What are the recommended rider weight limits for Zipp wheels?

CSC, Cyclocross, Clydesdale and track versions of our wheels have no weight limit, ( your bike frame limits should be checked too). The ZED6 and ZED8 wheels with the super-stiff laminate option would also have no weight limit, if these are also built using the 24 hole rear spoking option (not the standard 18 spoke rear lacing).

For our other Zipp wheels, we recommend:

185 lbs (85kg) for 202,
200lbs (90kg) for 303, 343,
225lbs (102kg) for 404, 606, 808 wheels
Roadies >>200 lbs and triathletes >>220 lbs should consider the Clydesdale version for improved lateral stiffness. (You can buy the wheels without the Clydesdale decals if you so wish).

Larger and more powerful / aggressive riders need more spokes, cross lacing pattern, traditional flanges, shorter spokes and/or deeper rims to get the wheel stiff enough for adequate and safe power transmission.

My dust caps rattle on my Zipp hubs how can I fix this?

The carbon dust caps are held in place on the axle cap by a couple of rubber grommets. The reason they are making a racket is that this grommet has come unseated and is allowing the cap to move freely. To fix find a couple of 5 mm allen keys and insert one into each axle cap on the hub (where the quick release runs through). Work these wrenches against each other (standard right hand thread) to loosen one end cap. Remove the axle and reseat the grommet against the back of the dust cap. You may even want to put down a bead of super glue or quick set epoxy behind the grommet to ensure that it does not move again. Allow glue to dry fully, reinstall axle, torque end caps to 55 in lb (88 in lb rear) and go ride.

My Zipp hub has play in it. How can I remove it?

The zipp hub is different from most hubs in that it does not side load the bearings to remove play in the hub (think traditional cup and cone set-up). Our hub is designed such that the bearing race on the axle is aligned with the sealed bearing when the end caps on the axle are properly torqued. Since the axle is not press fit into place it will have some lateral movement when the wheel is unweighted. Once a rider's weight is added to the system, the bearing becomes loaded vertically and the play then disappears. By designing the hub this way, it is possible to extend bearing life and make a hub that will turn much smoother leading to a faster wheel.

Why is Zipp not building wheels with hidden nipples? Doesn't having the nipple exposed increase the drag on the wheel?

Actually, we did consider offering an option of having our wheels built with internal nipples since it is all the rage currently. Common sense told us that by hiding the nipple, we would be making a wheel with less drag. We then built some prototypes for testing. Surprisingly, in our testing we found that hiding the nipple on our rims makes no less drag than having the nipple exposed at all wind angles. This, as it turns out, is due to the unique cross section of our rim. Our 360 rim makes the wind think that it is 70mm deep. Therefore, the final 12mm of spoke is shielded allowing us to keep the nipples exposed for ease of wheel maintenance while not increasing drag.

How come Zipp hasn't come out with a full carbon clincher rim yet?

The short answer is that we don't really want to have a full carbon clincher on the market. The reasoning behind this is that the technology has not yet advanced to make available reliable, durable, safe full carbon clinchers. Carbon is a wonderful material and everyday more is learned about how to work with it. However, at this point in time, no one has learned enough to overcome the three main forces a clincher rim has to overcome. The first force is an outward force on the clincher bead exerted by the pressure of the tire. The second hurdle to overcome is the tremendous heat generated by heavy braking. The final force to overcome is impact. Consider the following scenario. You start a ride with a tire pressure of 160 psi. Your ride takes you up into the mountains and (obviously) down the other side. On the way back down, you will be braking heavily occasionally. It is not uncommon for the surface of a carbon rim to reach temperatures in excess of 250 degrees Fahrenheit (121 C). With this increase in temperature, your tire pressure has suddenly gone to almost 200 psi. This excessive pressure forces the clincher beads apart. This force compromises the impact resistance since the beads are no longer parallel, but rather bowed outward. If the wheel takes a hit, the impact will sheer the sidewall of the rim off causing the tire to blow off. Granted, this scenario requires many variables to come into place which simply will not happen 99% of the time. However we have been able to replicate this failure in our testing and have decided that it is not yet feasible to produce a full carbon clincher rim and have devoted our focus to producing lightweight, durable carbon/alloy clincher rims that, on average, only weigh about 75 grams more than their full carbon counterparts.

Is my track axle bent?

The '06 track axle is a composite part of aluminum and stainless steel, and gives the optical illusion of being bent. Here are drawings that show the construction.
Solid view
Section view