"Wheel killer" needs a new wheelset
11-09-07, 10:07 PM
#26
Too old & too big
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I use 48 spoke (rear) velocity dyad rims w/Phil Wood hubs and 40 spoke fronts ... on my Surly Cross Check. I ride it mostly on decent hard packed gravel bike trails with 35c tires. I'm 255lbs and I frequently carry 20-30lbs of gear. Not a cheap way to go, but fairly bullet proof for a guy my size.
11-10-07, 08:37 AM
#27
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You might want to consider DT Swiss Alpine III or Super Comp spokes in the rear.
I have a customer that is also a rear wheel killer and we'll probably build him a brand new wheel soon with those spokes and a heavy duty rim
I have a customer that is also a rear wheel killer and we'll probably build him a brand new wheel soon with those spokes and a heavy duty rim
11-10-07, 09:14 AM
#28
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I've broken 11 spokes this year on my cyclocross-commuter wheelset. I had the rear rebuilt with DT spokes and a Mavic CXP22 rim - 32-holes. The rim now has a nasty crack in it and I am going to need a new wheelset much sooner than later.
I think what killed my rim was running into a pothole. It seemed that once the wheel was rebuilt, it was doing OK until I hit this pothole back in September. Since then, I've replaced several spokes in the front and rear wheels and just recently noticed the crack in the rim.
I have broken just about every wheelset I've ever owned. I commute on descent/average roads year-round and need to have a set of 32 or 36-hole disc wheels built for the cross-commuter.
I'm thinking about Mavic CXP33's because of their stiffness, but I also know that they have "profiled" eyelets which do not have a rivet like a standard eyelet. I'm really, really, really tired of breaking spokes and finding cracks in my rims (cracked a rear Mavic Open Pro also) and want as close to a permanent solution as I can get. I'm leaning towards Chris King Hubs and, of course, will be using good spokes, but I really need to know if the Mavic 33's are subject to cracking, or if I should reduce spoke-count to 32 so I can use a DT 1.2 or a velocity deep V.
I think what killed my rim was running into a pothole. It seemed that once the wheel was rebuilt, it was doing OK until I hit this pothole back in September. Since then, I've replaced several spokes in the front and rear wheels and just recently noticed the crack in the rim.
I have broken just about every wheelset I've ever owned. I commute on descent/average roads year-round and need to have a set of 32 or 36-hole disc wheels built for the cross-commuter.
I'm thinking about Mavic CXP33's because of their stiffness, but I also know that they have "profiled" eyelets which do not have a rivet like a standard eyelet. I'm really, really, really tired of breaking spokes and finding cracks in my rims (cracked a rear Mavic Open Pro also) and want as close to a permanent solution as I can get. I'm leaning towards Chris King Hubs and, of course, will be using good spokes, but I really need to know if the Mavic 33's are subject to cracking, or if I should reduce spoke-count to 32 so I can use a DT 1.2 or a velocity deep V.
EDIT: and +1 on the Alpine III. Most intelligently desgned spokes.
11-10-07, 03:52 PM
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This is an interesting thread. I'm also a 'wheel killer,' I guess. Last year I destroyed some high-end Mavic rims with 36 spokes... Now I have a Velocity Aerohead w/ 36 spokes, and the spokes are already making the death rattle sound. I'm really curious what causes this. I'm about 190 pounds.
11-10-07, 04:04 PM
#30
Destroyer of Wheels
[Short laymen's answer as I understand it] Usually a wheel that's not tensioned correctly, so as the lower tensioned spokes are exposed to the force of your weight they'll bend more and unscrew themselves or just snap. The rim helps take that force as well but the build and spoke tension will be the source of most non impact related wheel destructions.
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11-21-07, 08:50 AM
#31
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Week three of the Mavic SpeedCity's. I think I'm in love
Here's hoping they last for awhile. My LBS manager threw in the MP3 no-fault replacement warranty program. It seems that the spoke tensions were somewhat uneven, but he said not to worry about it. These wheels seem very well designed for exactly what I'm using them for. They're disc-specific, 135 mm dished rear with straight-pull spokes and the hub bearings are very nice. This set is designed to be mounted on a mountain bike to turn it into a streetable bike. They make absolutely no noise under any kind of load or strain, and believe me, I'm good at creating that. Still, I have my doubts that these will last forever like some of the wheels you folks are describing. I'll keep this thread bookmarked and if something should go wrong with them, I'll let you all know.
11-22-07, 09:11 AM
#32
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Good to see you got something going.. I guess time will tell on the longevity...
