Talk Me Out of Building My Own Wheels

[Steven Seelig]

So with COVID and all, I've decided that now is the time to do stuff that I haven't ever done before.  Learning to speak French is perhaps a bridge too far - not so good at language.  But it seems reasonable to think that I can at least build a front wheel with a Dyno hub to put on the Sam I ride in the means streets of DC and on some gravel.  

I have a truing stand but not a dishing tool.  I would say I am a competent wrencher.  Of course anyone who has built up a wheel did it once for the first time.  Is this something I should take on?  What are the odds for success?  Will I quit in frustration?

Points of view encouraged.

[Patrick Moore]

Do it. I've built exactly 1 wheel, to try it, and it served me well for a few thousand miles. This was a 36-hole non-dished wheel for a fixed drivetrain, and following Sheldon Brown's instructions it was surprisingly easy without having to dish or give different tensions to R and L sides. I took me slightly over an hour, IIRC, at any rate, less than 2 hours.

I had no wheel building stand or any other wheel-specific tools except a spoke wrench.

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Patrick Moore

Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum

[Eric Daume]

I’ve built a handful of wheels with only a truing stand. They’ve all come out fine. I find Jobst’s book to have the clearest instructions. You can check dish by flipping the wheel over. 

Ironically, I started building my own when the expensive custom wheel I got from my LBS detensioned completely after one ride. Mine have held up much better!

Eric

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[Collin A]

I am about to start a wheel rebuild (for the first time) by replacing the existing rims with a lighter rim of a similar ERD. Should be pretty straight forward, but...I'll let you know how it goes, ha! Also interested in other's points of view on wheel builds as well.

Cheers,

Collin in Sac

[milessc...@gmail.com]

Although I agree with Patrick, I will say that my first wheel built took me significantly longer to build! It's a good experience though. If I were to chip in more advice it would be to pay careful attention because if you make a mistake early on it often means undoing many steps to correct it. 

Best of luck!

-Miles

[George Schick]

I agree with the comments here and I'd say go ahead and build it, too.  The first couple of wheels I built by myself (dating back to the late 70's) were disasters - forgot to pay attention to placing the valve stem hole in the rim where the spokes are wide apart, ordered the wrong length spokes so that there was barely enough thread to accommodate the nipples, etc.  But as time went along I caught on to the various details, consulted good advice (like Sheldon's), worked slowly and methodically.  The last wheel I built, or rather re-built due to a bad crash back in '04 that taco'd the rim, used the same spokes along with a new rim.  That wheel has never been touched since and it's still true with no broken spokes ever.  BTW, I have to take exception with the advice about the dishing stick. No, you don't absolutely have to use one, but they sure make things easier.  And simple ones are relatively inexpensive, as cheap as $30-$40, so why not just add one to your tool set.

[lconley]

I built wheels for years with the sidepull brakes on the bike as the truing stand. Reversed the brake pads and let the acorn nut heads be the side to side, rubber banded a small combination wrench across the brake pads to do the up and down. It can be done - did it that way for decades. A few years ago, I got a truing stand, then a dish gage, then a tension gage, then a stand centering tool, then dial indicators. I also started using spoke prep and never-seize. I am somewhat faster now, but my rims are much, much truer longer. I have built 3 pairs of wheels in the last few months - for my Rivendell Custom, Rivendell Cargo Bike, and just this past weekend - the Gus Boots Wilsen. Now I am getting really picky - making sure that the "Phil" lettering on the hub faces the spoke hole, from the side of the bike the rim decal on the left says "Velocity" on the rim decal on the right says "Cliffhanger" or "Quill" as the case may be. Its a slippery slope. I really enjoy building my own wheels - go for it. One side effect - I have even more wheels than bikes and I own way too many bikes.

Spoke prep, never-seize and tensioning gage were big improvements to quality. Dial indicators added speed, which adds to quality - I get the wheels truer now, before getting impatient and declaring "good enough."

