Nisi Sludi 390 rims - AVOID!

Last October, I bought some handbuilt wheels (Selcof branded Novatec hubs, Sapim Laser spokes and Nisi Sludi rims) from Planet X.

A few weeks ago I was leaving work, rounding a corner, not more than 15 km/h and the bike started suddenly skipping sideways and basically frightened the holy bejeezus out of me. On inspection the rim had failed at the weld. This was not like a spoke failure.

Planet X will not give me a refund but have graciously offered to replace the rim with a new one under warranty. I've pointed out that I have a wife and two kids so this might not be a good idea :- I wouldn't want the same thing to happen on a 50 km/h corner. With more revs and more energy in the wheel, this could have all gone South very quickly... 

Welds are tricky things if not done right or inspected and aluminium welds are never as strong as the parent material so in a sense they are always weak links but many welded rims are fine if engineered and manufactured right. I have asked PX to send this specimen back to Gipiemme and consider a safety recall, but in the meantime IF YOU VALUE YOUR LIFE AS I DO, AVOID THIS RIM!!!!