# Wood wheel repair I made to a totally split rim



## bricycle

Here’s what I did to repair a broken and warped all wood bicycle rim.
First I wire brushed the spoke hole area to remove loose debris and rust, then blew off.
Next I washed the wheel well with lightly soapy water (furnature soap would probably work best).
I then brought the rim into the shower with me to hopefully loosten/soften (steam) it up a little.
Afterward I quickly laid it onto a 700c wheel and carefully and tightly bound it to the 700c with strong cotton string/cord.
The wood rim was then flush against the 700c, taking out the warping (I thought).
I let it dry for 3 days, removed the binding, and using carpenters wood glue, glued the 6” break together, and again bound the break area tightly and evenly for a mated fit.
I let it dry 24 hours over a house (room) heating vent.
While dry, but still bound, I drilled 4   3/16” holes through the rims damaged area in order to install 3/16" wooden dowel pins I cut from a length of dowel rod to strengthen the mended area(again using wood glue).
After this dried to touch, I worked glue into any remaining gaps/cracks in the damaged area, and let dry overnight.
I removed the binding, and sawed off and filed down any remaining dowel protruding from the rims surface.
The end result was a very strong and not visually bad looking repair to the wooden rim.
After re-lacing the wheel, the wheel really isn’t too out of line any longer, but a long way from perfect. Plenty good for display, but I haven’t tried riding on it yet…
bri.


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## bricycle

Wood wheel repair I made to a totally split rim... additional pics.


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## chitown

That wood looks thirsty for some oil. (I use a mix of bees wax, mineral spirits & pure tung oil) You can rub it on old metal also to give it some protection from atmospheric humidity and further corrosion and gives a little sheen to otherwise dull surface rust. Just don't use it near mechanical areas as it is a hardening oil.

Great job with the dowel rods though. Looks sweet.


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## bricycle

chitown said:


> That wood looks thirsty for some oil. (I use a mix of bees wax, mineral spirits & pure tung oil) You can rub it on old metal also to give it some protection from atmospheric humidity and further corrosion and gives a little sheen to otherwise dull surface rust. Just don't use it near mechanical areas as it is a hardening oil.
> 
> Great job with the dowel rods though. Looks sweet.




Thank you, and thanks for the tip also! bri.


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## prewar

*Wood rim*

Just thinking out loud . I know that they bent wood using steam. Maybe wetting the wood. I'm thinking a home made jig to press the rim flat may work . Think along the lines of the old tennis racquet storage presses. Something home made may work.


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## drwood

*Wood Rims*

Hi  just wanted to tell my story with wood rims. I've got 2 wood rim bikes-1 broken rim and 2 warped. What i did was find a old Hog water and take the inside water tank out,the tank was about 2 inches bigger than rim,so it worked perfect for boiling the rim.  I watched 3 video's on how these rims are made from start to finish. They were boiling raw wood for around 3hrs,BUT these wheels need maybe 30-35 minutes of boiling. The firsy 1 i boiled for 45 minutes and the finger glue joint come apart. After i boiled rim i cut a 3/4 of plywood 1 inch bigger than wheel all around. Then clamper with many clamps and let set 24 hrs. I can look at wheel and study every inch all around and its very close to perfect. I think if a person did it another time these wheels could be made perfect. Now i'm going to boil some wood for chain guards & fenders..My Story The End   Thanks for listening


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