Replacement Wheel / Rim Trek 520

barrabus

The rim on the rear wheel of my Trek 520 exploded when I pumped up the wheel before going out for a ride recently .

I want to replace the rim but not the hub if that is possible.
The rim that exploded was a bontrager maverick.
What rim would people reccomend?

Cheers.

B

dgregory57

I don't know the Bontrager Maverick, but there are some known strong rims.

What sort of riding do you do? Do you value strength or lightness more? How many spokes?

I have the Sun CR-18 on my Schwinn Voyageur and they seem durable. Of course, I picked it because it came in the 27" size I needed.

Mavic MA3 was supposed to be a good touring rim, and according to Harris Cyclery, it was the same rim as the Mavic Open Sport. I have a pair of wheels I just bought with the MA3 rim, and I am looking forward to riding them.

Mavic Open Pros seem to be the standard for durable rims with relatively light weight. For example, Open Pro with Ultegra hubs is often cited as the best training wheel.

As a side note, you will probably want to replace spokes along with the rim, so it may be cheaper to buy a new wheel.

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daveornee

Alex Adventurer is a nice rim at a very reasonable price.
Stock rim on Surly Lon Haul Trucker.
I think it may have similar ERD to the Bontrager Maverick but I don't have specification on that rim handy.
Alex DM 18 is even less expensive and has a slightly larger ERD.
I have been using Velocity Dyad for touring and even tandem with very good results. Another Velocity rim worth considering is Synergy and particularly the Synergy OC for the rear.
If you aren't changing out the spokes it is a very good idea to know the ERD of your former rim so you can get as close a match as possible for the new rim.

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David Ornee, Western Springs, IL USA

kdelong

Dave, I am always respectful of your advice because you nearly always are spot on when talking about wheels. Unfortunately I really don't understand what you are talking about because of an acronym that I am not familiar with. What is ERD ? Maybe Explosive Rim Diameter ?

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One life, one chance. Don't waste it!

daveornee

First L.O.L. now to be serious:
ERD = Effective Rim Diameter
If the replacement rim has the same ERD as the original you can reuse the hub and spokes by just moving over the spokes, retensioning & retruing.
If the ERD is more than a couple of mm different, you take apart the old wheel, keep the hub, buy new spokes, and build a new wheel with the old hub.

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David Ornee, Western Springs, IL USA

dhk2

When you say the rim "exploded" can you explain how it actually failed? Do you think it failed due to excessive wear on the brake surfaces? Did anything (eg, the side of the rim) fly off and hit you? How much pressure did you normally run in the tires?

Sorry for all the questions. I generally like to "use up" components, only replacing them when needed , but having a rim explode sounds like something I definately want to avoid. Believe I'll check the "wear indicator" grooves on my wheels closely before I air up the tires tomorrow morning

barrabus

there was some wear on the rims but it wasn't excessive. Pumped to about 80 psi.
can email you photos if interested....