grinding rims

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flag scooter254
Posted: Dec 22, 2009 at 22:26 Quote
Hey guys, I am going to try grinding my rims myself, I am saving up old junk wheels form my shop to practice on so i don't destroy my new wheels right after I get them. I watched the video on Tartybikes webpage about how to grind so I feel that i can do a good job. any tips for a newb on grinding?

Also should I just keep the smooth finish on my rims while I learn the basics and once I feel confident to start rear wheel moves grind then?

and life span of a grind? how long does a grind last and how many grinds can you get before you have to rebuild a new hoop
flag jason222bike
Posted: Dec 23, 2009 at 16:21 Quote
scooter254 wrote:
Hey guys, I am going to try grinding my rims myself, I am saving up old junk wheels form my shop to practice on so i don't destroy my new wheels right after I get them. I watched the video on Tartybikes webpage about how to grind so I feel that i can do a good job. any tips for a newb on grinding?

Also should I just keep the smooth finish on my rims while I learn the basics and once I feel confident to start rear wheel moves grind then?

and life span of a grind? how long does a grind last and how many grinds can you get before you have to rebuild a new hoop
Grinding is loads better than smooth. But keep in mind you have to have pads that are designed for a grind. Other pads will wear very quickly and not grab as well.

The life of a grind depends on the harshness of the grind and the hardness of the alloy the rim is made of. Echo rims have a really hard alloy and last a very long time when grinded. Whereas try-all, meta, etc use softer alloys that don't quite last as long as the echo. In my experience, an echo grind lasts about 10 months when done properly, and a try-all lasts 5 when done properly. Although, this depends how much you ride and how much you depend on your brake. I usually ride 3-4 times a week for at least 5 hours per ride.
flag mattthibeautrials
Posted: Dec 23, 2009 at 16:38 Quote
wooow wow slow down. Grinding a rim is a big deal, it really is. If your thinking of grinding your rims to have strong brakes, dont. You should only grind your rim if any of these apply to you...

- You enter competitions

- You ride in wet or dusty conditions

I grind both my rims because I compete, meaning I have to ride water sections ect.

If you mostly ride on nice days, and dont plan on being a serious competitor, I say dont grind your rims!!

Run a smooth rim, with smooth rim intended pads. Rock v flys are great, so are plazmatic pads! but for both kinds of rims, never use stock magura , or v brake pads. they suck!


Damon Watson Adamant/Zoo unwanted clips

by jason222bike
Views: 1,637    Faves: 24    Comments: 8

Damon doesnt grind. its all about what your into.
flag scooter254
Posted: Dec 23, 2009 at 19:46 Quote
thanks guys, I think I may hold off on grinding. I am building up some Echo TR rims and am running HS33's with Echo pads. I have just been reading about different brake set ups and a lot of guys are grinding.
flag chronic-poker
Posted: Dec 23, 2009 at 20:14 Quote
Matt can you elaborate?... Why is grinding a big deal? You better not say because it wrecks your rim lol


You live in canada, you should know how unpredictable weather can be here. Why limit your riding to calm days in the city...

If you use good pads with a good grind, you can ride in the rain, you can go out to a construction site and ride boulders in the dirt. A grind gives you versatility and higher percentage braking power every ride as long as you maintain your grind.

Smooth rims are like tar, it works great if things are perfect. Any contaminants and you're screwed.



I have been grinding for 5-6 years, never had an issue with it. If you can grind a hole through a side wall using proper grinding techniques, you dont ride and obsessively grind for no reason lol
flag scooter254
Posted: Dec 23, 2009 at 21:05 Quote
I'm in Northern Ca so most of the winter is dry cold, very little rain until Feb/March.

I went out and bought a grinder today so I think I will give it a shot after I get some time on the bike and start to feel comfortable on the rear wheel.

why is it that people prefer to grind with the tire on the rim? will mounting a tire over a fresh grind damage it? or will it eat the bead up on the tire?
flag chronic-poker
Posted: Dec 24, 2009 at 10:17 Quote
When my friends and I do it, we take the tire off. You dont want those shavings inside your tire rubbing against your tire tube. So after you grind it, blow it off with some air and no it wont wreck your tire lol

Oh, and you can only use a new grinding disk for maybe 5-6 grinds before it gets too dull. You need a good sharp edge to get a good grind. Just so you know, cause yeah, when it rounds off on the edge, it just smears the aluminum and doesn't make it sharp.
flag scooter254
Posted: Dec 24, 2009 at 10:45 Quote
thanks for the tips, I just bought a grinder and a 5 pack of cutting disks so I should be good for awhile
flag chronic-poker
Posted: Dec 24, 2009 at 11:12 Quote
Oh yeah!

When you first do you rim... well, what kind of a rim do you have? Typically they're always anodized. And that anodized finish is only maybe .001" thick, but its hard as shit! You may wear out your grinding edge on one grinding wheel just because of that finish. But the nice thing is, being as hard as it is. If you get a good coarse grind in that anodizing, it usually lasts longer than any other grind you'll get in the bare aluminum.

Good luck, dont forget safetly glasses! You can't pull aluminum out of your eye with a magnet lol And believe it or not, if you spray a little varsol on your rim before you grind it. It will stop the aluminum from clogging the pores in the grinding disk as bad. Little machinist trick.
flag jason222bike
Posted: Dec 24, 2009 at 12:13 Quote
chronic-poker wrote:
Matt can you elaborate?... Why is grinding a big deal? You better not say because it wrecks your rim lol


You live in canada, you should know how unpredictable weather can be here. Why limit your riding to calm days in the city...

If you use good pads with a good grind, you can ride in the rain, you can go out to a construction site and ride boulders in the dirt. A grind gives you versatility and higher percentage braking power every ride as long as you maintain your grind.

Smooth rims are like tar, it works great if things are perfect. Any contaminants and you're screwed.



I have been grinding for 5-6 years, never had an issue with it. If you can grind a hole through a side wall using proper grinding techniques, you dont ride and obsessively grind for no reason lol
^ Yeah, all correcto. Grinding isn't as big of a deal as matt makes it. Grinds always work way better than smooth setups in my experience. They feel quite differently too. A well setup grind is usually really bitey and has lots of hold. A good smooth setup is usually loud and sticky. Tar makes this worse...

Damon rides a smooth setup because he doesn't need to. He only rides like once or twice a month now, so there's no need for him to grind.
flag mattthibeautrials
Posted: Dec 25, 2009 at 10:37 Quote
Hey hey whattt. I love grinding aha. Im just saying, If you dont need to grind , dont Razz Ofcourse it wont ruin your rim ect, I just ride with a lot of people who are in the street scene and prefer smooth rim. But Yah if you want to ride natrual stuff, or live in canada lmfao, grind

I wasnt putting grinding down at all, I want to emphasize that I GRIND TOO. Just you dont need to grind to have a good brakeSmile
flag scooter254
Posted: Dec 25, 2009 at 13:34 Quote
thanks for the feedback guys. I will run it smooth for awhile and then grind, That way I can get the full effects of the grind.

I am building up a set of Echo TR hoops in anodized blue to ZHI hubs
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