Topic: Do NOT use duct or electrical tape inside your rims...

[nickjtc]

....or mayhem will result. Here is the front and rear wheel from the '78 XT500 I'm fettling. The front wheel had 'proper' rim tape, the rear was wrapped in electrical tape. Moisture is pernicious , and will wreak havoc on anything that can corrode.

[Bob Wessner]

Actually, when you right down to it, duct tape isn't useful for very much at all... except making money for its creators who have now added many 'useful' colors to the line-up.

[FunJimmy]

Interesting!

I just had both wheels rebuilt with alloy rims by Buchanan's Spoke and Rim.
Buchanan's is regarded as the best wheel builder in the business.
When I ordered the spokes and rims, I also asked for new rim strips and was told that they recommend Duct Tape. Thankfully alloy rims don’t rust like steel rims.

[troppo]

Interesting!

I just had both wheels rebuilt with alloy rims by Buchanan's Spoke and Rim.
Buchanan's is regarded as the best wheel builder in the business.
When I ordered the spokes and rims, I also asked for new rim strips and was told that they recommend Duct Tape. Thankfully alloy rims don’t rust like steel rims.

but when the steel spokes and aluminium rim get wet your going to have some serious electrlosis going on.

[kghost]

+1 on not using duct tape.

[333]

Actually, when you right down to it, duct tape isn't useful for very much at all... except making money for its creators who have now added many 'useful' colors to the line-up.

Obviously, you've never seen a duct tape wallet.

[754]

I still use E-tape.. dont really care..

 Once you figure out that rims will last 40 yrs, you stop worrying..

 Mounting tires and having POS rim stips move around is a greater annoyance.. JMO..

 One thing I will not do though, is high pressure wash my wheels & hubs..

[nickjtc]

Thankfully alloy rims don’t rust like steel rims.

The rims on the XT are alloy. Unfortunately the nipples were not stainless, hence the rot. As Frank says, it all boils down to how quickly you want to be doing work on your wheels. The rear rim is, I'm sure, the original, from 1978. The spokes are all still tight and ring nicely. So I will do some fluff and puff to the badly rusted nipples (rust killer or somesuch) and put it all back together. From experience I've found that if you try to replace rusted nipples with new ones you stand a good chance of breaking the spoke as you try to undo it.

All this talk about nipples.....this should be in the 'hot chick' thread.........

[mystic_1]

All this talk about nipples.....this should be in the 'hot chick' thread.........

Exposed nipples are verbotten in that thread, as we all know.  I think covering them with electrical tape would be fine, for that application, just don't wash them with a high-pressure hose. 

mystic_1

[Ichiban 4]

....or mayhem will result. Here is the front and rear wheel from the '78 XT500 I'm fettling. The front wheel had 'proper' rim tape, the rear was wrapped in electrical tape. Moisture is pernicious , and will wreak havoc on anything that can corrode.

When we used to build wire wheels, etc. we always used rubber rim strips.  They rot-away eventually.  If spokes/nipples are rusting it's not so much a matter of using duct tape or electrical tape I believe..but more a matter of being exposed to too much moisture (as is being parked outside in the weather too long..or not being adequately weather proofed initially).

Never used duct tape.  But used electrical tape..and more frequently..rubber electrician's tape many times.  No problems (as explained above)..especially with rubber electrician's tape.  Still quite available for high voltage electrical applications.  The name "bull dog" comes to mind.

Used to spray everything (spokes, nipples, et al.) with WD 40 after building wheels and grinding off spoke ends (you do have to do that..you know..after tightening the spokes).  No problemo..under normal conditions.

Ichi

[754]

Dont wash the wheels when you put it away for a long sit..

[Raul CB750K1]

My mechanic uses discarded scooter tubes. He cuts the inner strip in one piece, remove the valve, and uses it as a rim strip.

I personally feel there is no difference between using duct tape or any other kind of rim. If you wash your wheels or ride in the rain, eventually water will go pass the spoke nipples. It will find a tight enclosure, provided by the pressurized inner tube against the rim. No matter what kind of strip you use; the space inside will be narrow and the water will go in and will never go out.

My advice? Paint the inside of the rim with zinc coat, rust preventer, and then use any strip you have at hand just to protect the tube from the spokes. You will never worry again about water going inside your wheels.

[Ichiban 4]

Remember the WD-40 spray..it works!

Ichi

[tlbranth]

Back when I used to ride the 750 a lot, when I put on a new tire, I'd wire-brush the inside of the rim and squirt some metal primer in there, then put on a new rim strip. The primer helped keep the rust down.

[MikeB]

anybody ever try a bead of silicone caulking under the rim strip?
would think it would work but don't know ?
was an electrician for 20 yr.
wouldn't use electrical tape,doesn't hold up to well to moisture
rubber tape we used for repairing underground splices, holds up to moisture
really well but we always coated it with ScotchKote (sealer)

Mike
 

[HavocTurbo]

Dayton wheels use silicone.... and a crap load of it.

To the point you would need an oven just to soften it up to remove it. No rim strips either.

Guess no one really wants to adjust a 250 spoke rim eh??

[DaytonGuy]

OK...I just took the tires off of my rims for the first time and there was ALOT of rust inside the rear wheel.  My bike sat in a garage/barn for who knows how long before I got.  My wheel is probably 50x worse than the one in the top picture.  Are these things savageable?  Do I need to buy a new/good used rim to replace mine?  I can put some pics up later tonight if anyone wants to see, but I'm telling you I may have trouble getting some of these nipples loose because there is so much rust in there.

If I can reuse them, great.  If it is a safety issue, then they have to go.......How do I tell?

[HavocTurbo]

Post pics man... chances are it's not as bad as you think.

[MCRider]

Post pics man... chances are it's not as bad as you think.

Agreed. That steel rim is beefy. Go at it with a wire brush on a drill. Use your favorite rust stabilizer and you're done.
Like this:  http://www.eastwoodco.com/jump.jsp?itemID=23869&itemType=PRODUCT&path=1%2C2%2C372%2C379%2C380&KickerID=443&KICKER
or this: http://www.webbikeworld.com/t2/rust-treatment/

[DaytonGuy]

You asked for them....

It does look more like surface rust, but there are a few spots that look like they may be pretty deep.  I haven't had a chance to get at it with the wire wheel to tell for sure.  Water definitely seeped in between the wheel and tire.  The rim strip looks like it protected a lot of the center portion of the wheel.

This is just the rear wheel.  The Front is MUCH better than this.

[Frankenkit]

that's pretty much what mine looked like.  I just cleaned it up, rustoleum'd it and threw on the tire.  Will go to the original mags, methinks, when these tires go.  Don't need to true mags.

[Retro Rocket]

anybody ever try a bead of silicone caulking under the rim strip?

If using silicone make sure you get the right one. Most silicone is acidic and can help promote rust. I have seen "normal" silicone used to help seal leaking windscreens and made it worse, rusted like crazy..

Mick