crewdoglm

I have been reading opinions on prepping carbon tubular rims for the initial glue job. What say you all about the practice of cleaning the carbon surface with acetone and a scotch brite? The abrasive pad seems OK but it occurs to me that carbon fiber is held together by resin i.e., glue and of course acetone does a number on glue... I did prep a set in this manner but I don't think the acetone removed any sort of oil that would impede the tire adhesion. That surface is pretty clean to begin with and I'm guessing you can weld the tire on there with no special prep. Fire away gentlemen...

rpenmanparker 

Acetone is a bit aggressive for epoxy resin holding the carbon fiber together. I would go with no more powerful a solvent than isopropyl alcohol. You know, just buy the alcohol swabs they sell at the pharmacy for prepping injection sites. Wipe once and you are done. That is what I just used to clean my carbon rims before applying the decals I had made for them.

Robert

crewdoglm

I appreciate that and I agree. However I did find on the Park Tool site: "Carbon gluing surfaces have special considerations. Most manufacturers of carbon rims state that acetone is acceptable for cleaning the gluing surface. Contact manufacturer for their recommendations. Abrading the carbon can be useful for cleaning surface. This is especially true if there is "mold release" on the rim. This is a slick substance that allows the carbon to come out of the mold during manufacturing. Use only a medium grade sand paper or emery cloth (approximately 120 grit). Do not abrade down to the fibers themselves. Clean with an oil-free solvent after any sanding."

So maybe that's good news considering I prepped a set already using acetone.

jtwilson

For just prepping new rims, isopropyl alcohol is fine. Acetone won't hurt the rims, but it's a stronger solvent than is really necessary. When I first prepped my carbon wheels, I used isopropyl alcohol applied via paper towel - no abrading - and it worked just fine. I have since re-glued those rims, and when taking off the original tires, I can assure you - they were well adhered!

Nick Bain

Acetone (nail polish remover) did not do jack **** to any decals or paint I was removing.

jtwilson

Hmm. I've used acetone to remove paint quite effectively in the past.

simonaway427

Acetone will do just fine.

rpenmanparker 

So much going on here! First the OP was asking about prepping the tire contact surface for gluing. IPA is a good choice. Perhaps acetone is safe, but it is not necessary. Second he mentioned sanding. That's a different issue than cleaning with solvent, and I did not treat that. It has nothing to do with what solvent is chosen. Finally, he made no mention of removing paint or decals. Perhaps acetone is needed for that, perhaps something even stronger. I don't know. I do know you have to be careful, and the rim manufacturers neither envision removal of paint and decals with aggressive solvents nor design their rims to withstand such treatment. Do what you want. Just beware. - Robert

kimconyc

For a new rim, rubbing alcohol should be fine.

Several years ago when I bought my tubulars (they were slightly used), I used medium grit sandpaper to lightly sand the surface before mounting the tires. Depending on which Scotch Brite pad you are talking about, if you are referring to the standard green one, I don't think it will do squat to a carbon rim unless you are REALLY working it and this sort of thing is totally unnecessary IMO for a brand new rim. Even acetone is overkill IMO for a new rim surface.

I normally use VM&P Naptha for cleaning excess glue nowadays (way better than acetone IMO). Naptha is also great for when it's time to remount. Just use a rag with some Naptha and some elbow grease and it allows for the old glue to be evenly distributed, since you will inevitably have uneven spots when you take off the old tire.

Just make sure to wear nitrile gloves while working with all the glue, solvents, etc.

Good luck, tubulars are fun!