Wheel Care Guide
Cleaning
Keeping your wheels clean will dramatically increase their working life.
The best way to clean your wheels is to wipe them down with a clean soft cloth once a week. Microfibre cloths are ideal and relatively cheap to buy. If your wheels are extremely dirty, slightly dampen the rag and then wipe clean.
For the hard to get places around the hub area, we recommend using a soft bristle type brush. Soft brushes can be used to get into hard to reach spots.
If you have been riding in the rain, we recommend cleaning your wheels and removing the tyres, tubes and rim tapes to allow the wheels to dry out.
Downsides to common practice cleaning you need to be aware of, This includes hosing down your wheels and using bike cleaners that bring your wheels up sparkling like new, this is not something that is recommended for your new wheels.
Pressurized water forces its way into places that it otherwise wouldn’t get to, like inside the sealed bearings, cassette body and inside your rims. Once the water (and usually some of the dirt you are trying to clean off) gets inside these areas it is hard to get out and if left there, it will start to cause damage.
Sealed bearings are water resistant, not water proof! If water and/or dirt find its way inside, the grease inside will start to break down and corrosion can occur. Corrosion damages (pits) the metal surfaces and this slows your wheels down. The end result is typically noisy, rumbling hubs that won’t run as fast and smooth as they used to. If this happens to your wheels, don’t stress, they can be replaced!
When your wheels are really muddy, take the nozzle off the hose and rinse them off. Use a soft bristle brush to scrub tuff dirt. When you have finished, remove the tyres and rim tapes to allow any water to get out. Some detergents and cleaners have active ingredients that can affect the anodizing treatment on your wheels, this can cause surface discolouring and galvanic corrosion.
Servicing
Just like the rest of your bike, your wheels should be serviced regularly.
We recommend you send your wheels to us for servicing every 6-12 months,How often really depends how well you look after them.
During the service, We will clean your wheels, check your hubs are running smoothly and correctly adjusted, check for signs of wear in the spokes and nipples and check spoke tension is correct. If your wheels aren’t running fast like they used to, drop them into our workshop and we can service the hubs for you.
Sealed bearings in your hubs have a working life and from time to time will need to be replaced. As sealed bearings wear, they slow down, so if you want to keep your wheels running smooth and fast have your hubs serviced regularly.
Lubricating
Craftworx wheels do not require lubrication between services.
If you find your wheels are making a noise, we recommend that you drop them into our workshop and we can check them over for you.
Brake Pads
If you are putting new wheels in your bike, you should be fitting new brake pads at the same time, even if they are quite new.
Brake Pads are supplied with all Craftworx Ultima Carbon Road Wheel Sets, you will find these in the box. You need to fit these when you fit your new wheels to your bike. For alloy wheels we recommend using a high quality brake pad.
Do not use your old brake pads as they may be contaminated and damage the braking surface on your new wheels, they can also void your warranty if they are not approved.
Brake pads wear with use and can pick up debris. For this reason you should check your brake pads when you are cleaning your wheels, this will greatly decrease the chances of premature wear or damage to the braking surface. We recommend replacing the brake pads every 6 months to prolong the life of your wheels.
Please only use approved brake pads on your Craftworx Custom Wheels. If you are not sure what to use, please give us a call. We sell replacement brake pads at competitive prices.
Craftworx Ultima Carbon wheels MUST ONLY be used with CRAFTWORX ULTIMA CARBON BRAKE PADS! These pads have specifically been designed to work with our wheels, so they must be used. We stock them, so order online, over the phone or in person anytime.
Repairs
If your custom built wheels are damaged or in need of repairs, drop them into our workshop.
We always carry spare parts and our rates are very reasonable, We’ll get you fixed up to ensure you are back on the road in no time!
If your wheels go out of true (start to wobble) you should return them to be repaired as soon as you can. Riding on unbalanced wheels makes your bike unstable and is not safe!
Settling In Period
At several points both during and after the building process, We distress your wheels to ensure the spokes and nipples are correctly seated and spoke tension remains equal.
This settling in process ensures your wheels remain perfectly straight, even after months of riding.