Laing

Delray Beach FL

[Patrick Moore]

I used the frame as my stand. There was no caliper, so I hooked my hand around the seatstay and used my thumbnail as the truing gauge. Again, the wheel ended up true, and stayed that way with no maintenance for a couple of thousand miles. I was surprised at the results as well as at the ease of the job, frankly.

On Mon, Oct 19, 2020 at 10:39 AM lconley <lco...@brph.com> wrote:

I built wheels for years with the sidepull brakes on the bike as the truing stand. 

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[Garth]

     You'll be alright Steven. The difference to me between wheels built by me and wheels built by a dedicated professional is theirs are within tighter tolerances and they don't ever need touched, at least mine haven't and I have a 20 year old pair from Joe Young. They also do it much quicker of course.

   Jim Land on youtube has the best video of building/truing wheels I've seen, his way is presentation is very easy going and more intuitive than all the books that I once read, and hated.

"Just one more book Alice ... and POW .. right in the kisser !"

[Jeffrey Arita]

Steven,

Definitely do it!  If you are meticulous and patient, then you should be fine.  I have used Roger Musson's book along with his spoke length calculator - both have worked very, very well for me [16 wheel builds later]. 

I learned because my wife and I were about to embark on the TransAm back in 2016.  Since we were going to be unsupported, I figured I'd better be able to fix and repair a wheel.  That is one of the many good things that comes out of all this: you will be able to repair broken spoke(s) or nipple(s) anywhere, as long as you carry spare(s).  You will also appreciate something that is so light is able to carry you so far and so fast.   And no, we had zero problems on the TransAm (and beyond).

Fast-forward to late 2018: I finally decided to purchase a tensiometer (Park Tool's model).  I think it is a good investment.  It helps quantify the tension all the way around the wheel.  Their Wheel Tension App is quite good in illustrating this, IMO.  Yes, my previous wheel builds did have some significant imbalances (!).

If you are provided the priceless luxury of time, definitely move forward!

Good luck,

Jeff

On Monday, October 19, 2020 at 8:25:58 AM UTC-7 Steven Seelig wrote:

[Shoji Takahashi]

I second that, i.e., lace up your own dyno wheel. I built my first wheel a few years ago and a few more since. Nothing fancy: 32-hole 3x front and rear; I'm 155# and just riding along. My first attempt at wheelbuilding lasted the life of the rim without having to retouch it, so I call that a success.

I read Jobst Brandt's The Bicycle Wheel and few other online resources. It might be helpful for an overview, but I think the Sheldon Brown website covers wheel building well. I still use the Sheldon Brown site as a my go-to for step-by-step instructions when lacing.

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/wheelbuild.html#lacing

I use DT Swiss's spoke calculator. This is the part that still makes me nervous: I don't want to buy/rebuy spokes if I mess up the measurements. 

https://spokes-calculator.dtswiss.com/en/

I've bought my spokes and nipples from Wheelbuilder. Fast service; prices seem competitive. 

https://wheelbuilder.com/spokes-nipples/

For front dyno wheel, you won't need a dishing tool. I don't have a dishing tool. For rear wheels, I flip the wheel in the truing stand to check dishing. 

After my second wheel, I bought a Park Spoke tensiometer from someone on iBob or this list. That's made it a lot easier and faster for me to bring tension up on the wheels without exceeding the recommended tension. It's not necessary, but a nice "check" for me. 

I've never had to build a wheel under time constraints. (Nice thing about having N+1.) This is important for me, because I definitely take my time on lacing and then tensioning. 

Good luck!

shoji

Arlington MA

[Mark Roland]

I have threatened to build my own wheels for a number of years. Finally, this year, with the addition of a few Rivendell framesets that needed wider rims than I could filch from my stack of vintage stuff, I went for it.

