damaged wheel - pics

[FzPilot]

I need your opinion gents.

I've done a very stupid thing I've gotten stuck on a freeway with another flat tire (second one in 3K miles) Knowing that I'll be ordering a new one, I drove very slowly on the flat.
Everything was fine until I was forced to go over a small pothole... I bent one side of the rim.

Please look at the pic and let me know what you think, do I need a new wheel? (God I hope not) should I attempt to pound it out with a rubber mallet? should I really worry about it?


Thanks a bunch any input is greatly appreciated!

[christod1]

Sorry to see that you damaged your rim. The tire is tubeless so I wouldn't recommend you trying to fix it yourself. You don't want to be doing 100mph and suddenly have the tire blow up. I think you can have it repaired though. Sorry I cant help you where you can get fixed but look into it before buying a new rim...

[FZ6inNH]

They can be fixed so long as there are no cracks but I'd let a pro do this. Trying to pound it back into shape could cause more damage. The wheel needs to be brought back to spec using special equipment. Sorry to see this man! No idea what the cost would be... See if you can find a local shop.

[Elm]

I'm looking very carefully at those pictures (nice pics by the way).

Claud, The Iridium Terrorist, Raid the Revenge and I think it's fine. Leave it the way it is, but make sure there are NO CRACKS. Thus far, I see none, but the circumference of the rim will need to be checked. When you get the tire off, have a look at the inside of the rim and make sure to rebalance it after.

[snowmannn]

This is repairable. You need to find a motorcycle tyre shop that has the necessary equipment. Some time ago I had a rim fixed - they first warm the rim so that it gets softer and then change its shape as close to the original as possible.

BTW buy one of those foam sprays for flat tyres that are really small, cheap and help a ton to get your bike home safely. The idea is that you insert the foam (which is under pressure) into the tyre through the valve and it hardens enough to keep your tyre expanded (almost like normally pumped up one).

[Coskie]

Good news and bad news:

Good:
It's repairable, as everyone else said, as long as there are no cracks.

Bad:
Bent rims cause hops and skips in transit and make balancing the wheel a very daunting challenge. Let the pro repair it and balance it when they put the new tire on. This transfers the liability in case anything happens from you (if you fix it) to the shop (if they fix it).

I would advise you never to use fix-a-flat unless you're in a dire emergency. Not only does it gunk up the inside of the rims, but it eats away at the inside of the tire. If you're replacing the tire, no problem, but if you're going to plug the tire and use it again, do not use fix-a-flat.

[wrightme43]

aluminum wheel repair
Like it says ask for Chad. LOL

Its in Adairville.
from: bowling green ky to: adairville ky - Google Maps

If that ever happens again man, just give me a call. I have a truck, a extra front a rear tire that are still good and the stuff to change them.

Also do not run with the tire rim like that. even if it seals, it can leak over a hard bump, and lose pressure, and there you go for a ride. Just my opinion though.
I know you wouldnt take off in a airplane that was less than right. Same on a bike.

[reiobard]

that is absolutely fixable, just do a search around for repair shops that work with rims, usually it is about $50 or $60, but that looks fairly minor compared to some rims that i have seen fixed.

[FzPilot]

Gents, thank you very much for your prompt responses!
I was quoted $180 dollars (plus some other odd charges) to have the rim fixed. So I went to my trusted Suzuki/honda dealer that always works on my bike (i cannot stand my yamaha dealer) and I was told by pretty much everyone in there that damage is very minor and will not affect the performance in any way.

So new tire is on and I'll be re-installing everything again tomorrow! Hopefully no more flats for next 12 months!

Thanks again!!!

[mdr]

So you're ignoring the advice to fix it and just mounted a new tire??? Everyone has their own tolerance for risk but you just exceeded mine. I would have had it fixed properly.

Had that problem with a car and it cost me $300 per rim to have both right side low profile rims fixed and new tires mounted. (It was a hella big pothole!)

Hotei