# Rattle inside Zipp 404 Rim



## tom_h (May 6, 2008)

Just received a new Zipp 404 tubular wheelset.

Temporarily mounted the front wheel on the bike, on a work stand -- No tire installed yet -- and spinned the wheel.

There's a faint-to-moderate rattling apparently originating inside the rim. I haven't tested the rear wheel yet.

I've searched and read of stray nipples inside the rim causing rattles, but those reports said the rattling was pretty loud -- mine is more subdued, but I can easily hear it from a few feet away (again, bike on the work stand).

Next, I temporarily taped shut all the holes in the rim except for 2 nipple holes at 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock position (wheel held vertically). Using a 90psi, compressed air blow gun, I blasted air thru the 12 o'clock hole, hoping any debris would eventually find its way and blow out of the 6 o'clock hole.

A few stray bits & pieces of fiber and plastic stuff came out the hole, but nothing heavy or metallic. The rattle is still there  It's almost as if there was a metal fragment loosely taped inside the rim.

Any ideas what can cause this rattle, and how to get rid of it?


When the Zipp factory re-opens on Jan3, I'll also contact them ... but I'd sure like to glue the tires on and not wait until then.

TIA.


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## cdhbrad (Feb 18, 2003)

Does the sound continue when you spin the wheel up to speed? If its something loose in the rim, it ought to stop rattling around when the rim is at speed....had that problem with some Deep Vs, turned out to be a spoke washer that finally fell out when I was truing them recently. 
It could be the carbon dust cap on the front hubs making a noise. Happens on my 2005 Zipp 404s, but I don't know if the current hub design still has those or now. Good luck, I'm sure you want to play with your new Christmas Toys.......


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## murbike (Jan 22, 2004)

I have sand or something in my front rim.
The only time it bothers me is when I have the bike in a stand...


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## tron (Jul 18, 2004)

I noticed that i also had some sand or dirt in my rim that made that noise. I suspect it came through the valve stem. If I had compressed air, i would try to blow it out with that.


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## rruff (Feb 28, 2006)

The Zipp and Flashpoint clinchers have had a bad habit of getting piece of aluminum shaving in there when the rim is drilled. I'm guessing you might have a piece of carbon. It's sometimes really tough to get them out because of all the bladder material left behind.


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## tom_h (May 6, 2008)

*Progress ...*

I blew more compressed air thru the rim's nipple holes, along with whacking the rim with my hand. 

This dislodged a couple more chunks of stiff plastic (the bladder remnants?) from inside the rim, and I was to extract the chunks from the holes, using a tweezers. I think I got it all out, now on to the rear rim.

I am surprised how loud these loose plastic chunks were. The hollow carbon rim resonates and amplifies the sound. 

Quite likely the noise would not have been noticeable during an actual ride, but it would have been a hassle to remove the tubular tire just to silence the rim.


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## rruff (Feb 28, 2006)

They only rattle when turning the wheel slowly... at higher speeds, the centrifugal force keeps the stuff in place.


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