I have had good success with Roger Musson's A Professional Guide to Wheelbuilding. You can download a copy for about $10 I believe.  Lots of good, straightforward instructions, advice, and tips. I had a question on a recent build (my bmx tribute wheels for my Susie!!)  and he replied via email within the hour. He breaks it down nicely so that my brain doesn't get overwhelmed. I like following the directions and having everything work out! The first pair I built are going strong, no adjustment needed. It's really very satisfying once you take the plunge. Sneak peek of my Susie hoops:

On Monday, October 19, 2020 at 11:25:58 AM UTC-4, Steven Seelig wrote:

[Eric Norris]

Thanks to everyone who has built wheels successfully for chiming in on this. I’ve always viewed building wheels as the kind of thing I want a trusted professional doing. I have a couple of top-notch wheelbuilders I trust who have built thousands of wheels. Building my own always seemed a little like home surgery—better to go to a pro.

OTOH, I started processing color film during Quarantine, which is something I resisted doing for years. Great results so far (but the consequences of failure are a poorly developed negative, not a wheel disintegrating on the way down a mountain).

Hearing that others have built successfully with basic tools is empowering. I may have to try it myself.

--Eric Norris
campyo...@me.com

Insta: @CampyOnlyGuy

YouTube: YouTube.com/CampyOnlyGuy 

On Oct 19, 2020, at 11:06 AM, Mark Roland <absolut...@gmail.com> wrote:

I have threatened to build my own wheels for a number of years. Finally, this year, with the addition of a few Rivendell framesets that needed wider rims than I could filch from my stack of vintage stuff, I went for it.

I have had good success with Roger Musson's A Professional Guide to Wheelbuilding. You can download a copy for about $10 I believe.  Lots of good, straightforward instructions, advice, and tips. I had a question on a recent build (my bmx tribute wheels for my Susie!!)  and he replied via email within the hour. He breaks it down nicely so that my brain doesn't get overwhelmed. I like following the directions and having everything work out! The first pair I built are going strong, no adjustment needed. It's really very satisfying once you take the plunge. Sneak peek of my Susie hoops:

<IMG_20201012_092530948(1).jpg>

<IMG_20201014_115739374(1).jpg>

On Monday, October 19, 2020 at 11:25:58 AM UTC-4, Steven Seelig wrote:

So with COVID and all, I've decided that now is the time to do stuff that I haven't ever done before.  Learning to speak French is perhaps a bridge too far - not so good at language.  But it seems reasonable to think that I can at least build a front wheel with a Dyno hub to put on the Sam I ride in the means streets of DC and on some gravel.  

I have a truing stand but not a dishing tool.  I would say I am a competent wrencher.  Of course anyone who has built up a wheel did it once for the first time.  Is this something I should take on?  What are the odds for success?  Will I quit in frustration?

Points of view encouraged.

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[Patrick Moore]

Eric: Did I sell the fixed wheel to you along with the Motobecane? If so, I wonder how well it stood up to your high mileage. That was the one wheel I've built.

If I didn't sell it to you, I wonder where the heck it went?

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[Eric Norris]

No, I got the frame and a few other bits. I found a pretty cheap set of pre-built wheels which have held up pretty well, probably due in part to the deep-section rims.

--Eric Norris
campyo...@me.com

Insta: @CampyOnlyGuy

YouTube: YouTube.com/CampyOnlyGuy 

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[Nat Lichten]

Do it! I built my first (and so far only) wheelset about a year ago. I bought Roger Musson’s ebook and found it fairly straightforward if I followed the instructions and took my time.

I used a cheap, flimsy stand off craigslist which worked fine. I would invest in a dishing gauge if I were to do it over again—I had a hard time getting this exactly right, and the front rim is a mm or two off center.

Overall I’m glad I did it. I haven’t had time to build more wheels, but as someone who likes to do their own wrenching it’s nice to know I can.

The wheels have held up fine, too, even through a head-on crash that totaled the frame I had them on.

-Nat,

Also in DC

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[Cyclofiend Jim]

Wheel building is deeply empowering. 

First one I did was a simple swap to a new rim - AASHTA.
(TL;DR = tape the rims together so the holes match and "walk" the hub over one spoke set at a time. That kind of demystified the crossing and such). 

