3speed

I don't know if I just am taking this too literally, or if other people just don't know what tacos look like. When I think of someone managing to taco a wheel, I think in terms of them basically folding the rim in half, making the wheel resemble a hard taco shell. Not something you can true up and keep riding. Then I read people saying they totally taco'd their wheel on a ride and their brakes were scrubbing the whole way back to their car or whatever. Now obviously if the wheel was folded over they wouldn't be nicely riding back to their car. What do you consider taco'd?

This: https://blog.bikeridr.com/wp-content/.../WheelTaco.jpg
Or a little warping due to a hard landing or a sloppy techy spot or something?

papaish

"To bend a wheel so that it assumes a saddle shape. A tacoed wheel is more than just out of true, it has bent far enough that the spokes have assumed a new equilibrium position and lost tension. Two spots, 180 degrees apart will be way off to the left, two other spots, halfway between, will be way off to the right. A tacoed wheel is also known as a "potato chipped" wheel." Direct quote from Sheldon Brown's web site.
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/gloss_ta-o.html

ColinL

agree with OP. if someone says they 'tacoed' a wheel and still rode it, they are using the term incorrectly. a noticeable bend in a rim usually but not always is the death of that rim. (or at least the end of it ever being completely true.)

but you can never ride a wheel that's been tacoed.

samburger

I know that I'm technically wrong on this & fully acknowledge it, but I'll give someone the benefit of using the term "taco'd" so long as the wheel is bent to the point where it cannot be rotated anymore (if they have v-brakes, this includes with the brakes undone).

ColinL

Right... but since you mean unrideable, it isn't a big deal.

samburger

Not sure who or what comment that was a response to.

If that was directed at me, I'll clarify by letting you know that I meant exactly what I said