Which rims for an eMTB ?

[DaveMarlin5]

Good morning all

Nearly a year a ago I bought the Trek Marlin 5 2019, the only good thing about it is the frame and brakes.

The weight of the bike and myself is roughly 95Kg.

Every time I took my machine out for bumpy trails or roads with potholes, I had to true the wheel.

My questions to you pros is :

- Is a 29'' rim easier to break than a 26'' because of its size ?
- Which rim would you recommend ?
- How much money would I have to spend on a pair, would £260 get a pair of strong wheels ?

Kind regards

 

[Nealh]

It may not be the rim, the actual wheel build may just be crap and needs rebuilding from the start. I use cheap rims sourced off ebay and have little or no issue with them on by wheel builds, though don't use a D/D hub.
There is a lot of dead weight on/over that rear wheel.

 

[Narcine]

> Is a 29'' rim easier to break than a 26'' because of its size ?
Yes, bigger rims are weaker and will deform more when hitting bumps...theoretically, in practise it shouldn't go out of true each time you use them.

> The weight of the bike and myself is roughly 95Kg.
That sounds a little lighter than average, well built wheels won't have a problem with that weight.

> Every time I took my machine out for bumpy trails or roads with potholes, I had to true the wheel.
Which wheel? The front wheel should be fine if the spoke tension is tight and even. The wheel with the rear hub motor I can't comment on really. The hub is so big the spoke pattern needs to change which I can only imagine weakens the wheel. I've never built a rear hub motor wheel.

I agree with Nealh on the cheap rims, I use Ryde Sputnik, £20 each and very strong, but they're heavy. Expensive rims tend to just try and reduce weight without sacrificing strength too much. The main strength of the wheel will be in how it's built.

Taking it to a bike shop that has someone who knows how to build wheels might be best.

 

[Nealh]

700C, 28' & 29' all the same size tbh and no problems with 700c here, the mass weight on the rear might be though . Does the rim need tensioning ?
Ryde Z2000 & ex 19 rim used here.

 

[DaveMarlin5]

Sorry I wasnt very specific, it's the front wheel which keeps going out of alignment, as for the rear rim, it isnt welded really well, and there is a difference of 1mm where two end meet and that might be why I have an unfixable dip in the wheel.

I forgot to mention the crappy SuntourXCE28, and that sometimes I reach 30mph or more.

Does anybody know a good reliable company or website that has rims built specifically for hub motors, please ?

 

[Raboa]

Hi, Mavic now do Ebike rims

Rims

shop.mavic.com

If you are not bothered about E specific rims you can get good quality 26" Mavic rims fairly cheap if you hunt about.
I cannot recommend Wheelcraft in Scotland enough (I have had 4 wheels built by him, 1 with a hub motor), I don't know if he does mail order though.

Wheelcraft

 

[awol]

Chain Reaction Cycles sell quality rims.
Ensure you get a rim with the correct number of holes to suit your motor and front hub which may be different.
It shouldn't be £260 if you just replace the rims, just get rims with the same ERD size. and rebuild with the current spokes.

 

[Jonah]

Sorry I wasnt very specific, it's the front wheel which keeps going out of alignment, as for the rear rim, it isnt welded really well, and there is a difference of 1mm where two end meet and that might be why I have an unfixable dip in the wheel.

I forgot to mention the crappy SuntourXCE28, and that sometimes I reach 30mph or more.

Does anybody know a good reliable company or website that has rims built specifically for hub motors, please ?

Any decent local bike shop will be able to build you a strong wheel. I use Mavic A719 rims.

 

[DaveMarlin5]

Thanks for helping out everyone ! Me and my trek 5 will soon be melting tarmac !!