backed up with a wood block.

BTW- I'd take a careful look at the rear rim. It's very rare for the rear to do better than the front, and the fact that it's the rear tire that had the immediate pinch flats indicates that there was more impact there.

This is just one of the joys of narrow tires, and something you have to live with. I ride tubulars on New York's beautifully paved roads, and stuff like this is why I don't ride factory wheels. It's much cheaper to rebuild my own when necessary.

TrojanHorse

Well, I boboteched the front a little - got two solid forms (a thin piece of wood for the "good" side and a thin sheet of metal for the bad) and tweaked it a little with wide mouth pliers. It seems to be a little better than before and the bead seems intact. I inflated a tire on the rim and I'll check in the morning - if it's still inflated about where I left it I'll ride on it and try it out.

I checked the back and frankly, you can't tell. Odd, I know, but the back was a pinch flat so maybe I didn't hit as hard as I thought with the back rim.

Kimmo

I think my way might be better...

By using a shifting spanner, the leverage of the handle is focused on the bent metal, and simply having the wheel mounted in the frame is enough to brace it. You can easily do it a little bit at a time, and move the shifter along the bend if need be. And because it's just a simple matter of almost gently pulling the end of the handle to the other side, it's easy to use just the right amount of force to bend it precisely.

I guess an improvement would be to stick a little bit of plate inside the outer jaw to effectively widen it to a cm or so. Make it ally plate (>2mm) and you wouldn't have to worry about scarring the brake track (which will only happen anyway if you botch it and bend too far, I think).

bobotech

Not a miracle but my kid doesn't go 20mph+ on a daily basis or race down steep hills. His bike is just used as a commuter and he averages about 10-14mph on mostly flat terrian. At those lower speeds, the still present remaining damage doesn't affect the ride. I have asked him a few times if he notices the damage and he says nope. He also is running 700x32c tires which help. I imagine if he was running 700x23c he would notice the hop.

Its all about how anal you are about your wheels and what you perceive to be a problem. We aren't picky or overly anal about various issues. Sometimes "good enough" is good enough.

Will our wheel make a good racing rim, I doubt it very much but it makes a fine commuter wheel.

fietsbob

Brake track looks scored from sufficient braking mileage,
to make rim replacement worth considering on its own,

Even before you flat spotted the rim by impact.

TrojanHorse

I think I would be cheesed if the brake track is worn out - I probably only have 2k miles on these. That might just be a sign I need to clean the rim but they don't feel scored.

Well, I took 'er out for a ride today and I can definitely feel the bump on that one side while braking. No issues with maintaining a bead / tire pressure so that's good. I'll attempt rejiggering it some time this week when I have a chance to get the wheel off.

Easton's website form isn't working for me either, I'm still interested to see what they would charge to replace the rim.

FBinNY 

Most of the time the cost for a rim replacement is very close to that of a complete wheel, especially in the front. That's because whatever's saved by reusing the hub is offset by the costs of processing a special order. There's more sense in rebuilding a rear since that hub is so much more valuable, but even there I've seen savings so small that it's like the manufacturer is trying to tell you they'd rather simply sell a new wheel.

I'm not saying don't ask, just that you shouldn't be disappointed if you can't save anything. In any case, the damage is so minor that you can easily fix it to where there's no noticeable problem, not even anything you'd feel while braking. That's basically free, and then you won't feel so bad if it happens again.

Kimmo

I wasn't referring to feeling the hop, but feeling it through the brake.

bobotech

Ahh, I understand. The damage on my wheel/rim was more of a flat spot with a slight concave spot unlike the OP's damage which looks more like convex dent. I wonder if feeling a brake vibration is less noticeable with a slight concave vs a slight convex spot?

fietsbob

Well there are limits to taking a picture on the cell phone .. for a substitute
for taking it to where a person at a shop can see it in their hands.

Kimmo

Less noticeable when it's concave, by quite a bit. A bulge on the rear would gradually lead to a flat spot and a blowout, and on the front it'd be a right PITA. A dent just means momentarily less effective braking every revolution, which makes much less difference.