Hole in Red Fire rim

[flyingdog]

Hi all,

I have just recently bought a Fulcrum Red Fire wheel set which I imported from an online store in the UK. When I unpacked the wheels, I noticed a 3mm hole in the side wall of each rim. Can anyone tell me if this hole is meant to be there? The rims are sealed (tubeless) and I've emailed Fulcrum to ask this question but to date have had no response.

I did get a phone call from customs when the wheels landed in Australia asking if there were tyres on the wheels and other seemingly crappy question. This makes me think that customs might have drilled holes in the wheels to check for the good shit!?!?

If anyone has had any similar experiences could you let me know.

 

[moorey]

People found similar in stans rims when removing rim tape in an thread 6 months ago.....meant to be there, guessing the same story :noidea:

 

[The Duckmeister]

You'll be able to tell if the hole is meant to be there or not by looking at it. A factory-fitted hole will have been drilled prior to the rim being anodized, so the sides of it will have the same finish as the rest of the rim. An aftermarket hole will show nice shiny bare metal and possibly some burring from the drilling.

PS: Where on the rim are we talking? My XT wheels have breather holes in the sides venting the inner passage of the rim to the outside. The tyre-carrying section is still fully sealed. Sound similar?

 

[creaky]

Looks like it is a full sealed UST inner rim bed. The holes in the side will be for breathing / venting with temperature changes, as the duck man said.

Your heroin stash should still be intact.

 

[Cúl-Báire]

Looks like it is a full sealed UST inner rim bed. The holes in the side will be for breathing / venting with temperature changes, as the duck man said.

The hole is likely put there prior to pinning and welding the rim, it will be there to vent the gasses from welding.
You will notice also a similar thing on on steel, alloy, ti frames that have closed tubes.

 

[0psi]

Might also be there to let water out.

My carbon rims also have little holes in the rim which are solely there to let water out.

Also means you can smuggle coke without having to damage your wheels.

 

[Art Vanderlay]

Might also be there to let water out.

My carbon rims also have little holes in the rim which are solely there to let water out.

Also means you can smuggle coke without having to damage your wheels.

Or having to shove it up your clacker

 

[flyingdog]

Cheers everyone for your replies, my mind (and clacker) is now at ease. The hole is in the section of the rim near the spoke holes and doesn't affect the sealing of the tyre. Makes sense when you think about it to allow expanding/contracting etc.

Thanks again.

 

[0psi]

Or having to shove it up your clacker

Ruin all my fun out: