[kreger]

Hey fine people, got a quick one for you.

A good buddy of mine took the plunge and had a set of kings laced up to open pros. sweet wheels, hubs in pewter, open pros, 3x lacing, black spokes. the question is rim tape. apon leaving the shop, with the wheels in his CAR he had a flat. apon investigating the flat, it turns out the flat came from the eyelet at the stem hole and that the rim tape did not cover a good inch strip, on one side of the rim. we figured this was a bad idea so we cut an old tube and made a boot/patch to go over the exposed spot. when we left for the ride we didnt even get to the end of the driveway when, guess what? rear whell flat. SAME THING. Is this common practice or total negligence? He's starting to question the integrity of the build it this first experience with the wheels.

any insight or recommendations will be appreciated.

 

[alienator]

Hey fine people, got a quick one for you.

A good buddy of mine took the plunge and had a set of kings laced up to open pros. sweet wheels, hubs in pewter, open pros, 3x lacing, black spokes. the question is rim tape. apon leaving the shop, with the wheels in his CAR he had a flat. apon investigating the flat, it turns out the flat came from the eyelet at the stem hole and that the rim tape did not cover a good inch strip, on one side of the rim. we figured this was a bad idea so we cut an old tube and made a boot/patch to go over the exposed spot. when we left for the ride we didnt even get to the end of the driveway when, guess what? rear whell flat. SAME THING. Is this common practice or total negligence? He's starting to question the integrity of the build it this first experience with the wheels.

any insight or recommendations will be appreciated.

What kind of rim tape did he have on the rims? Velox green tape would do the trick.

 

[kreger]

it was a white rim tape. im just curious maybe they put 26 inch tape on it and tried to make it work on 27s, 2 flats in 10 feet due to installation is hard to excuse in my book

 

[likeguymontag]

There are two things your friend can do to ensure he never gets flats at the valve hole again. First, he can take a round file or some rolled up sandpaper and deburr the hole. Personally, I go a little further, and slightly round out the 90 deg. angle between the rim and the hole. Second, I use something like your friend's boot/patch, but I use rim tape. I make sure that the entire edge of the hole is covered.

To answer your other question, yes, it's inattentive to neglect that kind of finishing work on a wheel build. It doesn't mean the wheel is badly built, though.

 

[Al1943]

Someone made a mistake. Velox rim tape should have completely covered the stem area, there is a hole in the tape for that purpose. In this case the wheel builder should be responsible for new tape and a couple of new tubes.

Al

 

[MShaw]

On a completely different note: the tape don't REALLY hafta cover the spaces between the spoke holes. After all, that's solid AL!

Save a few grams, get bragging rights for having the light wheels!

M

 

[likeguymontag]

On a completely different note: the tape don't REALLY hafta cover the spaces between the spoke holes. After all, that's solid AL!
M

Not true, not true... 120 PSI will easily overcome the strength of the tape's adhesive, pushing the fabric into the spoke holes, and exposing the sharp edges of the spoke holes in the process. This doesn't happen when you use one continuous piece of tape to cover the whole wheel. If you want to save weight, call up Velocity and buy some veloplugs.

 

[gmcastil]

I personally think this is a really cool idea...

http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/reviews/velocity/veloplugs/

 

[Argentius]

Or get some of those slick newer rims that don't have holes on the side facing the tube...

 

[Mark McM]

Or get some of those slick newer rims that don't have holes on the side facing the tube...

If there are no holes in the rim, then how do you get the valve stem through the rim?

 

[alienator]

If there are no holes in the rim, then how do you get the valve stem through the rim?

With that new process that's made stems obsolete: pneumatic induction.

 

[MShaw]

Not true, not true... 120 PSI will easily overcome the strength of the tape's adhesive, pushing the fabric into the spoke holes, and exposing the sharp edges of the spoke holes in the process. This doesn't happen when you use one continuous piece of tape to cover the whole wheel. If you want to save weight, call up Velocity and buy some veloplugs.

Worked for me last pair of Cosmics...

YMMV

M

 

[Mark McM]

Pneumatic induction

With that new process that's made stems obsolete: pneumatic induction.

Is that where you put the entire wheel in a pressure chamber, pressurize the chamber to 100+ psi, mount the tire and seat the beads, and then de-pressurize the chamber, leaving the 100+ psi inside the tire?

 

[alienator]

Is that where you put the entire wheel in a pressure chamber, pressurize the chamber to 100+ psi, mount the tire and seat the beads, and then de-pressurize the chamber, leaving the 100+ psi inside the tire?

Ssshhhhh! Haven't you wondered why all the DS cars in the Tours so far have been towing those big, cast iron, high pressure vessels around?