New wheel advice
 

Hi,
I've been riding a 2005 model Campag Veloce road bike since 2007ish, spent the past year commuting on it (~100 miles/week). Wheels are Campag Vento G3 and have been great so far

Front brake felt really 'jerky' this morning on my way in, but was ok otherwise (I've been reading that this is a telltale sign - I guess now I know)... 2 minutes into the ride back home this evening, heard a massive "crack" like a gunshot and found the front rim had blown out. No idea this was coming - I weigh 55kg and take care to avoid potholes etc.

So I guess I need a new front wheel; do I need to replace both wheels, or just the front? I'm a bit worried that about the back wheel now; how can I tell if it's worn and about to break?

Any advice on what I should get? I'm looking for a wheel(s) that's not too expensive, fairly robust, will stand up to regular commuting. I'm more concerned about durability than weight, so I'm looking for a reasonable balance between price/performance

Thanks for the advice!

You can just replace the front, however would be concerned with the state of the rear rim, as this probably be in a similar state to the front which failed, feel the braking surface, if this feels concave, it is on it's way out.

You haven't put where you are located, or how much you carry on the bike, but 55kg is light weight so you don't need a real heavy duty setup
If you are doing 100 miles a week, then 4 years is good going for a set of wheels.

For replacements, you are more limited in choice with Campagnolo than Shimano due to the different cassette hub. you have the choice of either pre built Factory wheel, Fulcrum 7's are a good choice here being cheap and durable + good performance, another set of Vento's, or get a pair built on Campagnolo mid range hubs (ike Centaur or Athena) on say Mavic Open Pro rims.

The brakes can wear down the brake track on the rim, until it's too thin to hold the pressure.

You can use any wheel for the front. The rear wheel needs to fit Campagnolo cassettes. You can use the 10 speed versions, since the splines are the same as your 2005 wheel.

I had hairline cracks in my back Vento wheel, after 16,000 miles. One of the spokes pulled out halfway, enough to put a wobble in the rim. Then I noticed other spoke holes had cracks, too.

I got an inexpensive Mavic Aksium Race rear wheel with a Campagnolo freehub.

Thanks for the advice - I'll have a closer look at the back wheel to see if the rim is noticeably worn out. I rely much more on the front brake though, so the back is probably in better condition.

I definitely noticed the front wheel had developed a (very slight) wobble a few weeks ago; I mistakenly put it down to a bump/pothole though. Some of the newer Campag wheels say they have a 'wear indicator' - does anyone know what this looks like? Do my older wheels not have them?

There's a guy advertising a Vento front wheel who happens to live not far from me (http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/ca...-bike/76799099). I'm going to go and check it out tomorrow since it's a straight replacement for what I was riding. If it spins true, looks relatively unworn, and the spokes are in good condition, I was thinking it might be a good halfway house before getting a complete new set. Good idea, or should I just suck it up and get a new set?

wear indicator is a small groove that runs around the brake track. when you've worn them down all the way, the brake track will just appear flat. And you are right, rear rim takes much less wear from braking so good chance that your fine back there but of course, you may not want to find out!

EDIT: I just looked at the ad you posted, looks like you can see the wear indicator on the rim in the picture, looks good to me. Couldn't hurt to also get another set of wheels built, you should be fine with reusing the hubs.

Someone was selling some Chorus wheels on Houston Craigslist for 120. I could facilitate for you if you want... that is if he still has them and you want them... always if's....

Yep- had a look at my rear wheel and I don't think I want to take the risk! Commute is about 11 miles/day in and out of London, so the roads are pretty decent. The front blew out on Monday night going round the one-way system at Aldwych, luckily during a break in the traffic so wasn't a problem to cross over 3 lanes to get to the pavement...

Found a pair of new Fulcrum 7s for not much more (each) than this guy wants for the front Vento. 4 years is not bad use, especially considering the amount I save not buying tube tickets :)

Cheers

Canopus, thanks for the offer. I'm in London though, and I definitely wouldn't trust intl shipping with rims

Take it that is London UK, if so, there are plenty of shops in London, or on-line options, for cheap Fulcrum 7's in Campag fit (pair), there are some on Ebay UK for £100 inc postage at the moment

I'd strongly recommend the common (Mavic, DT, Velocity) conventional rim of your choice laced to a set of cup-and-cone Campagnolo hubs (they seem to be offering Centaur hubs with the 2007 and newer over-sized axle setup although those aren't listed in the spare parts catalogs).

When you finally wear out or crash a rim you get a new one with this year's decals, de-tension the wheel, tape the new one to the old one, move the spokes over one at a time, cut the tape, and tension + true normally with no need to stress relieve since the spokes are in the original orientation.

I've been doing that since I got my first nice bicycle fifteen years ago. My Chorus hubs have fifteen years on the original bearings, I got 12-14 years out of my last front until I bent it, and it's been 5-6 years since I've crashed a rear. The most recent replacement ran $80 including shipping. With lower cost rims it would have been under $50.

Funny, I've gotten my last two sets of Mavic rims from the UK along with two front hubs and one rear hub.

Oh well. I'm glad you found something local, shipping is getting up there anyway.

I just received a set of wheels 2 weeks ago from the UK, free shipping. Set of Campy Khamsin, arrived in great shape. I won't hesitate to get wheels from the UK again.

hehe, me 2 ;-)
this ones http://www.starbike.com/php/product_...g=de&pid=14881