In a message dated 4/9/04 12:45:36 PM Pacific Daylight Time,
noel3006@verizon.net writes:
> I'm thinking about using wood rims on my 30's style road racing bike. I
> have an NOS set from the 70's. Questions:
>
> 1)How do the rim surfaces hold up under brake use? Do they wear out quickly?
> Any special concerns with splintering, scoring, etc.? Does brake pad style
> matter, i.e. black rubber pads, red Universal pads, etc.?
>
> 2)Is it advisable to gently "resurface" the braking area periodically, by
> fine sanding and applying varnish/shellac?
>
> 3)What is the strength and failure mode of wood rims? Do they stand up to
> bad pavement, daily use, and 185 pound riders? If they do fail, is it
> catastrophic? IOW, ambulance rides and E.R. bills?
>
Here's the deal. In the old days, there were different brake pads for use on wood rims. I haven't seen them, Scott Davis may know some more about that and may even have some. I think the red pads are better than the black ones, but no Matthauser's.
When the varnish wears off, the coefficient of friction changes and the rims are subject to soaking up water and warping or delaminating. It's best to keep them varnished or shellacked except in very dry climates, like Arizona.
I knew a guy in the 70s who had them on a road Paramount. He crashed coming down Mount Tamalpais and ended up with a lot of small pieces of rim and a whole lot of splinters and slivers. Needless to say, he didn't ride home.
IMHO, they're at their best on a track bike with fixed gear where you only need to use the brakes occasionally and lightly. They should be built 4 cross (that's what most of them are drilled for) with light gauge butted spokes and not too much tension. If you're racing, they should be tied and soldered. I had a set on a Cooper track bike (stolen) that I "double interlaced" so that the spokes crossed each other twice. I put a LOT of miles on those on the road.
Ghisallo rims weigh about 310 grams without the washers. They're laminated ash, if you look carefully, you can see the lap joints. BTW, you need pretty long nipples to build those. I got some for 2.0 spokes from Jamie Swan. He might be willing to get more. If you're going to use 2.0, use the DT 2.0 x 1.7 spokes. DT does NOT import the long nipples into the US and they are hard to find. Stevan Thomas Alameda, CA
track bikes get my woodies!