Rolf vector pro blew up

In article
<[email hidden]>
,

peter said:

Mark Hickey said:

Frank Drackman said:

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...
> Callistus Valerius <[email hidden]> writes:
><SNIP>

> What do you expect? 36-spoke wheels, radially spoked, have flange
> failures and a Rolf wheel is twice as bad, stress being more
> localized. The whole concept is a silly idea that was invented and
> patented by Lovelace in 1890. Although the fad was soon over... until
> Rolf Dietrich exhumed it for a replay.

Did you really intend to sound like a total jerk?

I don't detect any "jerkiness" in Jobst's reply above. He's pointing
out very basic physical limitations to a design that had problems a
century ago, and still has problems today.

I wish there were more discussions like that in the bike shops around
the country (if only because it would keep Jobst from talking about
politics). ;-)

Unfortunately cyclists seem very reluctant to hear that message. I was
riding up Mt. Diablo today with someone who recently had a very similar
failure of his Vector Pro wheel. He was looking for a source for
either a replacement hub or a new wheel. I suggested going with a more
traditional wheel design, but he insisted that he had now been
"spoiled" by the "high-tech" ones and that he didn't think he could go
back. When asked about the nature of the advantage, he first cited
weight and I pointed out that similar weights could be achieved with
reasonable spoke counts (say 32) and good quality components. Then he
switched to the sealed bearings/low maintenance and I indicated that
that was also not exclusive to a particular type of wheel. He then
headed off to talk with someone who would be more sympathetic to his
plight.

When even those who have already had a bad experience are so willing
and eager to come back for more of the same, I can see why bike shop
owners/managers would decide that it's easier to just sell them what
they ask for rather than try to change their minds.

You cannot change anybody's mind. Difficult enough to
change one's own. Nevertheless, I am sure that what you
said has lodged with him, and probably will eventually
inform his judgment.

Alternatively he could have been bragging: "I ride
wheels so highly engineered and expensive that they
easily catch a cold and die." Nasty you would not
swoon.

--
Michael Press

peter said:

John Forrest Tomlinson said:

peter said:

Vector Pro wheel. He was looking for a source for
either a replacement hub or a new wheel. I suggested going with a more
traditional wheel design, but he insisted that he had now been
"spoiled" by the "high-tech" ones and that he didn't think he could go
back. When asked about the nature of the advantage, he first cited
weight and I pointed out that similar weights could be achieved with
reasonable spoke counts (say 32) and good quality components.

What rims and hubs and spokes?

There's a list of wheel weights at:
http://www.tc-homes.com/bike/features/wheels/cover.htm
with several examples of 32 spoke wheels that are lighter than Vector
Pros.
I'd also mention that the person I was talking to does not race and
didn't indicate any concern about aerodynamics.

Weight is concern to lots of people but aerodynamics only to racers?

--
JT
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David L. Johnson said:

Bruce Gilbert said:

Just a simple observation here, but I see very
few of those old Vector Pros on rides anymore. Where have all the old wheels
gone?

Yeah, I've wondered that myself. There must be an elephant burial ground
somewhere full of old Rolfs, Spinnergys, and other high-priced wheels that
suddenly become worthless when the new fad comes out. Meanwhile, _my_ old
wheels are still working fine.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | "What am I on? I'm on my bike, six hours a day, busting my ass.
_`\(,_ | What are you on?" --Lance Armstrong
(_)/ (_) |

Remember that propriatary parts, rims and spkkes, that are not
supported by the manufaturer, is also to blame..Campag, shimano,
Spinergy, Mavic, HED, Canecreek,Reynolds, Lew, put name of wheel here.
But with 'standard' hubs and as long as rims and spokes are available,
these 'wheels' will not end up in der trash.

John Forrest Tomlinson said:

peter said:

John Forrest Tomlinson said:

What rims and hubs and spokes?

There's a list of wheel weights at:
http://www.tc-homes.com/bike/features/wheels/cover.htm
with several examples of 32 spoke wheels that are lighter than Vector
Pros.
I'd also mention that the person I was talking to does not race and
didn't indicate any concern about aerodynamics.

Weight is concern to lots of people but aerodynamics only to racers?

Nope, and that's pretty clearly not what I wrote.

On Wed, 01 Nov 2006 07:24:54 -0800, jim beam <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

for the future, while spokes need to have adequate tension to not go
slack in use, increasing tension above that level serves no purpose.
static wheel strength does not increase with increasing spoke tension,
contrary to the supposition of certain individuals. fatigue wheel
strength /decreases/ with increasing spoke tension. bike shops often,
unfortunately having read a certain book, are under the false impression
that spoke tension needs to be "as high as the rim can bear", and they
"help" the wheel by increasing tension above factory spec. the op may
be a victim of this unfortunate situation.

In boutique low-spoke wheels, you never klnow for sure if it's the rim
that's the weak point -- in this case, apparently, the hub couldn't bear
tension the rim could.

Jasper

"peter" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

John Forrest Tomlinson said:

peter said:

Vector Pro wheel. He was looking for a source for
either a replacement hub or a new wheel. I suggested going with a

more

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

traditional wheel design, but he insisted that he had now been
"spoiled" by the "high-tech" ones and that he didn't think he could

go

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

back. When asked about the nature of the advantage, he first cited
weight and I pointed out that similar weights could be achieved

with

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

reasonable spoke counts (say 32) and good quality components.

What rims and hubs and spokes?

There's a list of wheel weights at:
http://www.tc-homes.com/bike/features/wheels/cover.htm
with several examples of 32 spoke wheels that are lighter than Vector
Pros.
I'd also mention that the person I was talking to does not race and
didn't indicate any concern about aerodynamics.

.....but they look WAY COOOOL!

We used to call it the "couze factor" as in not being able to control
one's hormonal drives (bodily secretions in one's jeans).

Chas.

jim beam said:

...while spokes need to have adequate tension to not go
slack in use, increasing tension above that level serves no purpose.
static wheel strength does not increase with increasing spoke tension...

Those two sentences are contradictory.

--
Dave
dvt at psu dot edu

dvt said:

jim beam said:

...while spokes need to have adequate tension to not go slack in use,
increasing tension above that level serves no purpose. static wheel
strength does not increase with increasing spoke tension...

Those two sentences are contradictory.

thanks. another time.