Originally Posted by clayface
I want to build a really tough touring wheelset and have found that my best option in terms of shipping and availability are the A719. However my feelings towards Mavic rims are mixed up. I've had very good rims (X618, stilll going strong after many years of service) and really crappy ones (X517, used in light touring and commuting and got cracks around many eyelets).
Some have told me to stay away from the A719 (cracks, thin sidewalls), others like reputed Harris Cyclery or SJSC describe them as high-end heavy-duty super tough touring rims.
So with this scenario it's a bit hard to make my mind up on thiese rims so I'd really appreciate any comments on them.
Best regards.
I've built many wheels with Mavic rims and have nothing bad to say about them. The A719 should hold up fine.
As for the cracking on your X517 rims, were they built with straight gauge or double butted spokes. The X517 was a lightweight MTB racing rim and building it with straight gauge spokes would over-stress the spoke bed, causing cracking. When in doubt, use double butted spokes.