Hunt rim damage after meeting with pothole

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nesfyl
Posts: 29
Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2016 8:06 am

by nesfyl

Hey all

While riding downhill yesterday in a paceline my front wheel hit a pothole really hard. I stopped immediately thinking that the tyre wouldn't survive, but it actually had. The loud thunk was unfortunately the rim hitting the ground, and you can see the result in the attached picture.

The wheel spins freely in the frame, with only a hint of being out of true, but I am not sure how it was before, so I can't know if it was caused by the hit. I was running schwalbe pro one tyres 25c at about 60psi when it happened. I weigh 81kg, and was going at about 60kph on a descent. The wheels are the Hunt 50carbon disc, bought about 6 months ago. The bike is a Cervelo R3 disc 2018. The tyres have not lost any pressure overnight, the tubeless seal is intact, and they look normal.

Should I be looking for a replacement? I rode the wheel normally home after the crash for about 30km, and did not feel anything different.

Thanks,
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by Weenie


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Svetty
Posts: 539
Joined: Thu Mar 26, 2009 11:06 pm
Location: Yorkshire - God's Own Country

by Svetty

Need to see it with the tyre removed. If no cracks then just cosmetic damage and likely safe but I'd want to be sure before descending at speed on it.

sungod
Posts: 1702
Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:37 pm

by sungod

as above, a really careful examination to see if there's any sign of damage on the inner edge

the crack visible near the bead area above the righmost spoke suggests the rim deformed well beyond that rough area on the outside edge - with a clincher the edge is holding the air pressure, if it fails the tyre would decompress fast, maybe come off the rim

have you contacted hunt for their opinion? they have a crash replacement service, perhaps you can get a new rim at discount and have it rebuilt

spdntrxi
Posts: 5790
Joined: Sat Jul 20, 2013 6:11 pm

by spdntrxi

I would personally see if they have "crash replacement policy" not worth taking the chance IMHO. The appears to be a crack above the more vertical spoke near the brake tract.
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seve88
Posts: 52
Joined: Tue Mar 18, 2008 7:06 pm

by seve88

If you do contact Hunt please update with how their service was. I am looking for my first set of carbon wheels and Hunt are on my list.

If yoy don't mind me diverging slightly, how do you find the 50mm in windy conditions?

I am looking at the 30 or 50.

Digger90
Posts: 107
Joined: Sun Jun 21, 2015 9:34 pm

by Digger90

From the pic the rim looks like its cracked. It's therefore f*cked.

If you value your health/life/dental work then don't risk it - get a replacement.

Boshk
Posts: 462
Joined: Wed Jul 19, 2017 2:59 am

by Boshk

Sorry to hear that.
On another note, you may wanna consider running higher psi cause it may happen again whatever rims you replace it with, unless of course you can guarantee you won't hit anything hard.

I'm 68kg and I run 85psi in the front on my Conti 4000gpii 25mm and it's relatively comfortable.

spdntrxi
Posts: 5790
Joined: Sat Jul 20, 2013 6:11 pm

by spdntrxi

Pulled from their website :
********************************************************

CRASH REPLACEMENT DISCOUNT

As riders we understand that it can be heart breaking when your pride and joy suffers a bad crash. If your wheels are damaged as a result of a crash please contact us and we help out with a discount off a replacement set. Proof of damage or return of the damaged item may be required to qualify. HunBikeWheels.com is unable to cover any return transit costs that may occur.

************************************************************

so it seems it's offered, best start the process sooner then later. This is a non-warranty issue in my opinion.
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nesfyl
Posts: 29
Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2016 8:06 am

by nesfyl

Hi all

Thanks for all the replies. I did indeed contact Hunt and sent them this very picture. They came back the morning after and said that they'd need a picture of the inside of the rim, as suggested by some of you. I had the best intentions to do this last night, but for the life of me I couldn't break the tubeless seal, no matter how hard I tried. A short glimpse into the area behind the damage shows that it does not extend in the rim wall behind - I'll try again tonight, send them the right picture and update you all on how it goes. My person take is that there is no structural damage, but I'll wait for a confirmation from the horse's mouth.

Re winds: The 50mm is very susceptible to crosswinds. To be fair it seems to be affected a lot in very windy days (obviously), when the wind speed is over 15-20 kph, of which I suppose we don't get here all that often. But there is no 40mm or equivalent disc brake wheel in Hunt's catalogue, and the 30mm is a little too shallow for my liking.

Cheers all

nesfyl
Posts: 29
Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2016 8:06 am

by nesfyl

An update on this issue: After sending a few more pictures of the area inside the rim, Hunt decided that they are not qualified to give me a definitive answer without inspecting the rim themselves, and therefore decided to recommend me not to ride the wheel anymore. I understand their caution for a product they cannot see, and would like to steer clear of trouble - for my own safety obviously, but also for a potential dent to their reputation down the line.

What I got is a 30% crash replacement offer for this, or equivalent model (i.e. carbon rimmed) in their disc lineup, without an expiration date. I initially thought that they cheekily offered a replacement for the set, but they quickly clarified that it applies only to the damaged wheel.

A note on the tubeless seal: Hunt has been a proponent of hookless rims, without an internal lip to secure the tyre. This idea messes with my head a little bit and in the beginning I was apprehensive at leaning the bike into corner with an image of the tyre rolling off the bead making rounds in my head. After this incident it is clearly apparent that I should not worry: The pro ones I had installed had such a secure seal that there is nothing a person on a bike can do to unseat the tyre, whatever the conditions, whatever the abuse. On the flipside, breaking the seal was a herculean task to say the least: I had to actually go to my LBS, where we both had to grapple the wheel and fight with plastic levers to pry the thing open, but no luck. Eventually it was a flathead screwdriver that did the job (operating it carefully to avoid damaging the rim or the tape), but boy I would not want (or be able) to do this on the side of the road if the tubeless plugs I carry fail. Ftr I use Orange Seal.

by Weenie


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