Thursday, April 17, 2014

The Novice Bike Mechanic and Wheel Rims

Am off later today to see a Local Bike Shop for a tour of the workshop and a chat with the owner, but I will report back on that in another post.

Those of you who follow my blog will realize that I am a bit of a numpty when it comes to bike maintenance and repairs, but I am trying to do more things myself just to learn a little more about the machine. As part of this self education exercise I am stripping down ( though a proper bike mechanic would say I was just cleaning the easy bits ) my Specialized Sirrus Comp Hybrid, my first bike, and replacing the worn out bits. Given that the front tyre is now almost transparent I thought it could do with a change and whilst at it I would give the rims a good clean as they were looking a bit black and stripey.

Despite my efforts using boiling hot soapy water and then cleaning with rubbing alcohol, the streaks remain.



Closer inspection shows that these streaks are in fact very shallow grooves. I knew that brake pads sometimes leave deposits of the pad on the wheel but I suspect from looking at this that the pad has had grit embedded which has subsequently scarred the rim.
I dont know if different pad compounds are better but I think that perhaps I should be examining the pads more frequently and looking to remove grit which has become embedded.
These Alexis Rims are 6 years old now ( I say rims but the rear wheel rim cracked long ago and I had to buy another wheel ) so perhaps wear and tear is to be expected

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