 You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
So I dropped the rear wheel off my race bike into my LBS to get trued (hope pro 2 evo on stans crest 29) and when I picked it up the mechanic told me the rim was a nightmare to true as it had been trued too many times, causing the rim to become easy to bend, and the spokes had stretched.
I was told not to ride it and replace immediately, so I ignored them and went and raced a stage race in lanzarote and other races since and it's been ok. Not dead true but it hasn't got worse.
Should I listen to them? Do Crest rims become more malleable when trued multiple times, or is it just spokes that stretch, or none at all?
Help!
trued too many times,
maybe.
causing the rim to become easy to bend,
doesn't sound right
and the spokes had stretched.
possible, if unlikely.
Mine eventually became unacceptable.. Despite having only been trued twice.
It was within what they class as acceptable.. but for me, watching the tyre weaving left and right when I span it up was ridiculous.
What a bunch of crap.
...and when I picked it up the mechanic told me the rim was a nightmare to true...
My experience of Crest 29er rims too.
No idea what its history was as I bought it second hand, but once rebuilt and straightened I was happy to pass it on.
On that basis I have avoided Stans rims and Hope straight-pull hubs ever since.
Do Crest rims become more malleable when trued multiple times...
No idea, but if I were to guess I'd say it's unlikely to deteriorate too much in its riding lifetime unless it takes an almighty, taco-shaped whack.
...or is it just spokes that stretch...
They do with use and over time; they are highly tensioned after all. To put it into perspective, if I were putting in masses of hard winter training miles I'd get my wheels re-laced every couple of years.
...or none at all?
The most likely.
It depends on how much it's been bent out of shape, and how many times - it's aluminium after all.
More likely a spoke issue - did any/many break when last tensioned?
My 26" 355 rims have gone soft and need more frequent attention. They are about 7yrs old though
The spanner monkey is probably right about the symptoms - the wheel's a nightmare to true without silly spoke tensions - but wrong about the reasons.
Rims that get bent (not too much!) can be trued but you end up with some spokes tighter than you'd like and others looser. A good wheel builder can balance that across several spokes and save a wheel that might otherwise be likely to fold at a decent impact.
Rims don't go soft (unless they actually crack). This is a myth along the lines that frames go soft over time.
In fact, bending the rim work hardens it which actually makes that section stiffer (though more brittle so it's more likely to crack before bending in future)