Originally Posted by
63rickert
"There's really no fixing it."
Dented and flatspotted rims can frequently be repaired. It takes some time and the result is often not predictable. But it can be done. I've had several badly damaged "hopeless" rims that were fixed and went on to live long lives. Right now am riding a Fiamme Red with the standing pins that has to be at least 60 years old. It was in the trash can. Would not take a chance riding such a thing except I know I'm not taking a chance.
Most aluminum rims are made from second rate aluminum and the extrusions are not even accurate. Cut up a cracked alloy rim and see how wildly the wall thickness varies. Any who have worked with the old Mavic S.S.C. rims know how strong they are. My brother is riding one that was dented by falling machinery. I needed a six pound sledge hammer to move that rim back to shape. He's been riding it for years since then. The double heat treating process Mavic used was expensive and few have troubled to imitate that. Still way cheaper than fabbing carbon. Carbon rims are a fashion more than an engineering choice. Until more high quality aluminum rims are made we don't even know how strong they are. We know how alloy rims that are cheap to bring to market perform and that's about all we know.
Alas this is unilaterally incorrect but nostalgic for sure.
Indeed back in the days of wagon wheels, horseless carriages and 3M Fastack it was very common to pry and pound a rim back into shape.
Today the alloys have changed dramatically - even in the last 19 years. The extrusion consistency is nowhere near as off as you claim. In fact small variance in thickness have led to massive returns in multiple cases (Velocity Major Tom, Velocity A23, Pacenti SL23 off the top of my head). The rims we've used for the last 20+ years have performed amazingly well. The one thing these alloys don't like though is bending. Especially along the hook like what was posted in the picture a few posts back. Back in the day you'd put an adjustable wrench on it and bend it back. Today the rim will snap/crack where you bent it back. The heat trating used today far exceeds anything mavic did long ago in the past and if anything was most likely spearheaded by mavic.
You can get over your love of mavic. Back in the day they were great. Today there are a big company that is as lost as anyone else with massive declining sales. They bought ENVE a few years back for $50M. Roughly 10 years ago they purposely stopped supporting small independent builders by eliminating aftermarket sales of rims. They continued with the Open Pro though and some still built with it even though that rim's time was passed.
Top everything off with the fact that today most riders are riding with tubeless setups and it quickly becomes apparent that damage to the clincher hook or rim bed is not acceptable or "repairable" - less the tire fly off while riding.
I suggest you save your knowledge and experience and pass it on in the "Classic and Vintage" forum where it is still timely and of use.