Almost all the glue is off these wheels...

[TronnyJenkins]

If I don't know what brand of cement was last used on these wheels, do I need to get every last bit of glue off?
I've used a heat gun to good success for the last couple of hours, but I dunno how long it would take me to scrub every last bit of glue off with acetone... the acetone doesn't seem to be touching it that much.

Zipp 202 (10sp), plan to use Conti Carbon Cement (black tube), Conti Giro tires.

[11.4]

What color is the glue? Whitish milky? Yellowish clear? Pink? We can usually narrow it down.

Most glues just need to have the solvent work their way through the glue layer. Acetone is one of the safest and cleanest -- it can damage decals but on newer rims it takes quite a lot of abuse to affect the resins in the carbon. Acetone has two advantages: it cleans off without leaving oily residues (which inhibit the next glue job, and are typical of many solvents such as kerosene, diesel, white spirits, and so on) and it evaporates fast so it doesn't hang around enough to do much damage. But since it evaporates so fast, you either want to cover it somehow or you need to keep applying it until it soaks through, or both. I've been experimenting lately with putting the wheel in a truing stand, spinning it, and painting acetone on with a brush. Use a fairly good sized 3 or 4" cheap brush that will hold a decent amount of acetone. The glue will mess the brush up and the acetone will make the brush bristles fall out in time, so don't buy expensive. After you've done this a few minutes and the glue is feeling nice and sticky, just take a piece of gaffers' tape or even clear plastic packing tape and cover the tire bed on the rim. It doesn't have to be perfect and use some that's wider than the tire bed so you can get it on quickly. Then just leave it for an hour. It keeps the acetone from evaporating completely. Once you're that far, another coat or two of acetone will make the stuff sloppy enough. I've used scorps, filed down screwdrivers, you name it. If the glue is really soft, I just get the green Scotchbrite pads (harsher the better, but don't get ones with sponge attached and don't get ones with carbide grit), scrub hard, and throw them away. Wasteful, I know. The other alternative is to buy some galvanized electrical conduit, cut some one-foot sections, pop a crutch tip over one end and use the rough open end to slide along the tire bed and scrape up the glue. Instead of cleaning it when it gets unusable, just cut off the last two inches and keep going. Works well.

This has been covered in dozens of long threads. If you go over to Weight Weenies, there's a sticky thread that must be a few hundred pages long by now, all about gluing tubulars. It's worth the read.

[rnhood]

This reminds me of why I like clinchers so much.

[TronnyJenkins]

Originally Posted by 11.4

What color is the glue? Whitish milky? Yellowish clear? Pink? We can usually narrow it down.

Most glues just need to have the solvent work their way through the glue layer. Acetone is one of the safest and cleanest -- it can damage decals but on newer rims it takes quite a lot of abuse to affect the resins in the carbon. Acetone has two advantages: it cleans off without leaving oily residues (which inhibit the next glue job, and are typical of many solvents such as kerosene, diesel, white spirits, and so on) and it evaporates fast so it doesn't hang around enough to do much damage. But since it evaporates so fast, you either want to cover it somehow or you need to keep applying it until it soaks through, or both. I've been experimenting lately with putting the wheel in a truing stand, spinning it, and painting acetone on with a brush. Use a fairly good sized 3 or 4" cheap brush that will hold a decent amount of acetone. The glue will mess the brush up and the acetone will make the brush bristles fall out in time, so don't buy expensive. After you've done this a few minutes and the glue is feeling nice and sticky, just take a piece of gaffers' tape or even clear plastic packing tape and cover the tire bed on the rim. It doesn't have to be perfect and use some that's wider than the tire bed so you can get it on quickly. Then just leave it for an hour. It keeps the acetone from evaporating completely. Once you're that far, another coat or two of acetone will make the stuff sloppy enough. I've used scorps, filed down screwdrivers, you name it. If the glue is really soft, I just get the green Scotchbrite pads (harsher the better, but don't get ones with sponge attached and don't get ones with carbide grit), scrub hard, and throw them away. Wasteful, I know. The other alternative is to buy some galvanized electrical conduit, cut some one-foot sections, pop a crutch tip over one end and use the rough open end to slide along the tire bed and scrape up the glue. Instead of cleaning it when it gets unusable, just cut off the last two inches and keep going. Works well.

This has been covered in dozens of long threads. If you go over to Weight Weenies, there's a sticky thread that must be a few hundred pages long by now, all about gluing tubulars. It's worth the read.

Thanks- this in addition to the thread you mentioned will be helpful. I guess I wasn't using enough acetone to do the job, I know it's a 'hot' chemical (like my dad would say) so I was surprised it wasn't doing much.

For what it's worth, of those options it's yellowish/light brownish/clear. No pink or white tint.

[chiasticon]

11.4: nice suggestion with the acetone/tape deal. hadn't tried that one.

