Old 09-28-13, 05:59 AM
  #5  
Myosmith
Lover of Old Chrome Moly
 
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+10 for Debac.

What most likely happened is that when the LBS removed a spacer they didn't check the effect on the amount of axle protruding and now your skewers aren't contacting the dropouts properly. The only explanation as to why the wheel would have fit the dropouts before the new rim but not after, and the axle being too long, is that, somewhere along the line, you got either an entire new hub or a longer axle with more spacers.

I too am suspicious of an LBS that would replace a rim because of repeated tube punctures unless they could identify a problem with the rim. I've worked on a lot of bikes and fixed many, many flatting problems and if you do a proper rule out procedure to establish the cause, 99+% of the time you can track down the culprit.

Here's a tip for the future, when you put in a new tube mark the direction of rotation with an arrow drawn on the tube with a silver or gold Sharpie marker. Always align your tires to the stem hole with some sort of reference point. Some people use the brand label, others use the inflation guide, but direction of rotation and orientation on the rim should be noted by some means. When you get a flat that doesn't have an obvious cause, like a nail through the tread, find the hole in the tube and circle it with the same metallic Sharpie. If the hole is toward the tire, place the tube in the tire using your reference points to get it in its original orientation and then mark the approximate location on the tire for closer examination. If the puncture is on the rim side, put the tube on the rim with the stem through the hole and in the original direction of rotation and mark the spot where the rim lines up with the circled puncture. This type of procedure will eliminate a lot of guess work and, if you are getting multiple flats, will tell you if it is the same point causing the problem.

Typical rim problems include:
- spoke too long (does not require the replacement of the rim or rebuild of wheel)
- rim tape out of place (does not require the replacement of the rim or rebuild of wheel)
- sharp edge or burr on the edge of one of the spoke holes or the stem hole (needs a little emery paper)
- burr at a union point (needs a little emery paper)
- damage or defect leaving a rough or sharp area in the aluminum (I've seen this happen when someone tries to use a screwdriver as a tire lever) (might be fixed with emery paper or might be reason to trash rim depending on severity)

A rim can go bad from wear, metal fatigue or damage, but a little detective work will determine a cause.
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