# Bontrager wheelset year; paired spoke danger



## nayr497 (Nov 8, 2008)

I have some Bontrager wheels I'm trying to identify and sort out. A few questions:

The number on the inside of the rim, near the valve stem hole - 203 03 255. Might they be a '03 model? (I know they are Bontrager Race Xtra Lites.)

They are the paired spoke model, 24 rear, 20 front. A friend gave them to me, he wasn't using them, just collecting dust. I plan on using them as road wheels on my CX bike when I don't want to ride knobbies. Is this a bad idea due to their cracking issues? Or, since this will just be a winter training wheelset, use them until they die? (again, they were given to me, so hard to pass up, but then again, I don't really want total wheel failure far from home, or that which causes me to crash)

The front rim isn't in the best shape, took a decent impact, which is why they were sidelined by my friend (he has LOTS of nice wheelsets too, so he just shelfed them). The hub and spokes are in good shape. Can you even get 20 hole paired rims anymore? What would be a decent mid-profile rim from another manufacturer, if I need to replace it? (I do wonder about finding a rim to work, the front hub has the spokes hidden internally - can they be laced to any rim or what? I don't even know how to access the spoke head at the hub, should I need to replace one.)

Thanks for any info!

I'm wondering if I should just true the front wheel and ride them until they crack at the eyelets, or if it isn't even worth it to give them a go when I can pick up a heavy, but decent winter wheelset, like some Fulcrum 7s, for under $200 shipped.


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## Mike T. (Feb 3, 2004)

If they were mine, honestly, I'd toss them in a dumpster as I wouldn't be willing to risk a long walk, in cycling shoes, carrying the bike.


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## PlatyPius (Feb 1, 2009)

You already have them, so I'd use them. Yes, they're junk. But I've never seen one fail catastrophically - only cracks around the spoke holes that gradually get wider and wider. If you keep an eye on them, you should be okay through this season.


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## motobecane69 (Apr 8, 2011)

agree with the above, they are pieces of **** but just keep an eye on them. also, i've seen mavic aksiums sellingon bonktown for $150 if you need a set of wheels, that wouldn't be a bad way to go


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## motobecane69 (Apr 8, 2011)

also, you don't need to get a paired spoke rim, the hubs should be drilled like a regular hub, it's just that there is a different caclulation you need to do to figure out spoke length for a paired spoke drilled rim. get the 20 hole rim of your choice and do the calculations like you would to build any other wheel and reuse the hubs.


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## nayr497 (Nov 8, 2008)

Thanks for all the replies.

These would just be some back road wheels for training and winter use. But, I did trade some gear for them, so they weren't totally free. $60 worth of gear, plus I'll need some decent skewers for them. The front wheel also needs to be worked on, something I'm not great at so will take to a mechanic. Then I might need a new rim, plus a build up. I could possibly get away with a minor truing from the LBS, likely free or cheap since it isn't actually too wildly off after checking it.

But...I wonder if they are even worth the headache. As it stands, I'm thinking $60 + $15-20 for truing + $20-35 for skewers...

I've seen the Fulcrum 7s on sale with a discount for around $160 with free shipping. And, I saw those Aksiums on bonktown yesterday for $150. Almost went for it, but they were silver and I'd prefer black.

So it seems like I'm at around $100 to keep these junky 'tragers or $150 for some solid, decent wheels that are going to be heavier, but much tougher, and these are training wheels, or even a backup cx set.

For the pain of getting them sorted now, plus the possible failure of them in the near future, I'm wondering if I should just save myself the annoyance, return them to my pal, and pick up some Fulcrum 7s or Aksiums.


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## RK101 (Mar 19, 2006)

*Expect broken spokes*

My experience with the Bontrager 20/24 arrangement has not been good. After 3 broken spokes I finally tossed them and ordered a pair of 700c, 32 hole, Mavic A319 rims on SLX hubs, w DT 14g spokes from Bicycle Wheel Warehouse, $276 including shipping. These are heavier, stronger and more durable than the Bontragers and are more suitable for all around city, country, rough roads, pot holes, etc. In other words, if you are race oriented, these will be too heavy; if not, they are perfect. I think in the 26" size these are mountain bike wheels.


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## PlatyPius (Feb 1, 2009)

RK101 said:


> My experience with the Bontrager 20/24 arrangement has not been good. After 3 broken spokes I finally tossed them and ordered a pair of 700c, 32 hole, Mavic A319 rims on SLX hubs, w DT 14g spokes from Bicycle Wheel Warehouse, $276 including shipping. These are heavier, stronger and more durable than the Bontragers and are more suitable for all around city, country, rough roads, pot holes, etc. In other words, if you are race oriented, these will be too heavy; if not, they are perfect. * I think in the 26" size these are mountain bike wheels.*


Yours are MTB wheels, too. SLX is a mountain hub and the A319 is a beefy rim. It is usually sold as a Hybrid/Touring/29'er rim. As long as your rear spacing (on the frame) is 132.5mm or 135mm, that build sounds like a perfect "Terrible Roads" build.


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## RK101 (Mar 19, 2006)

Actually, the fact that they are the same as 29ers hadn't occurred to me. They are a tough wheelset. I tagged a pot hole big time within days of mounting them. I think I had 35 mm tires on at the time and was going pretty hard, just catching up to two faster riders. I was surprised that I didn't blow a tire (Performance house brand MetroK) and didn't notice for a day or two that I had dented the rear rim very slightly but with no detectable issues. The rim is still true, no effect on brakinig. Remarkable that the tube and tire were intact.


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## motobecane69 (Apr 8, 2011)

a319 is a touring rim. it is an entirely different animal than what we are talking about with these bontragers. not sure why they are even in the conversation. even if we were talking about building a set of everyday riding wheels, you generally wouldn't go with an A319, you would just use a 32 hole rim like a fusion, open sport, or open pro. the 319's are a middle of the road loaded touring rim. double eyeletted, stronger than the A119 not as beefy as the A719 they come in a 32 and 36 hole drilling only.


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