First time full-from-scratch build went pretty well - with copious reading of Sheldon's writings and the Jobst book. Take breaks when you feel the operator tension exceed the spoke tension. 

I'd say a truing stand is a must-have, as is a good quality spoke wrench. Dishing tool... not so much - certainly not a deal breaker as the purpose is to keep the rim centered, which you can easily check with a flip.

- Jim

[velomann]

I would never try to talk someone out of building their own wheels. It's one of the most useful and satisfying skills I've acquired, and each build gets easier. There's an intense satisfaction to rolling - and rolling and rolling - on your own wheels. Each of mine has held up wonderfully. 

I took a class from Jude K when she was running Sugar Wheelworks, and I use a combination of her instructions and Sheldon's. Honestly, if you just follow Sheldon's online guide it's all you need.

Somewhere Grant wrote a list of something every cyclist should do at least once, and building a wheel was on the list. If someone wanted to dig that list up and re-post it that would be cool.

I own and use a tensiometer and dishing tool along with a truing stand and they are helpful but not necessary. For spoke prep I have always used boiled linseed oil - it works fine.

The advice I'd offer is what most others would or have said. Take Your Time, do regular and constant spoke tension relief as you bring the tension up (I take the wheel out of the stand constantly, put the axle on a board or stool, and push down on the rim 3 or 4 times - rotating around the rim - then flip and repeat.)

And keep a beer handy as you near finishing truing. This is when you really want to be relaxed and not in a hurry.

Mike M

[Todd G.]

So I’m probably beating the proverbial “dead horse” here, but I don’t think there is a more valuable skill for one to have than to have the ability to build and maintain your own wheels. Once you do it few times, it really starts to make sense. You will begin to see, understand and recognize all of the subtle, and not so subtle nuances of the art of wheel building. I really really enjoy it, and at times it really gets me to an almost meditative state.

Invest in the tools you will need. Don’t buy cheap tools either. Stick to Park, EVT (Efficient Velo Tools), Abbey etc, and you will not be sorry.

Enjoy the building process!

[Ed Carolipio]

No, we're not going to talk you out of building your own wheels. :)

One hint I haven't seen is, if you haven't done it before, re-tension an existing wheel for practice. Best done for machine built wheels since that exercise makes them a bit stronger so there's some utility that comes out of the work. That gives you a feel for the action-reaction cycle when turning the spoke wrench and the balance of bringing a wheel into true while increasing the tension.

Also, invest in a good spoke wrench - you're going to be doing a lot of turning. I got the DT Swiss Spokey classic per the posts on this board.

--Ed C.

[lconley]

This reminded me - the EVT (Efficient Velo Tools) Mulfinger Nipple Loading Tool - best $13 I ever spent. Sure beats those wooden toothpicks that I had been using.

Laing

[Teague Scott]

The wheel building section in the "library" on the Wheel Fanatyk site provides lots of excellent tips:

https://www.wheelfanatyk.com/wheelbuilding-library/

I built my most recent set of wheels after cogitating over many of the tips and guidelines laid out there and I'm happy as could be.

I did most of the work in the frame of the bike they were for. Once they were pretty much there I used a truing stand and tensiometer for the final twists of the wrench. If you have a decent ear you can tension to pitch! I almost got it!

- Teague in Boise

[Todd G.]

Absolutely worth the money. You can easily thread the nipple on a few threads with this thing and pretty much eliminate the chance of having to fish a nipple out of your rim. Sometimes they come out easy, other times no so much.

[ascpgh]

If you have the desire and time necessary to familiarize yourself with the process, determine the correct parts, materials and a quality nipple wrench. Go for it. Missteps will be taken as lessons rather than waste. If not that committed, it can be a frustration.

