huskie69

Fettling with the spokes is something I'm not likely to do myself- it's a bit of an art and I'd just end up making it much worse! And I've not had to make any adjustments to my road bike winter wheel set - some cheap Shimano jobbies in over 3000 miles, they're as true as they day I got them, despite hitting god knows how many potholes and taking my weight when I was up at >155kg

To be fair, I wouldn't class a £150 wheel as "cheap", Mid-range maybe.

I can't find any specs for the specific wheels or bike I've got, but here's a similar (Haibike) that states the max load is 120kg - I'm coming under that most of the time and I'm sure that's just a guide weight and they could easily take >150-170kg without being affected structurally. Thanks for the link soundwave - it does make me wonder if the increased torque means eBike's require specific wheels (like they do tyres). I'm up to speed (>20mph) a lot quicker than I would on my 7kg road bike so there must be a lot more force at play here

Maybe it's non-comparable ... but I've never had any issues with 700c road bike wheels ranging from buget wheelsets up to the carbon stuff - sticking a few more KGs over the backend surely can't affect it that much? I'd expect an MTB wheel to withstand much more that an ultra-light wheel

Rather than the load being placed on the wheel (which is undeniably large!) is it possible that the drive torque could be responsible for destruction of this wheel? I put a lot of my own power into pedalling and I'm sure the assist is also adding to that torque. Is the wheel not fit for purpose?

Sion's done some work on another one of my bikes (and he has some gorgeous KTMs in the shop!) I'm just waiting to hear back from the retailer I bought the bike from though as it's still under warranty

So it turns out there were stress fractures on the rim where the spokes enter - I think it's knackered!! (I hadn't noticed these before). What would cause this?!

No, it's always kept indoors and rests on its own kickstand.

I run them between 60-80 psi - possibly too high? Their max stated inflation is 85psi I think/

I'm in North Wales, bought online from a retailer in London - slight ballache in returning it! Also I'll be without a vehicle

I steer clear of potholes, never curb it. The roads are very smooth. It seems to consistently require tyre replacement every 4 weeks - putting on a new tyre seems to abate the issue at least temporarily. Can't afford to keep getting new tyres, and not 100% there tyres are at fault! My LBS isn't that "great" and I can't imagine them carrying out a complete wheel rebuild (and it'll probably cost less to get a new one anway, they charged £25 just to "true" it the last time it was in)!

Thanks Nealh - would a buckled wheel also cause increased tyre degradation (to the point where it casues a pronounced bulge?)

I got myself a Haibike Sduro Trekking 5 back in July and I've since commuted ~50 miles a day for most of the time I've had it. About 4 weeks into it, I noticed a massive wobble in the rear wheel which quickly got worse and by the time I got home, the tyre was skimming the frame on each revolution. I took it to my LBS so they could true it. They told me the wheel was out of true but the real problem was the tyre - it had developed some kind of warp/bulge (hard to explain). I swapped the front and rear and got hold of a new tyre. There was still a slight wobble in the rear after fiting the new tyre but nothing major. That is until about another 4 weeks. I decided to throw the tyre away (they were both originals - Michelin Protek Cross 700 x 42c - that came with the bike) and get a new "eBike approved" Schwalbe marathon plus. It seemed fine but now my 4 weeks are once again up and once again the wheel is wobbling. I'm not sure if this is something I'm just going to have to live with (replacing my rear tyre every month) but it doesn't seem right. Would a wheel tha's not true cause a tyre to become mis-shapen? I think I do need to look at getting an alternative rear wheeel. My current wheel consists of XLC Disc Hubs on Rodi Black Rock Rims. Maybe they're just not strong enough? I often have aout 10-15kg on the panniers, the bike itself is at least 23kg, and then I weigh ~95kg - there's a lot of weight going through the rear wheel and perhaps it's just not strong enough to cope with the load? Are there ultra-strong wheels I can get hold of that can take these kinds of weights comfortably without coming out of true?

Yeah, I'm definitely not assisted past 16mph I commuted entirely on the eBike last week and loved it - even in the torrential downpours. I've managed to optimise the way I ride, going down to "eco" assist for a lot of the time and using "standard" for climbs and fast roads. I hardly need to touch the "high" anymore as I've gotten used to the bike and the weight - and to top it off, I've lost 8lbs in a week so it's definitely paying off! My average speed is hovering just under 20mph which is fantastic considerng the sheer weight of the thing (with loaded panniers and my bulk on top) and I'd struggle to maintain that speed in both directions over the course of a week on my road bike. Very happy with it!