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AH3000 taping the inner nipples on wire wheels

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davidb

davidb

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Afternoon gents

Yeah, I thought the word "nipple" might grab your attention.

Here's an interesting little situation that you probably all have encountered. I picked up a very nice used wire wheel for use as a spare. Since I didn't have one of those rubber bands that cover the inner nipples, I used a thin light coat of oil to keep the ends from rusting, and wrapped the whole mess (both upper and lower nipples) with several rounds of good electrical tape.

I don't use the car heavily so I don't think heat buildup is an issue.

Anyone else do this, or forsee problems with this solution? I couldn't find any discussions on the "Search" feature, although as usual, I did find lots of other stuff that A. I didn't know, B. I should be concerned about, C. I wish I would have done, and D. I haven't got a clue how to do it.

Thanks and cheers
Dave
 
I've seen it done (not that that means it's a good thing). Tubes squirm and chafe--that's why they're talced-up--and I've had a tube spring a leak from the chafing (I run tubeless now). With the tube squirming and chafing--and since electrical tape tends to unravel into a gooey mess eventually--you'll probably eventually expose the spoke nipples and you might have a problem. But, for a spare I wouldn't worry too much about it.

OTOH, since there is a concern it might be worth scaring up a liner--I think any good tire shop would have them.
 
From a relatively large (650 x 15 say) inner tube, you could probably cut a band 2-3" wide, and use that to cover the spokes.

Electrical tape has a *memory* and will try to return to its original length. Whenever you wrap something with (plastic/PVC electrical) tape, relax on the last few laps, and apply it without stretching it. You'll find that it doesn't tend to unravel itself (you don't see it unraveling as an unused roll, unless it is exceptionally cheap__3M 33+ is the electrical tape choice of us professionals).
 
Silicone fusion tape would most likely work. It has no adhesive and fuses to itself. Since it is silicone heat would be no problem. I love this stuff. I got my last roll from Ace Hardware.

Doug
 
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