Question 1: what size tires are you using? I use 35s, at 75-80 psi, on fairly narrow rims. They look heavy, and feel heavy if you pick the wheels up, but once on the bike I think they ride and handle as well as having 25s or 28s.
Question 2: Are Mavic Open Pros considered a lightweight 'racing only' rim, not suitable for heavier loads? I'm just surprised they were cracking. Is this typical of them? I'm asking because I've been eyeing those $200 Ultegra/OpenPro wheelsets at Nashbar (or is it Performance?) for a few weeks now for my 'non-commuting' bike - seems like a can't loose buy, unless the rims fail in a year!
comment: 32 hole rims do not pull the seam apart - the rim is always in compression no matter what the spoke count or pattern - that is, as long as the spokes are in tension! It may be a tiny bit less in compression at the seam than where the spokes cross 'inwards', but the rim is still in a very high state of compression throughout.
Question 1: what size tires are you using? I use 35s, at 75-80 psi, on fairly narrow rims. They look heavy, and feel heavy if you pick the wheels up, but once on the bike I think they ride and handle as well as having 25s or 28s.
Question 2: Are Mavic Open Pros considered a lightweight 'racing only' rim, not suitable for heavier loads? I'm just surprised they were cracking. Is this typical of them? I'm asking because I've been eyeing those $200 Ultegra/OpenPro wheelsets at Nashbar (or is it Performance?) for a few weeks now for my 'non-commuting' bike - seems like a can't loose buy, unless the rims fail in a year!
comment: 32 hole rims do not pull the seam apart - the rim is always in compression no matter what the spoke count or pattern - that is, as long as the spokes are in tension! It may be a tiny bit less in compression at the seam than where the spokes cross 'inwards', but the rim is still in a very high state of compression throughout.
11-22-07, 11:52 AM
#33
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The only time I was breaking lots of spokes, quickly, was when my wife had solid tires put on my bike while I was out of town. What is the OP doing that is different? My Velocity Synergy rims with 36 14-gage Wheelsmith spokes were designed for heavily loaded touring. I break a drive-side spoke about once every two years and can keep riding for months before fixing it.
11-25-07, 08:25 AM
#34
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Good to see you got something going.. I guess time will tell on the longevity...
Question 1: what size tires are you using? I use 35s, at 75-80 psi, on fairly narrow rims. They look heavy, and feel heavy if you pick the wheels up, but once on the bike I think they ride and handle as well as having 25s or 28s.
Question 2: Are Mavic Open Pros considered a lightweight 'racing only' rim, not suitable for heavier loads? I'm just surprised they were cracking. Is this typical of them? I'm asking because I've been eyeing those $200 Ultegra/OpenPro wheelsets at Nashbar (or is it Performance?) for a few weeks now for my 'non-commuting' bike - seems like a can't loose buy, unless the rims fail in a year!
Question 1: what size tires are you using? I use 35s, at 75-80 psi, on fairly narrow rims. They look heavy, and feel heavy if you pick the wheels up, but once on the bike I think they ride and handle as well as having 25s or 28s.
Question 2: Are Mavic Open Pros considered a lightweight 'racing only' rim, not suitable for heavier loads? I'm just surprised they were cracking. Is this typical of them? I'm asking because I've been eyeing those $200 Ultegra/OpenPro wheelsets at Nashbar (or is it Performance?) for a few weeks now for my 'non-commuting' bike - seems like a can't loose buy, unless the rims fail in a year!
A2: I purchased the Ultegra/OpenPro's from Performance. The rear wheel made it about 8 months befroe I broke a spoke and the rim survived exactly 9 months of commuting before it started showing fractures around the eyelets. I have no better answers for you. I was very fond of the metallurgy department at Cal Poly when I toured it before applying to their electrical engineering department. My only hope is that someday the bicycle industry will take some frigging responsibility and start supplying suggested load and MTTF numbers so that we consumers can make an informed decision about this stuff for a change as opposed to relying on each others' anecdotes as we are resigned to do now. It would be nice to see an independent laboratory publishing test results of components. That would be so much nicer than reading "15% stiffer than our 2006 model".
11-25-07, 11:30 AM
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Maybe your riding style is a little too aggressive - try riding a bit more actively. Maybe try hopping bumps and holes or cushioning the ride with your knees a bit more....
11-25-07, 11:30 AM
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11-25-07, 02:32 PM
#38
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The Mavic SpeedCity really don't look like particularly strong wheels. I can't say for sure, of course, but seeing as though they have only 24 spokes, and they are neither described as heavy-duty or tandem wheels, I fail to see the magic in them. Just regular 24-speke 2-cross laced road wheels.
12-06-07, 01:33 PM
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