Why do I trash rear wheels?

As per title really; I ride all sorts but stop short of big gaps and drops (still progressing!). I generally land front wheel or flat, very rarely back wheel first. I’m 80 Kgs with all my kit on and so I don’t think I’m over stressing the wheels.

I have had to order a new wheel for my Whyte HT as the i23 is badly buckled and dented and yesterday snapped a couple of spokes on a relatively new XM319 on a FS at Bike Park Wales. The cost of rebuilding it with new double butted spokes moves it into new Superstar XX27 territory (25% off in March) so I’ll get a new rear. I trashed a Volar on my 29er HT too last year.

Is it poor technique? Bad luck? Should I worry about replacing the front XM319 too? My old 26″ Five had XM317s and never once did I need to get them trued up in 7 years….

I’d be taking a close look at wheel builds tbh. If you aren’t doing drops and you’re destroying wheels now that you didn’t before, something is wrong.

Put more air in your back tyre.

Not on trend though is it, minty?

Not on trend though is it, minty?

Yes, but on trend involves running sidewalls so thick the tyre still holds its shape with no air in at all!

You can ride ‘heavily’ or ‘light’ regardless of weight. You need a light touch when riding.

If you’re not smashing up sidewalls (or snakebiting tubes), then it’s not air pressures.
TBH I’d be inclined to say it’s either technique or build – are they all built by the same person?

How exactly are you killing them? Are you putting flat spots on the rim, cracking rims, ripping out spokes, or dinging sidewalls?

As above, it’s not just about weight. I’m 60kg soaking wet and I used to absolutely destroy rear wheels…

Which i23 is it? There’s 3 in the range and they’re pretty different.

319 is a fairly tough rim but that one was spoke issues? So that’s mostly either something stuck in the wheel, which can destroy anything, or a wheelbuild issue… Or did they build it onto your old parts?

TBH the fix is the right rim, built with good bits, by a proper wheelbuilder, with the right tyre and pressure. It’s a wee bit more expensive but it’s cheaper longterm than constantly fixing/breaking stuffs.

Sorry, might have been misleading I do drops (did Insufficient Funds @ BPW several times yesterday), just not enormous ones and run 38psi tubed. I guess my ‘technique’ is ‘clumsy’!! Which isn’t a surprise!

The rim yesterday was two spokes snapped (snapped three others previously) and the other couple of rims have been dented and buckled both directions.

I’ll get something beefier built but just wonder if I should get a decent front wheel at the same time.

Funny though as I don’t feel as if I’m landing back wheel first most of the time.

run 38psi tubed

Tyre providing minimal give so most of the force goes into the wheel?

Anything less than that and it’ll dink the rim, surely?

I don’t run my cross bike tyres that high and I have yet to damage a rim. Admittedly not taking it down bpw!

Seriously though, I was at BPW last weekend and running tyres mid 20s, as it happens on wtb freq i23. No pinch flats, no rim dents (I did break a spoke on the rear but as I didn’t notice until next morning and that is literally the first thing I have had to touch on those wheels in three years of abuse I’m not feeling too hard done by). Even tubed you should be able to go lower than 38 though.

No idea if that’s definitely a thing, but it could well be!

Swanny, thanks; I’ll look to go tubeless soon when I get the new wheel for my HT. The rim was too damaged on the WTB when I tried last! In the meantime, I’ll lose some PSI!

NW, the 319 was new in Oct on a Boardman FS Pro; great bike, but I suspect straight gauge spokes and cheaper wheel builds are how they get the costs so low….

Put less air in your back tyre.

😉

You’re probably just unlucky, but maybe check if there’s any common factors involved. Were all the wheels built by the same person? Snapping multiple spokes at once takes some doing, especially if the wheel is fairly new.

No worries- no idea if it’s right but it seems worth a go?

I really can’t fault the wtb freqs if you’re looking for a new tough rim. I have been pretty careless in my abuse of them on a bike that likes to go fast (faster than the rider…) and only just has enough suspension to back that up sometimes, so they’ve had a few hard hits. Tubelessing has been good too

Okay, less air!! What pressure tubed then? I think this current rear build is suspect; will get a beefier one anyhow.

broken spokes can mean cheap spokes or poor build.

I’d say landing back-wheel last puts more stress on it.

Impossible to say without seeing you ride though.

Decent quality rims with eyelets, sapim of DT double butted spokes and brass nipples, handbult by a decent wheel builder should last years.
Cheap machine built wheels won’t last as well.
Also, try riding a hardtail more and you’ll learn to ride “lighter” on the rear.

80kgs all up and tubed (Historical 8) ) I ran 30ish PSI in the rear without issue and banging the rim.

in these tubeless days and Schwalbe 2.HUGE nobby nics I run low 20s with no rim issues.

technique could be an issue.. 😆

you smooth like a hammer

Thanks chaps! Yes I’m sure technique is a major factor! I do ride my HT as much as my FS though in similar conditions. Probably time for some more coaching 😐

Oh yeah, where did the spokes break?

@ NW: all at the hub

Right at the bend? That’s actually pretty unusual…

Okay, less air!! What pressure tubed then? I think this current rear build is suspect; will get a beefier one anyhow.

There’s an app for that – Search for Vittoria tire pressure app (can’t get to direct link here at work)

Technique, simple. Difficult to say without seeing you ride but it strikes me as being a technique problem rather than a kit problem.

Funny though as I don’t feel as if I’m landing back wheel first most of the time

It’s not just about that.

When you land you’re compressing your arms and legs presumably to absorb the shock. If your timing is wrong, you won’t be effectively doing this and you’ll be putting lots more weight into the wheel.

And over rough ground, a ‘light touch’ rider is putting in little hops here and there to not actually leave the ground but to un-weight the bike over the really rough stuff. The clumsy one is either just ploughing through or getting the timing wrong so that they are weighting the bike at the wrong moment.

Well, I’ve reluctantly ordered beefier wheels but I shall endeavour to ‘ride lighter’. And better. And faster!

1. Never run an XM319 but it doesn’t sound all that beefy for BPW to me
2. Sounds like too much pressure, I’d run more like 20-30 there these days (29er HT; even less on FS where the limiting factor is squirm not pinch flats). If you’re pinch flatting at say 25psi on a 29er your technique is likely at fault unless you’re in the pro downhill league speedwise.
3. Nobody else has said it but are you hanging off the back of the bike too much and just smashing into things? I used to do this a lot. Modern bikes reward a more central riding position (still keeping weight low to avoid OTB). You know you’re getting it right when you damage both wheels equally.

I still wreck wheels, though.

SS:

1. Noted
2. Will look to drop pressures, tubeless conversion will occur soon too.
3. No, I’m definitely ‘in’ the central part of the bike; I’ll try to loft over rooty sections as much as possible. I don’t feel like a ‘crasher’!! But I recognise there’s much to improve!!

I use to destroy front wheels when riding rigid until I become more fluid with how I used my arms.

I’ve ordered SS XX27 ; what size tape should I be looking at? will 30mm do?

30mm is fine, and make sure you tape the rim join well! They leak otherwise…

I’ve dinged the rear rim a few times (ooh er missus) and put it down to running too low pressure (less than 20psi) and getting lazy on bunny hops so I lift the front wheel but not enough at the back.