Help: slightly buckled wheel.
Andrew L. Roberts
managed to put a buckle in my back wheel last week and have since
suceeded in getting most of the wiggle out with a spoke key. The wheel
currently goes round fine, but I have to have the brakes a bit looser
than I would like. Some of the spokes are getting terribly tense - is
there any chance of one snapping? and I'm worried that the wheel may
become non-circular if I go to far. Also, should I try correcting the
problem with the tyre inflated or not. Is it possible that riding will
straighten the wheel a bit?
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| Andrew L. Roberts |"I don't pretend to understand the universe, |
+-----------------------+ it's much bigger than I am." --Einstein, I |
| robe...@unix2.tcd.ie | think, correct me if I'm wrong. |
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jobst_b...@hp1900.desk.hp.com
> Can anyone tell me how to eliminate slight buckles from a MTB wheel. I
> managed to put a buckle in my back wheel last week and have since
> succeeded in getting most of the wiggle out with a spoke key. The wheel
> currently goes round fine, but I have to have the brakes a bit looser
> than I would like. Some of the spokes are getting terribly tense - is
> there any chance of one snapping? and I'm worried that the wheel may
> become non-circular if I go to far. Also, should I try correcting the
> problem with the tyre inflated or not. Is it possible that riding will
> straighten the wheel a bit?
As I often do, I will again point to the book shelf of your local bike
shop for "the Bicycle Wheel", a must for any cyclist who has a spoke
wrench. So much for the commercial, and now a few suggestions.
Just tightening spokes to take out a force induced wobble will leave a
substantial imbalance in spoke tension, especially if the rim is a fairly
rigid one. For small wobbles (1/2 inch or less) the wheel can be bent back
into shape as is. Fine adjustment can be made by spoke adjustment. If the
wobble is larger, straightening the rim while it is under tension will cause
permanent yield dimples at each spoke because the rim will yield from the
combined force of spoke tension and straightening force. Such a wheel must
first be untensioned before beginning any straightening attempts.
Riding will not straighten the wheel. The rim must be bent beyond its
yield point of remove the wobble. Otherwise the spokes will always be
straining to overcome this bend at the expense of their normal duties of
supporting the bike. There is not sufficient margin for the spokes to
accomplish both jobs adequately. Of course if you intend to never stress
the wheel again, it probably won't matter.