Rim wear indicators. Gone or still life?

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JScycle
Posts: 260
Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2017 11:41 pm

by JScycle

Hey All,
Attached are some photos of the wheels on my Scott Addict. About 14,000km on them.
The front looks good but the wear indicator on the rear left brake track looks like the tiniest of dots.
The rear right brake track has a more visible wear indicator but seems to have a less smooth surface.
My question is whether this wheel still has life in it, thanks.

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Front Left

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Front Right

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Rear Left

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Rear Right

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Separated levels on rear left (photo makes it look worse)

alcatraz
Posts: 4064
Joined: Mon Aug 29, 2016 11:19 am

by alcatraz

That's weird wearing out the rear before the front. Also one side more than the other.

If I were you I'd take a look at the brake surface flatness. If there is a deep groove there I would trust the wear indicator but if it looks and feels flat then there is something not right with the indicator.

The pads dont get to the edges of the brake surface so that should be fairly untouched and can be used for comparison.

Nice wheels holding for 14k :thumbup:

by Weenie


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JScycle
Posts: 260
Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2017 11:41 pm

by JScycle

alcatraz wrote:
Mon Jul 23, 2018 3:39 pm
That's weird wearing out the rear before the front. Also one side more than the other.

If I were you I'd take a look at the brake surface flatness. If there is a deep groove there I would trust the wear indicator but if it looks and feels flat then there is something not right with the indicator.

The pads dont get to the edges of the brake surface so that should be fairly untouched and can be used for comparison.

Nice wheels holding for 14k :thumbup:
The rear wheel is normally where most crap and brake dust builds up if the ride ends up being wet.
How many km's is normal for a wheelset?
Attached are photos of the rear wheel against a straight line, what are your thoughts?

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vejnemojnen
Posts: 406
Joined: Fri Nov 08, 2013 7:11 pm

by vejnemojnen

life expectancy totally context dependent. Ie.: on the great planes without hills or any kind of gradients, without frequent curves or turns, most of the time you can get away with only braking, once you've arrived home and want to get off your bike. So, in ideal circumstances, rims can last decades, dozens of thousands of kilometres.. :)

I'd suggest you to take pictures without any pressure in the tyres. High pressure can "push out" the rim wall, making it look like less concave. Check the brake surface area without pressure.

JScycle
Posts: 260
Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2017 11:41 pm

by JScycle

vejnemojnen wrote:
Tue Jul 24, 2018 4:43 am
life expectancy totally context dependent. Ie.: on the great planes without hills or any kind of gradients, without frequent curves or turns, most of the time you can get away with only braking, once you've arrived home and want to get off your bike. So, in ideal circumstances, rims can last decades, dozens of thousands of kilometres.. :)

I'd suggest you to take pictures without any pressure in the tyres. High pressure can "push out" the rim wall, making it look like less concave. Check the brake surface area without pressure.
I'm probably rolling hills? Not sure it depends where I go.
I let all the air out and there was no noticeable difference.
Do you think these rims look like they need replacing to you?

alcatraz
Posts: 4064
Joined: Mon Aug 29, 2016 11:19 am

by alcatraz

How about you measure the thickness of the walls with a vernier caliper. You can confirm that the wear indicators are accurate this way. You can measure the deeper part of the groove by putting something narrow like a small bolt or something between the calipers.

I think in your case I'd just swap the rear rim, but I wouldn't be in a hurry to do it. I'm lightweight though. If you are 100kg and love to climb then there is a more urgent problem.

(I realise that 100kg + loves climbing is somewhat of a contradiction :lol:)

NickJHP
Posts: 462
Joined: Wed Feb 14, 2018 2:22 am
Location: Canberra, Australia

by NickJHP

alcatraz wrote:
Mon Jul 23, 2018 3:39 pm
Nice wheels holding for 14k :thumbup:
Depends rather on the climate (and rider weight). I was riding with a friend the other day who was on a set of Dura-Ace C60 wheels (carbon rim with laminated aluminium braking surface) which he said had done about 45000km, and they look like there's still some life left before the rims are shot. He's not particularly lightweight, probably a bit under 80kg, but our climate here in Australia is pretty dry, so rims last quite a while. I've even managed to get around 30000km out of a set of tandem rims, and the brakes there are having to stop about 135kg of riders and bike.

JScycle
Posts: 260
Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2017 11:41 pm

by JScycle

alcatraz wrote:
Mon Jul 30, 2018 7:59 am
How about you measure the thickness of the walls with a vernier caliper. You can confirm that the wear indicators are accurate this way. You can measure the deeper part of the groove by putting something narrow like a small bolt or something between the calipers.

I think in your case I'd just swap the rear rim, but I wouldn't be in a hurry to do it. I'm lightweight though. If you are 100kg and love to climb then there is a more urgent problem.

(I realise that 100kg + loves climbing is somewhat of a contradiction :lol:)
I'm 67kg so reasonably light :lol:
How would I measure the thickness because it would measure pretty wide due to the bead hook

JScycle
Posts: 260
Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2017 11:41 pm

by JScycle

NickJHP wrote:
Mon Jul 30, 2018 12:11 pm
alcatraz wrote:
Mon Jul 23, 2018 3:39 pm
Nice wheels holding for 14k :thumbup:
Depends rather on the climate (and rider weight). I was riding with a friend the other day who was on a set of Dura-Ace C60 wheels (carbon rim with laminated aluminium braking surface) which he said had done about 45000km, and they look like there's still some life left before the rims are shot. He's not particularly lightweight, probably a bit under 80kg, but our climate here in Australia is pretty dry, so rims last quite a while. I've even managed to get around 30000km out of a set of tandem rims, and the brakes there are having to stop about 135kg of riders and bike.
I'm in Melbourne (Australia) and 67kg. Most rides are dry but you only need a few wet rides to chew through your brake pads. 45,000km is impressive. I would hope to get some more out of these before the hubs die for good

by Weenie


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JScycle
Posts: 260
Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2017 11:41 pm

by JScycle

Got some new wheels. Photos are in my signature.
Hed belgium plus with white industrie T11 hubs

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