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Cracked real wheel

Old 03-25-20, 04:18 PM
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jskash
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Cracked real wheel

I took my 2018 Giant Escape disc in today to have the chain and cassette replaced and found at later that the rear wheel needs to be replaced. I was told it was unsafe s there are numerous cracks in it. The bike is close to four years old and out of warranty so no luck there on the wheel. I run PSI on my tires well within the specs on the tire, so I guess it is bad road, bad luck, or both.
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Old 03-25-20, 04:47 PM
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Where was it cracked? I cracked a rear wheel at the nipples after about 2300 miles (~2yrs). It gave me a reason to upgrade.
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Old 03-26-20, 04:10 AM
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Originally Posted by katsup
Where was it cracked? I cracked a rear wheel at the nipples after about 2300 miles (~2yrs). It gave me a reason to upgrade.
Had the same problem, it is fatigue failure, and apparently rather common. One of the spokes actually broke free from the rim, another halfway, and numerous cracks at other spoke holes. I replaced the rim with a riveted one, haven't had any problems in the 5500 miles since then.

Here's my thread about it: https://www.bikeforums.net/bicycle-m...ng-causes.html
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Old 03-26-20, 12:03 PM
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So, what are you going to do? Try and buy same brand/model wheel or go for an upgraded pair.
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Old 03-26-20, 06:07 PM
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The chief mechanic has a wheel at home he is bringing to the shop tomorrow. I trust him and he has always been the one to do the major maintenance on my bikes. I'll report back once I get the bike.
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Old 03-26-20, 06:11 PM
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Are you a heavier rider? It may help to upgrade to a 36-spoke (or more) wheel. If I'm not mistaken, your Escape probably came with a 32-spoke wheel, which is fine for most riders. Heavier riders can benefit from a wheel with more spokes. Additionally, wheel assembly technique and materials can help, such as the use of high quality spokes, nipples, and eyelets. Eyelets are fairly uncommon on less expensive wheels, but they do distribute the force of the nipple over a wider area at the rim and can help stave off fatigue failure like this (similar to how a washer can distribute the load of a nut or bolt head).
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Old 03-27-20, 05:49 AM
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Originally Posted by hokiefyd
Are you a heavier rider? It may help to upgrade to a 36-spoke (or more) wheel. If I'm not mistaken, your Escape probably came with a 32-spoke wheel, which is fine for most riders. Heavier riders can benefit from a wheel with more spokes. Additionally, wheel assembly technique and materials can help, such as the use of high quality spokes, nipples, and eyelets. Eyelets are fairly uncommon on less expensive wheels, but they do distribute the force of the nipple over a wider area at the rim and can help stave off fatigue failure like this (similar to how a washer can distribute the load of a nut or bolt head).
I don't think that I would be considered a heavier rider. I weigh 165 pounds.
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Old 03-27-20, 06:53 PM
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I have an update to the cracked wheel. The new wheel was put on today. Below are pics of the old and new wheels.





Last edited by jskash; 03-27-20 at 06:58 PM.
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Old 03-29-20, 07:26 AM
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Originally Posted by jskash
I don't think that I would be considered a heavier rider. I weigh 165 pounds.
No, most definitely not. I weigh 240# and, although my wheels are holding up for me now (OE/factory wheels on low-to-mid range hybrids), I will upgrade to a stronger design if I do have any failures.
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Old 03-29-20, 10:08 AM
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The mechanic at the LBS speculated that I had been putting too much air in my tires. I was putting 90 psi in the back and 85 in the front. He suggested lowering the psi 5 pound down to 85 i the rear and 80 in the front. The sidewall of the tire shows 75 to 100 psi.
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Old 03-29-20, 10:24 AM
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Originally Posted by jskash
The mechanic at the LBS speculated that I had been putting too much air in my tires. I was putting 90 psi in the back and 85 in the front. He suggested lowering the psi 5 pound down to 85 i the rear and 80 in the front. The sidewall of the tire shows 75 to 100 psi.
That shouldn't of caused the rim to break like that, but it will help with comfort. The wheels were cheaper level and aren't built to last.

I run around 65-70psi and retired the wheel after it cracked at multiple nipples. My wheel came with a $1400 MSRP bike.
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Old 03-29-20, 02:42 PM
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Not to second-guess your mechanic, who has seen the failure in person, but over-inflation is probably not the first thing I'd think of to cause of a failure at a spoke hole like that. I suppose anything is possible, but a spoke hole is a pretty high-stress area. Spoke tension can contribute to fatigue over time, but yours is a pretty new wheel to have failed from "normal use". It looks to me like there may have been an issue during manufacture (perhaps the hole wasn't drilled clean and stress fractures started). Those rims should be able to handle well in excess of 100 psi.
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Old 03-29-20, 07:21 PM
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Unfortunately, the wheel is not under warranty at this point. I guess it couldn't hurt to try and call Giant and see what they say.
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