I built many of my own wheels and careful reading of a book (+1 on Eric's vote for Brandt's book) or viewing YouTube for instruction. Every set of wheels reiterated  the value of taking care in the selection of parts, preparations and process of assembly. It took a a wheel or two to nail it top to bottom. Never unrecoverable just things that affected how long before touch ups were needed. Overall, very rewarding, if you are realistic about the effort and time the first one will take. Not everyone's thing. 

In the years since not being at the bench it's harder to keep up with all the parts and the reports on their use. An active wheel builder has experience-based insight regarding that industry side, like how flat and round are certain brands' rims before lacing up. When I started my parts pile for my new bike I had to make the grown up decision that my bandwidth was full and to have a builder recommend rims and spokes to go with my hub choices, weight, bike format and intended load use. Having the ability to say "been there, done that", it was money well spent in my situation. 

Andy Cheatham

Pittsburgh

[Nick Payne]

It's not that difficult, and the only tool you need to try it is a spoke key. I've been building my own wheels for more than 40 years, and for or the first 20 of those years, I didn't bother with a truing stand or a tensiometer - I built the wheels in the frame, using a piece of card taped across the fork legs / seat stays to get correct dish and to true the wheel laterally and radially.

Nick

[Daniel M]

Piling on in favor of your building your own wheel. I bought Jobst Brandt's book and read it cover to cover twice before building my own wheel. The first half of the book is theory, the second is practice. You could easily skip straight to the instructions, and if you follow them carefully you will end up with a properly laced and tensioned wheel. Only drawback is that Jobst doesn't reply to email anymore...

I've now built six wheels: 2 dyno, 3 Rohloff, and one fixed, so nothing with extreme dish. I have beaten the first four of those to hell off road, touring, and off-road touring. It's been a great experience. I did buy a used truing stand, dishing tool, tensiometer and spoke wrenches from a mechanic before I started, but I could just as easily do it in the frame of a bike with a guitar pick. Anything you build carefully is likely to be better than a factory-built wheel that hasn't been touched up by a professional, which people buy and ride all the time.

You won't regret it!

Daniel M
Berkeley, CA

[Justin]

Just poking in to say that this is a great post. I've been wanting to build my first wheelset for a couple of years, and after trying to save a buck buying two 2nd hand wheelsets from the Owners Bunch, both of which had issues right from the start I done with that mess. I just need to breakdown and start building. So thanks everyone for chiming in with envouragement and your experience. 

[R. Alexis]

Steven,

Go for it!

I have built, rebuilt and trued up and redished many a wheel. Built my first wheelset using Wilderness Trail Bikes Classic Grease Guard freewheel hubs with Mavic 217, 26" rims for my 1991 Bridgestone MB-0(Zip) frameset. I worked at a bike shop at the time so I had The Bicycle Wheel book, Wheelsmith spoke calculator, Phil Wood spoke cutter, truing stand, dishing took and wrenches available along with the shop manager, who was a well accomplished wheel builder. I built the wheel at the shop when I had time.

Since that time I have built several wheels along with several rim and one hub transplant. I am meticulous. I got my own Park truing stand, dishing tool, ended up purchasing the Wheelsmith spoke calculator set and Phil Wood spoke cutter, that I sold. Also bought The Bicycle Wheel book and read it from cover to cover.

All the wheels that I have built seem to hold up. The rim transplant ones have ended up on bikes I sold. They seem to be working well. The hub transplant was a 36 hole SunTour Superbe Pro freewheel that replaced a Suntour XC-Comp cassette hub on a Araya VX-400(?) . The dimensions on the hubs were close and I spaced the freewheel hub to 132.5mm OLD to offer versatility, 

Currently I have one wheelset to build and two others I plan on replacing the alloy nipples with brass. Will probably get around to that this fall or winter.

Hope this helps.

Reginald Alexis

[True Golden]

Garth, did you mean Jim Langley for the YouTube wheel building video and perhaps auto correct screwed ut up?

I could not find a Jim Land wheel building video but found this Jim Langley one.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XUqul03hbZ8

...........

