Wheel weight limits

[gelfy666]

May be a silly question, but im in the process of buying a road bike for the summer months.

To be fair im not the lightest of cyclists, im 6' 3" and weight range varies between 110-120kg .... the Dolan RDX comes with Mavic Askium Disc wheelset, which i believe has a supporting weight of 120kg including bike.

So am i likely to killl them or is it diet time, or any super-dooper strong wheel available?

 

[derrick]

Time to diet.

 

[vickster]

hand builts with 36 spokes stronger. Get Dolan's advice. Why need discs for summer bike? Might be cheaper wheels without. 120kg is quite high limit, fulcrum limit is around 80-90 IIRC

 

[gelfy666]

hand builts with 36 spokes stronger. Get Dolan's advice. Why need discs for summer bike? Might be cheaper wheels without. 120kg is quite high limit, fulcrum limit is around 80-90 IIRC

The bike is a disc braked bike....its what it has

 

[vickster]

The bike is a disc braked bike....its what it has

Get a different bike? Or ask Dolan for stronger wheels

 

[gelfy666]

im going up there in a couple of weeks...... ill see what they say.

 

[Drago]

Ah, a manly man.

Same size and weight as me and I've never had any problems with any wheels, from the cheapest to the priciest. I suspect we wouldn't get away with it if we had another 10 or 15kg though, we're right on the cusp...

Time to diet.

If he's anything like me he'd need surgery to reduce the 54" chest. Dieting only does so much when your dimensions are simply bigger than everyone elses.

 

[gelfy666]

Ah, a manly man.

Same size and weight as me and I've never had any problems with any wheels, from the cheapest to the priciest. I suspect we wouldn't get away with it if we had another 10 or 15kg though, we're right on the cusp...



If he's anything like me he'd need surgery to reduce the 54" chest. Dieting only does so much when your dimensions are simply bigger than everyone elses.

i like to think that im the same weight as Lennox Lewis was when he was fighting

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Wheel weight limits are not like the breaking strength of fishing line or any such limit. Since spokes are tensioned to about 100 kgs (1000Newton) each, and at least 4 of them is in the load zone at any one time, the limit for equaling just the spoke tension is 400 kgs. At that point nothing breaks, but the bottom 4 spokes would lose tension and go neutral. Any more weight and they'll start to compress and bend. However, once they've lost tension, the nipples are unsupported and can wiggle loose. When that happens, the wheel will go out of true and start to rub against the brake.

That's the sum total of catastrophe that can happen when you exceed the wheel's arbitrary weight limit.

400kgs may seem like a massive margin, but it isn't just jumping off a kerb or hitting a pothole could theoretically exceed that limit for a moment. Still, it is a huge margin.

The more spokes in the wheel, the more spokes are in the load affected zone at any one time and the bigger your margin of error.

Heavy people are harder on wheels because the stress cycles are larger. That has an effect on the wheel's long-term durability, not safety. They should simply switch to 36-spoke wheels or live with fatiguing lesser wheels more frequently.

It is not an issue of strength - all wheels are strong enough. It is a question of durability which is inversely proportional to payload.
No need for hard hats, high-viz, expiry dates and steel toe caps.

 

[Drago]

i like to think that im the same weight as Lennox Lewis was when he was fighting

I think of it more as Dolph Lundgren in his heydey, but an inch shorter and I'm a better actor

 

[Soltydog]

May be a silly question, but im in the process of buying a road bike for the summer months.

To be fair im not the lightest of cyclists, im 6' 3" and weight range varies between 110-120kg .... the Dolan RDX comes with Mavic Askium Disc wheelset, which i believe has a supporting weight of 120kg including bike.

So am i likely to killl them or is it diet time, or any super-dooper strong wheel available?

You may find this link useful http://www.lifeinthebuslane.com/road-wheel-weight-limits/

I'm 6'5" & have been upto about 110kg & have bust a few spokes in my time Mainly riding on 36 spoke handbuilts at the moment & having done a few k miles they are still true & running fine My Van Nic came with Aksium wheels (rim brakes) & I rode on them for a fair while with no issues if that's any help

 

[Slick]

It's not all about spoke count either, like everything good and bad as I realised to my cost with my previous bike which had a high spoke count but wasn't up to the job. I also intend to add hand built wheels next year to my new machine, but I factored that in when I chose it. Get the best ones you can afford, it will pay in the long run.

 

[Drago]

I'm nearer 120kg than 110, and the only time I had spoke problems was on one particular machine when running panniers. Switching to a rucksack for that bike centralised the mass between the wheels, and 'sprung' the extra load with my legs and the problem ceased. Other than that never killed a spoke, from the cheapest to priciest, oldest to newest. As Yellow Saddle rightly observes, there's a bit more to it than just the riders mass, and the thresholds are higher than people appreciate.

 

[Bollo]

I think of it more as Dolph Lundgren in his heydey, but an inch shorter and I'm a better actor

Dolph Lundgren had a heyday?!