How serious is a cracked rim?

[Gerard De Ruyter (Twistandshout)]

yeah, can be like the proverbial iceberg - i noticed a small crack in my CR's front rim. eventually took front tyre off to change, and holy moly, the aluminium on the tube side of the rim was all bubbled and flaking off in layers halfway round it, and looked bloody shite.  end result was the thickness was reduced by heaps.  guess caused by water sitting in there for years somewhere along the way.  i bought new excel rim and spokes, looks a beaut now.

[PEZBerq]

Will a modern rim spoke onto a vintage hub OK?  Or do you need to buy a blank rim and get them drilled to suit the hub - in my case early 80's Husky?

[YSS]

if the hub is the same width and not offset you have a good chance .

[PEZBerq]

My recent experience.......If you have a cracked rim dont despoke the wheel and leave it for months before fixing it.  You might not be able to repair at all.  Leave it spoked.

Replaced my cracked Nordisk rim at last and found the old cracked rim completely broken open after a few months sitting in the garage.  Just like Vandys mudcatcher.  There are large stresses in a rim from the manufacturing process it seems - enough to cause a crack to grow without any riding stresses.  Makes you wonder what stresses there are when the wheel is being used and how much the spokes and tyre are contributing to reducing the stresses on the rim.

[LWC82PE]

seen that happen to a TT600 rim too, pulled apart right through the join. it was junk anyway though and didnt matter as it was already being replaced with an Excel.

[Doc]

yup, never pull off a rim that's cracked unless you plan to toss the rim and fit another. If you're thinking of having a rim welded then just remove the tyre and tube only gets very smelly otherwise

[RMJJ]

A 20 year old cracked rim is a damn sight easier to fix than a 40 year old broken bone

Dont ride on it.

[oldfart]

Most rims are fushion welded and rely on the spokes and hub to hold it true, hench the reason we have to check on spoke tension on a regular basis.
If you know a GOOD tig welder he should be able fix it.
 
 
 

[holeshot buddy]

most rims crack on the join
you can weld them
some are harder to do than others
some have hollowed bead
which makes it difficult :'(
i have a crf450 front rim laced to my suzuki 500 1984
went on perfect and looks great


also dont dismantle rim for welding (except tyre and tube)

[VMX Andrew]

i have a ktm 520 excel front rim on my yz250h 

[Doc]

eh I have a CR rim on my TM125. I also have a 34 hole yammie rim I'll give away to some lucky forum member. I sat down one night with a nice matching pair of rims and new spoke sets. Laced up the front, beauuuudiful, spent over an hour trying to lace up the rear before I realized I was trying to do the impossible Say no more!

First person to ask gets the rim (free does not include free postage sorry). Me thinks it's about a 1.85 x 18, silver anodized, straight and in pretty good 'uncracked' condition

Leith, no 18inch alloy suz rims spare sorry. Like decent seats they're always something in short supply around here 

[shorelinemc]

G`day we get them welded often tho depends on the inside if flaking toss it if only cracked weld it robin  shoreline motorcycle services

[LWC82PE]

how do you go with re-annodising? i find the crack comes back once they have been re annodised and the annodising process re-acts with the weld and it comes back looking horrible

i have a rim that has some bad gouges. i was thinking of getting filled in with weld but from previous experiences this tells me its not a good idea as once its re - annodised it will just react with the welds and bring out all this black oxidation no mater how well i have cleaned/polished the weld. i would just be wasting time/money?

is there a particular welding rod that the annodizing process does not react with? they are welded from original and the factory annodizing doesnt react with the weld. At worst you the weld may look a little lighter in colour.

[oldfart]

Leith, ask them to flash dip it  ( as this will not show up welds ) same process as used on Suzuki swing arms 
Note ....it will not have a gloss finish ,  more so a matt to satin apperarance

Use caustic solution to remove old Anodise .......hope this helps

[albrid-3]

I AM WITH YOU, I DON`T TRUST THEM, THE FIRST NATIONAL MEETING AT BARRABOOL, A MAICO RIDERS FRONT WHEEL COLLAPESED WHILE GOING OVER A JUMP ON A DOWN HILL AND HE ENDED UP IN A BAD WAY, THE SPOKES COLLAPESED AND RIM WAS CRACKED.  THINK ABOUT IT, BUY A NEW RIM.
CHEERS DA