Fixing a damaged rim ....

[slowkitty]

Dear all,

Some of you may know that I am restoring a M900ie.  Thought that I share a bit of what is going on.  

One of the victims of the crash was a damaged front rim; basically chunks off the edge of the rim:



Although the damage seems merely cosmetic (the bead still seal well), it is after all a Ducati and so the finished bike deserves better.  A new wheel will be spendy (and I am too cheap); and I was considering the easier way out of puttying and then painting the wheel.  However, I want to powdercoat the rims for added durability and protection given their proximity to the tarmac; and hence putty is not an option with powdercoating.

The fix: aluminium weld along the rash / missing chunks, like so



then hand file using a mix of rough and smooth metal files along the rim and then sand it down with various grades of sandpaper until this is achieved:





Care has to be taken during the whole process to ensure that the bead is not damaged by filing, and that the surface being prepped are smooth-flowing. Well worth it, I'll say and after this it will be off to the powercoaters for nice new skin.

Cheers

[Raux]

need to check out of round and balance also.

[slowkitty]

Yes, that will be done.  The balance I am not too concerned about since it's part of fitting a new tyre.

Now contemplating whether to powdercoat the frame.

Cheers

[He Man]

looks good! if you have the bike down to its parts and you want a color change/ the frame does need to be pained i would just go for it.

[Speeddog]

Thanks for posting this.

Not many folks who come here take the time to make their eighteenth post nearly a 'how to', with pictures.

[somegirl]

Thanks for posting this.

Not many folks who come here take the time to make their eighteenth post nearly a 'how to', with pictures.

+1

[slowkitty]

Thanks for the encouragement.  

Perhaps a little bit about me.  I basically have a non-technical education and picked up mechanical knowledge while working on bikes.  I ride and work mainly on BMW bikes, and is doing this restoration for a friend to learn about the Ducati.  Apart from the 916, the Monster is the only other Ducati that I admire, for its elegant simplicity.  I have no mechanical knowledge of Ducati bikes and that is something I want to learn through this project.  Doing stuff to bikes (apart from cooking) is sort of therapeutic for my mental well-being.   You can see some of the crash damage here ...

http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=33180.0

Will try to post when I can, sometimes fixing stuff I get carried away and do not take pics.  Will try to remember updating this thread with the finished rim

Have a Great 2010, ya?

[Langanobob]

The fix: aluminium weld along the rash / missing chunks, like so...

Slowkitty, from the picture that looks like an oxyacetylene weld?  Whatever it is, it looks pretty good.  What did you use and what filler/rod?

Thanks,

Bob

[slowkitty]

Hiya,

The welding was done by a chap who weld car rims professionally, this was his first bike rim job though.  He was telling me how demanding it was given the relatively smaller damaged area (and hence less forgiving). An aluminium filler was used, unfortunately I did not notice the alloy grade or the brand.

Cheers

[koko64]

Wow.
Looking forward to seeing where you take the rebuild.


Cheers
Tony