Garth wrote,

" Jim Land on youtube has the best video of building/truing wheels I've seen, his way is presentation is very easy going and more intuitive than all the books that I once read, and hated."

..............

Thanks for this thread and all who contributed. 

I'm another who has been on the fence about giving it a try. Perhaps this will get me motivated as well.

Paul in Dallas 

[tuolumne bikes]

Steven, the list members seem to have a hard time following instructions. Don't build your own wheels.

I have built two sets of wheels using the bikes as truing stands with blue masking tape across the seat stays/fork as a guide. Make sharpie marks on the tape as needed, and flip the wheels. I also used YouTube, an online spoke length calculator, a Phillips bit with one set of the fins ground off, a cordless drill, and a spoke wrench. Any competent professional could tell you my wheels suck, and building would certainly go faster with better tools and training. I've used them for five years without problems beyond the occasional truing that all wheels need. If you're planning on extended touring, have more money than time and aptitude, or are a bike abuser have a pro make some bombproof wheels.

Carl

[Garth]

Oh my yes Paul !   It was my error .... one of those deals where the hands don't quite follow the image of mind !  

I like his easy going manner and such.

[Drew Saunders]

Many years ago, I decided to try my hand at building my own wheels. Armed with a copy of Jobst Brandt's "The Bicycle Wheel," rims and spokes from Wheelsmith, I did manage to make a build a pair of wheels. The front was OK (until I crashed and bent it beyond repair), the rear wasn't a very usable wheel. I learned two things from my experience:

1: I will happily pay a professional to build my wheels. 

2: How to better true and maintain my wheels, which has been invaluable knowledge.

When I picked up a pair of clearance wheels from Supergo, armed with my knowledge of how incomplete machine-build wheels are, I followed the final tensioning (heavy gloves, lots of squeezing and flattening etc.) and truing instructions from Jobst's book and turned cheap off-the-rack wheels into quite good ones. They lasted for many years until a spoke pulled through the rear rim, and the front would still be going strong if I hadn't bought a Velocity-built pair from Riv to replace them. 

Go for it, at the very least, you'll have a better appreciation for what goes into building wheels, whether they're well built or poorly built.

Drew

[RichS]

Was not aware of the Jim Langley wheel building tutorial. Looks good. Garth and Paul, thank you for that reference. My go to support has reliably come from Jobst's and Sheldon's direction.

Will soon be embarking on a new 650b wheel build so the Langley video looks like a useful addition to my library.

Steven, one more plug for trying out a wheel build!

Best,

Rich in ATL

[John A. Bennett]

As long as Rich Lesnik walks the earth, I will not build my own wheels. 

John in Portland, Ore. 

[Toshi Takeuchi]

Yes! Rich is my hero and he builds all my wheels now, but back in the day I read Jobst Brandt and built 2 wheelsets and an additional front dyno wheel.  Hard to go wrong with a front wheel, so I say definitely go for it. I went to my LBS and asked them to use their spoke calculator and they bought me my spokes for the build.

Toshi in Oakland

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[masmojo]

I heartily encourage all wheel building efforts; I've built over 30 wheels and when it comes to bike builds now I just assume I'll be building wheels! 

I was just working on a wheel this evening and I thought there's like a hundred pointers I could give you, but it's all a bit much for me to jot down logically in a post and for you to remember as well, BUT here's a couple :

It's sort of like cutting wood, measure twice (maybe 3 times) and order spokes once!!!!

It can be a little hit or miss sometimes, because unless you have specialized measuring tools a MM here & a MM there can all sort of add up and before you know it, your spokes are 2mm too long (URGH!), if this happens don't freak out, give yourself a break, stash those away for another day and get some new ones! It happens even to the best builders, (although less the more experienced you get)

When you start, lace the spokes that go from the insides of the flanges FIRST; then the ones that exit the outside of the flanges last; trust me this will save you a ton of work!!!  and don't forget to cross the last spoke over the third spoke it crosses. (for a 3X)

Some pro touches?

