I bought the wheel on the ebay for $36 and the seller never mentioned any cracks. Even though the rim is a lemon, it came with a Suntour Superbe hub and DT oval spokes...IS NICE!
Anyway, I never raced the rim. The only riding I did on it was a few yards on my street just before I noticed the cracks.
So I plan to rebuild this wheel and get something else for racing; i've given up on the vintage equipment