I’ve been anxiously waiting for my Renn disc to arrive for several weeks now. I spoke with Frank today, and the soonest that he MIGHT have one to ship me is tomorrow. This means that I’d have to have him ship it to the hotel that I’m staying at, and I probably won’t get a chance to ride it at all before the race (except for maybe a spin around the block). Do I risk racing my first IM on a wheel I haven’t ridden at all or just stick with my ol’ Rolf Vector Pro on the rear? Even if I had received it sooner, I probably wouldn’t have ridden it more than once before the race, so I don’t know how much I should be worried about this.
As far as I’m concerned the golden rule of racing is “never try anything new in a race” equipment, clothing or nutrition. That being said, if you have a tubular Renn disc, you would have to glue it up and mount it at least a day ahead of the race to make it safe to ride. Assuming it is a tubular, your other option is to use Tufo pressure activated mounting tape instead of glue and then there’s no problem riding it immediately, except you have to carry an extra pack of mounting tape with you in the race.
If the disc is a clincher, then it’s up to you. The Vector Pro isn’t a bad wheel to race on though. Incidentally, I have a Renn disc and the Vector Pro’s and like them both.
Richard
Sorry- should have clarified… 700c clincher (I know, I know) so there’s no stretching/gluing time issue. I already have the tube, rim tape, and cassette ready to go, and I could easily slap them on in time to race on.
Frank rushed my disc to me last summer the day before and oly race. I used the pressure tape to glue on new tufo tubulars (also had a new HED 3 on the front). I slaped on the cassete and everything seemed fine on the work stand. In the race I had some shifting problems because things did not line up as they did with my everyday wheels. I took both sets of wheels to the LBS after the race and they shimmed things so I can switch the wheels with no problems. If you, like me are no deraileur wiz, maybe you can get a mechanic at the race to give things a quik turn. It sure is fun racing on that disk and faster riders enjoy passing guys with discs 
Do you need to use rim tape on a Renn clincher disc?
Do it. But I do have one question: Why in the **** did you get a clincher? (just kidding)
Re: "Do you need to use rim tape on a Renn clincher disc? "
I asked Frank, and he said you don’t need to tape the whole rim, but he recommended a little bit around the valve hole.
Re: "Why in the **** did you get a clincher? "
Damn it!! I was hoping you wouldn’t bust me on this I’m with you on the integrated headsets (though it probably won’t stop me from buying a P3) and on the helmets, but I’m just plain scared of tubulars- no better explanation than that. Thanks for the reply on the wheel. I’m REALLY hoping Frank can come through for me, but it’ll be tight.
Hey- it’s your bike and I can only suggest the way to win. Tubs are nothing to be scared of, especially in the age of Tufo tyre tape.
I hope he can get it to you. He has had a tough way to go the past month with power outtage, and things of the like.
Of course, this is prudent advice. Although, I go against it all the time…“sort of a do as I say, not as I do” situation. The first race of the season this year I raced my bike with less than 5 miles of “testing” after I assembled it. I was a bit concerned about the handling of the new bike being strange…but, those worries were erased immediately because it handled so well. A lot depends upon your faith in your abilities as a wrench, as well as faith in the bicycle manufacturer…I had more faith in the latter than the former, but, I was sure I had everything working correctly, so I raced it almost right out of the box. Glad I did, too!
The shifting due to changing wheels can be a problem, though. Find your rear derailler instructions and follow them on the setup. If you’re lucky, you won’t have to change the settings between wheels, and, as stated, you can have them shimmed to make them all match up if that is a problem.
But, unless it is very windy and you are very small, I wouldn’t be concerned about running a new Renn disc in a race…adjust that derailler and brake pads (don’t forget THAT adjustment!) if needed, and you’ll be fine. Oh, and leave it fully aired up overnight in case you pinched the tube or have a bad tube…at least you’ll have a chance to reload a new tube if it is flat in the morning.
After you make your final decision, whatever it is; forget about it, don’t look back, and have a fun race!
I just got a Renn Disk this week. (Tub) I put a cassette on it last night and rode it for a few miles, The disk rim is slightly wider than my normal rims and the disk was slightly out of true so a little brake adjustment might be needed before I race on it, but I was able to align the disk to get a few miles on it last night. Depending on your pump you may or may not be able to air it up. My pump has one of those behemoth heads for both presta and shrader (got to be able to pump up my daughters soccer ball) so even bending the valve out didn’t work for me but a crack pipe works fine. I would say that if everything goes good with getting it set up and you get a chance to ride it, then race it. If not, don’t stress and dance with the girl (rolf) you brung.
Thanks all. I think I’m going to risk it. I spoke with Frank this morning, and he has really come through. The wheel in being UPS’ed to the hotel that I’ll be at tomorrow. I’ve got a cassette, rim tape, tube, tire, and “crack pipe” all standing by. I’ve also found an LBS there that’s open until 6, so if I get the wheel in time to build it and try it and I have any issues I can pop over and have them check it out. Thanks for the warnings about the brake and der adjustments.
Kudos to Frank for tremendous service and an awesome wheel! I got my wheel at 3:00 on Friday at the hotel. I threw a tire and cassette on it, adjusted the rear brake cable a little, and I was good to go- didn’t even have to adjust the rear der. The wheel was just awesome on race day, even though it’s a clincher
Chalk up another whole-hearted supporter of Renn discs.
you looked like you were having fun out there. I was having a blast on the BMW hehe