Align the logo on the hub so that it faces the valve hole (not important just one of those things experienced wheel builders do)

Different colored nipples or even spokes on either side of the valve hole. (I frequently do this with nipples, but only once with the spokes themselves; most people don't have any extras lying around that the can sub in; it's byproduct of having built a fair number of wheels. :-)

Depending on what stand you are using you shouldn't need a dishing tool; I haven't used one in 39 years! My park stand centers the wheel and the rim so the wheel just comes out dished.

Have fun

[lconley]

Another great thing about building your own wheels is that you can build with used parts. I have developed quite a stash of used spokes and nipples and rims, less so with hubs - I usually have a purpose with the hubs, which is what results in the leftover rims, etc. I had a set of Peter White wheels that I have had for 9 years, still perfect, but the 48 spoke SON dyno front hub was perfect for my Riv cargo Bike and the Phil 48 spoke rear hub was perfect for the Gus Boots Wilsen, so they got disassembled and build onto wheels with much, much wider rims. My rims and tires are definitely getting wider as I get older.

The current wheel building challenge is some 28" (635) roadster rims (28H front, 40H rear) on a Flying Pigeon with some drum brake hubs instead of the rod brakes, I had a local wheel builder build them years ago, but they have never been correct (even the builder said so) - will not true up well. The brake side is a huge flange and the non-brake side is tiny. It appears that the correct way to build these is to mix cross patterns on different sides of the hubs instead of 3X on both sides. Note that newer Sturmey Archer drum brake hubs (Pashley Guv'nor) have large flanges on the non-brake side to avoid this dilemma.

Laing

Delray Beach FL

[Dan Sullivan]

When I build wheels (I've done maybe 4 or 5) I just lay the new wheel next to a built wheel and copy the spoke pattern.  I may have watched a video once; may have read something from Sheldon. Except for the one time when I threaded the spokes backwards (elbows out when they shoulda been in) I've never broken a spoke and they have stayed true. The time I broke one spoke I looked at the wheel and, oh duh, saw my mistake, turned the spokes around and it's been fine since.

I do have an ancient cast iron truing stand someone gave me and I use it but I've also just put the wheel in a frame and used the brake pads as guides -- leave the quick release (or straddle cable in the case of cantis) open until you get it pretty straight and then close them when it gets close to true. I don't claim to be a role model, but I have enjoyed building wheels.  One January at the Madison swap I scored a bunch of MA-2s and MA-40s, some new and some built on cheap hubs, and I have built several nice wheelsets as a result.  Still have a couple waiting to be put together when I need them.

Dan

sunny southern WI, with a chance of snow tonight

On Monday, October 19, 2020 at 10:29:39 AM UTC-5 Patrick Moore wrote:

Do it. I've built exactly 1 wheel, to try it, and it served me well for a few thousand miles. This was a 36-hole non-dished wheel for a fixed drivetrain, and following Sheldon Brown's instructions it was surprisingly easy without having to dish or give different tensions to R and L sides. I took me slightly over an hour, IIRC, at any rate, less than 2 hours.

I had no wheel building stand or any other wheel-specific tools except a spoke wrench.

On Mon, Oct 19, 2020 at 9:25 AM 'Steven Seelig' via RBW Owners Bunch <rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com> wrote:

So with COVID and all, I've decided that now is the time to do stuff that I haven't ever done before.  Learning to speak French is perhaps a bridge too far - not so good at language.  But it seems reasonable to think that I can at least build a front wheel with a Dyno hub to put on the Sam I ride in the means streets of DC and on some gravel.  

I have a truing stand but not a dishing tool.  I would say I am a competent wrencher.  Of course anyone who has built up a wheel did it once for the first time.  Is this something I should take on?  What are the odds for success?  Will I quit in frustration?

Points of view encouraged.

