#1 How to keep your Mavic Carbone SL quiet...
Let's
admit it, Mavic
Carbone SL wheels, and any other deep dish wheels are incredibly sexy.
There is no ifs ands or butts about it. They just are, and
they are a young mans game. But one seriously annoying thing
about them, besides the crosswind factor and the weight, are that they
are really fricking loud! Yes, they make that confidence building
wooooosh wooooosh noise as you gorilla them up to speed, but they also
make a crazy loud noise everytime you hit a
bump. Going through Belmont, where the residents are too elitist
to have the roads repaved, is like riding through a loud landmine where
my wheels are the instrument and my shattered soul is the audience.
Why does this happen?
The outer diamter of the tube
valve does not match the inner diameter of the valve hole. As you
go over a bump, the shock allows the valve to smack against the side of
the valve hole, making a noticeably loud, scary, and annoying noise to
all those around you.
In the past, others have tried using tape
to keep the valve from doing its thing. I came accross a much
more elegant solution while at the hardware store. Observe...
 For
a mere 23 US cents you
can buy these rubber O-ring donuts. Yes I do realize that an
o-ring failure caused the Challenger crash, but I doubt that we
will be riding in sub 200 degree weather. Find one that fits
perfectly over
the valve stem. Do not focus on the phalic nature of this
procedure. Pull the o-ring down so that it rests between the
valve and the valve hole. It
should fit snugly between the valve and the valve hole, thus
restraining the valve stem and silencing your awesome wheelset.
If the valve stem is threaded, I will screw the metal washer that
comes with the valve stem to really secure the o-ring.

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1) How to keep your Mavic Carbone SL quiet.
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