Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Berkeley, CA
Posts: 7,266
Bikes: '72 Cilo Pacer, '72 Gitane Gran Tourisme, '72 Peugeot PX10, '73 Speedwell Ti, '74 Peugeot UE-8, '75 Peugeot PR-10L, '80 Colnago Super, '85 De Rosa Pro, '86 Look Equipe 753, '86 Look KG86, '89 Parkpre Team, '90 Parkpre Team MTB, '90 Merlin
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First, that’s a beautiful Zunow and I hope you enjoy the bike when it’s road-ready.
I agree with the concerns above re the rim dent. By the looks of it, I bet you’ll feel it during braking (a bit of an extra tug with each revolution). It could definitely affect your control on a tight, technical descent. I’ve smoothed out some rim blemishes with high-grit wet sandpaper but that may need more aggressive remediation. I’d opt for a bench vise with smooth wood blocks before a toothy vise grip, followed by sanding & polishing.
To your original question about the gaps around the valve…I wouldn’t be concerned about any safety issues. However, sometimes I’ve found that a tubular with such gaps creates an annoying sound if the gap causes any air bubbles or movement around the valve. This can sometimes be avoided by securely strapping the tire to the rim on the sides of the valve when gluing. I’ve got a Challenge tubular on one of my bikes that is making this sound and I plan to re-glue it in the near future.