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[Mike Godwin]

I love reading this thread. Its great. My first wheelbuild was for my dirtbike, going from an 18 inch to 21 inch front wheel. Rode the heck out of it. IIRC cross 2, MC shop calculated the spoke length, stock drum brake hub laced to an Akront rim. I think I was 14 or 15 at the time. About 15 yrs later a coworker  wanted as quick and dirty as possible wheel build. I re-used spokes from a CA (cheap ass) bike and steel rims. Using Jobst Brandt's book for instruction, the wheel turned out fine but as another poster mentioned, the starting position was off by one spoke hole so the spokes were not parallel at the valve but crossing above it. My second wheel turned out with the spokes parallel at the valve stem, but like others, every fourth spoke was off. My 9 month old daughter was helping me at the time.  Many moons later and and close to 100 wheelsets, I keep riding. I always think about my wheel building capabilities when zooming down a hill at 35-40 mph (I hit close to 50 mph on my San Andreas Fault tour) and ... I am writing this email.  I think you would have to totally F-U the wheel for it to be hazardous. You will probably know there is a problem before it catastrophically flies apart.  Hey, the spoke-rim system has been around for centuries. What could go wrong? (ben hur chariot race)  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=frE9rXnaHpE

Mike SLO CA

[Chris in NZ]

Absolutely build your own wheels. I was sceptical a few years ago but was encouraged by a workmate to do it. Now have several sets with 1000s of kilometres on them.

I highly recommend Roger Musson’s ebook on wheel building. Includes guides on making your own tools and excellent building instructions. A piece of cardboard from a frame box and wooden skewer make a fine dish tool!

[David Person]

Steven, I had the same thought.  I've been tinkering with bikes for 40+ years but never delved into the mystery of wheel building, till now.  I purchased the requisite equipment and materials a couple months ago and built two sets of wheels, reusing some XT hubs from some 26" wheels I had sitting around, turning them into usable 700c wheels.  I'm now riding around on one set on my Hillborne.  I whole heartedly recommend an e-book by Rogen Musson - "Professional Guide to Wheel Building".  Very clear and concise instructions plus loads of other helpful info.

[Pancake]

Is this the video you were referring to? 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUqul03hbZ8

Jim Langley (not Land)?

On Monday, 19 October 2020 at 10:48:25 UTC-7 Garth wrote:

     You'll be alright Steven. The difference to me between wheels built by me and wheels built by a dedicated professional is theirs are within tighter tolerances and they don't ever need touched, at least mine haven't and I have a 20 year old pair from Joe Young. They also do it much quicker of course.

   Jim Land on youtube has the best video of building/truing wheels I've seen, his way is presentation is very easy going and more intuitive than all the books that I once read, and hated.

"Just one more book Alice ... and POW .. right in the kisser !"

[R Shannon]

It is indeed Jim Langley. Agree with Garth on how well the information is presented.

Best,

Rich in ATL

(Building a set of wheels right now)

Sent from my iPhone

On Mar 4, 2021, at 11:50 AM, Pancake <abe.g...@gmail.com> wrote:

Is this the video you were referring to? 

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[Mike Godwin]

Yep, build your own. I'm somewhere north of 100 wheel builds (not pairs), for friends and family, and self. I've used Brandt's method and over time picked up a truing stand, tension meter (both Park), and dishing tool (Minoura). My first wheels were done using the bike for a truing stand, and like others here, changing rims and just tensioning pre-built wheels. It is relaxing, a way to catch up on long neglected albums or CDs, and its rewarding to ride the wheels you built for thousands of miles.

Mike SLO CA 

[Den John]

If you don't want to cough up for a book, I found the Barnett Manual section on wheel building excellent. The system for spoke lacing is really clear and

systematic. I've probably built 10 or so sets of wheels, and with the BM I never got into trouble with lacing up. You should be able to find a pdf of an old edition

of the BM online.

I have a cheapish truing stand and dish stick that have lasted me nearly 10 years. A worthwhile investment IMO. You can bodge along with homemade tools but

I found as a beginner that it's less frustrating with the proper tools.

Johnny in Belgium