New Wheel build - Rim tape advice needed.

[Fred A-M]

Hi

Just got a new back wheel back - Andra 30 rim for my Rohloff hub, which looks great and certainly very sturdy.

On closer examination, some of edges of the spoke insert holes look quite rough with occasional small bits of metal sticking out, likely to cause a puncture if not removed.   Does anyone have any tips on how best to smooth these rough edges down?

Also, I forgot to order any rim tape - I naively assumed that might be supplied as part of the build.  I have some electrical insulation tape that could do the job, though it is quite thin.  Would people recommend that I get bespoke tape or is the insulating tape enough? Opinions appreciated.

Cheers 

Fred

[mickeg]

If you think that the sharp edges could cause a problem, perhaps some extremely fine sandpaper wrapped around a finger tip for half a minute?  I can't see it so I really do not know if this is a serious issue or not. 

If you think that there is a sharp enough edge at the valve hole on the metal that could cut a tube, I have on occasion when I was concerned cut a piece of inner tube rubber from a blown tube that was about 2 to 3 cm square, put a small hole in the center and put the valve through that hole, then the tube went onto the rim with that square of rubber between the rim and tube.

I would not use electrical tape.  The rim tape has to hold under a significant amount of pressure for many years.  Would you trust your tape to not deform into the hole in the rim and eventually fail like popping a balloon?

I have used both the adhesive cloth type rim tape and also the plastic rim strip that is bought as a hoop and slipped onto the rim.  Both have advantages and disadvantages, but I think both are good.  The cloth adhesive tape might be easier to remove later if you have to replace a spoke, that can be an issue if on a touring bike.

[Fred A-M]

Thanks Mick, appreciated, I'll place an order for some rim tape from SJS then and have to patient in the meantime! 

Cheers

Fred

[jags]

Fred hope you don't mind me saying but that doesn't sound like a good build to me .
anyhow get a loan of a good dremal and file those spokes smooth below the rim save yourself a fortune on newtubes

[Fred A-M]

No worries Jags, Just a few (around half a dozen) holes had some protruding metal residue from the boring process that was still attached to the rim around the rims of the holes  - I've removed it by simply prising/easing it off with a flathead - no major deal and some sturdy rim tape (arriving tomorrow hopefully) should do the trick!   

Cheers

Fred

[jags]

good stuff ride safe Fred theres a great spell of weather on the way 

[Matt2matt2002]

I've never fitted new rim tape to a wheel.
How does it attach?

[mickeg]

The adhesive tape that I used sticks on to the rim. 

The plastic ones that  I used were essentially a plastic hoop, you slipped it over the side of the rim and it stayed in place on the rim because it was slightly smaller.  You had to buy this type for your correct wheel size.

I never looked for a youtube video on that but there might be a few if I was not clear. 

[Fred A-M]

The SJS rim plastic tape is pretty easy to apply and seems fine - glad I got the wheel rebuilt Mick as despite being the Andra being a narrower rim (19 v 22.5 for the CR18), I had to loosen brakes by at least a couple of mm which suggests to me that the CR-18 was very very worn indeed.   SJS kindly supplied some spoke spares with the wheel, so if another spoke goes, I'll give it a go at repairing next time!   

[mickeg]

...  SJS kindly supplied some spoke spares with the wheel, so if another spoke goes, I'll give it a go at repairing next time!

I usually store my spare spokes in my seatpost, use a wine cork to hold them in.  On one of my 700c bikes the spokes were a bit too long and I had to drill a couple holes half way through my cork to get them to fit in the seatpost.  The cork dried out and got looser, I wrapped a bit of electrical tape around the cork to make it fit tighter in the seatpost.

A lot of people carry their spare spokes in a pannier on a bike tour, but I use my Ortliebs on three different bikes that all use different length spokes, so I prefer to carry my spares on the bike instead.

I use drop bars on my touring bikes.  If you use flat bars, I have heard that some people put their spare spokes in the handlebars.

Sometimes you have to buy several different wine corks to find one that will fit.  No problem, you might enjoy the time spent while looking for the perfect cork.

[John Saxby]

On tour, I always carry one or two Fiber Fix kevlar/aramid spokes.  I've had to use the repair kit just once -- a spoke was broken in ttransit when my bike was shipped back to Canada from the Netherlands a few years ago.  I repaired the spoke in my workshop, just to see how it worked.  Dead simple, and effective.  Then I rolled it back up again, installed a regular spoke, and haven't had a problem since.  (Obviously, the kit has preventive powers as well.)

You can still research wine corks if you carry a FiberFix kit, of course.

[Dave Whittle Thorn Workshop]

We use these on Andra 30 https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/rims-tape/sjsc-reinforce-nylon-rim-tape-26-559-x-22-mm-red/ they are thick enough that the odd spoke hole burr wont protrude.

[macspud]

The SJS rim plastic tape is pretty easy to apply and seems fine - glad I got the wheel rebuilt Mick as despite being the Andra being a narrower rim (19 v 22.5 for the CR18), I had to loosen brakes by at least a couple of mm which suggests to me that the CR-18 was very very worn indeed.   SJS kindly supplied some spoke spares with the wheel, so if another spoke goes, I'll give it a go at repairing next time!

The Andra 30 is 25mm across the braking surfaces where as the CR18 is 22.5mm across the braking surfaces, so maybe not quite as worn as you thought. 

[Fred A-M]

[/quote]

The Andra 30 is 25mm across the braking surfaces where as the CR18 is 22.5mm across the braking surfaces, so maybe not quite as worn as you thought.
[/quote]

Thanks for the illustrations - I find the whole sizing thing a little confusing as they give a contradictory impression.  As I said I had to loosen the brakes by at least a couple of mm but probably much more in reality.  Certainly the rear CR18 was much more worn than the front one, and with it having around 8,000 miles wear, I could visibly see see where the brake pads had worn the rim down in stark contrast to the front one which still looks absolutely fine.  Possibly being a little over cautious, but I'd rather that than have a rim failure!   

[macspud]

Yes, I'm sure it'd be well worn, just maybe not as scarily as it at first seemed.