There are tons of beginning cyclist articles on the web telling you to check for tiny rocks and / or bits of metal embedded in your brake pads that can wear down or tear your rim sidewall. Yeah, yeah, yeah. These articles also tell you to replace your brake pads when they wear down, so you don't damage the rim. Right, right, right. And then, usually, there is a tip about checking for rim wear. Some rims have wear indicators (little cuts in the rim that let you see how far you have worn through the alloy). Oh, tell me something new, you are thinking. I know all of this. My wheels are fine. Or are they?! (Check out the photo.)
If you hold a ruler parallel against the bicycle wheel rim's machined sidewall and you see a small bit of light between the rim and the ruler, you are usually OK. Some cyclists, however, try this exercise and say to themselves, "Wow, I certainly feel a giant valley of alloy worn away in the middle of the braking surface, and when I hold a ruler parallel to this rim I see a fat-as-a-hog half moon of light between the straight edge and the machined sidewall of the rim!" If this sounds like you, mileage beast, you are skating on thin ice this holiday season.
The brakes can wear through an alloy rim braking surface until the alloy is paper thin, and then the braking surface on the rim can rupture, tear, and basically fail. The customer who owns this wheel didn't crash. He had just completed a long ride (with hills)and was putting his bike back on his car bike rack to go home. Lucky guy. Take him to Vegas. Suggestion: Check your rims, dear focused and bike obsessed cats. Plates of Holidays cookies are easier to hold and eat if you are not wearing a sling.
Photos by Wheelgirl. Hello Mr. Michelin Man. Happy Holidays.