OP: when I get a new (used) wheelset with glue on it, I prefer to pull all the old glue off. for one, because I'm not 100% sure what they used and how it'll mix with what I'm using. and for two, so I can inspect the rim better (especially if carbon).

my most successful approach is a mixture of heat and either DeSolvIt Contractor's Solvent ($6 at Drug Mart) or Effetto Mariposa Carogna Remover ($20 via Amazon). first I'll try to get the big stuff off with heat; especially if there's CX tape involved too. if using Contractor's Solvent, I'll soak the rim in that (in a truing stand) then come back a bit later and scrape up what I can with a rag, possibly adding light heat. then soak what's remaining again. repeat until it's clean. if using the Carogna Remover, I'll just coat the glue with a generous amount of that, wait overnight and wipe it up. nine times out of ten that's enough (remember I still hit it with heat first). unless it's super old and nasty. so... the Solvent approach is much cheaper, but more time consuming and messier (and watch your decals).

the only issue with this is the heat and carbon. you have to be SUPER careful there or you'll kill the rims. my approach is to do one section (between two spoke holes) at a time, then spin the rim two about a third of the way around and repeat. never let any section get hotter than you're comfortable touching with your bare hands. if there's no section that's near other totally cold sections (i.e. still hot from previous spins), take a break until they are.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by TronnyJenkins

If I don't know what brand of cement was last used on these wheels, do I need to get every last bit of glue off?
I've used a heat gun to good success for the last couple of hours, but I dunno how long it would take me to scrub every last bit of glue off with acetone... the acetone doesn't seem to be touching it that much.

Zipp 202 (10sp), plan to use Conti Carbon Cement (black tube), Conti Giro tires.

No need to make it clean clean and don't waste your $ on 'carbon' tubular glue.

Panaracer ot Vittoria or Clement or Challenge tubie glue.

Behind a guy that flatted his clincher and watched him crash as the tire came off the rim....reminded me why I like tubulars so much.

[ultraman6970]

NO idea what potato said because i have not read his answer but, no you dont need to get crazy removing the other glue off the rim unless you have so much glue in there that the bead is pretty much flat, thing ive seen.

As for how to remove it? you can use fuel or mineral spirits, heat gun works aswell as you did.

Originally Posted by TronnyJenkins

If I don't know what brand of cement was last used on these wheels, do I need to get every last bit of glue off?
I've used a heat gun to good success for the last couple of hours, but I dunno how long it would take me to scrub every last bit of glue off with acetone... the acetone doesn't seem to be touching it that much.

Zipp 202 (10sp), plan to use Conti Carbon Cement (black tube), Conti Giro tires.

[TronnyJenkins]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

No need to make it clean clean and don't waste your $ on 'carbon' tubular glue.

Noted! Only spent $5/tube on this stuff, so not too pricey.

Originally Posted by ultraman6970

NO idea what potato said because i have not read his answer but, no you dont need to get crazy removing the other glue off the rim unless you have so much glue in there that the bead is pretty much flat, thing ive seen.

As for how to remove it? you can use fuel or mineral spirits, heat gun works aswell as you did.

The front wheel was very thick, almost flat so I knew it likely had to have some work done. Luckily I started with that wheel, so once I got the back wheel which had considerably less, it was 'easy'.

I can easily see the carbon through the glue, so I probably got it clean enough. I'll get all the little bumpy parts off for sure though.

I got the rims maybe a touch hotter than intended a couple times (barely untouchable, mostly just uncomfortable) but they're still very true and don't show signs of de-lamination or anything. Seem totally fine. Will use the heat/skip technique if I ever do this again.

[regularguy412]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

No need to make it clean clean and don't waste your $ on 'carbon' tubular glue.

Panaracer ot Vittoria or Clement or Challenge tubie glue.

Behind a guy that flatted his clincher and watched him crash as the tire came off the rim....reminded me why I like tubulars so much.

^^ True statement.

I tried a total of ONE tube of the 'carbon specific' glue. NNNNNNah. Regular ol' tubular glue works bettah.

Mike in AR

[TronnyJenkins]

I think I found (one of) the thread 11.4 was referring to. He probably recalled it so well since he was a primary contributor haha. Good info in there!

http://weightweenies.starbike.com/fo...ic.php?t=35677

[rwsaunders]

I've had pretty good luck with Goof Off and a rag. I know that you don't need to remove all of the glue but it makes me feel a little better to know that the last guy's glue is no longer my problem. I like to dig around and remove the glue from the spoke holes if that condition exists. I also wipe the rim when clean with Acetone in order to make sure that any Goof Off residue is not an issue as well.

[homagesilkhope]

Originally Posted by rwsaunders

I've had pretty good luck with Goof Off and a rag. I know that you don't need to remove all of the glue but it makes me feel a little better to know that the last guy's glue is no longer my problem. I like to dig around and remove the glue from the spoke holes if that condition exists. I also wipe the rim when clean with Acetone in order to make sure that any Goof Off residue is not an issue as well.

That's an hour's worth of wiping anyway, right, RW? (Yeah, I've got some OCD tendencies, too.) In the old days, we'd just let the glue build up and eventually lace a new ($35) rim.

Nice tricolore glove!

[tuscanyswe]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

No need to make it clean clean and don't waste your $ on 'carbon' tubular glue.

Panaracer ot Vittoria or Clement or Challenge tubie glue.

Behind a guy that flatted his clincher and watched him crash as the tire came off the rim....reminded me why I like tubulars so much.

What dont u like about contis glue?

[rwsaunders]

Originally Posted by homagesilkhope

That's an hour's worth of wiping anyway, right, RW? (Yeah, I've got some OCD tendencies, too.) In the old days, we'd just let the glue build up and eventually lace a new ($35) rim. Nice tricolore glove!

Yep, I'd say an hour's worth of therapy is involved in cleaning a set of rims to my liking. It's about the journey and not necessarily all about the destination, right?

[coachboyd]

I just want to come in here and make a safety point.

NEVER use a heat gun on a carbon rim! The carbon is held together with the resin, and if that heats up your carbon will deform and change shape. Using a heat gun is an absolute no-no for removing old glue!!