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. >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com. >> To view this discussion on the web visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/9d0483ec-84ce-4b7f-924d-eb6849982cc1n%40googlegroups.com >> >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/9d0483ec-84ce-4b7f-924d-eb6849982cc1n%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> . >> > > > -- > > ----------------------------------------------------------------------- > Patrick Moore > Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/607ee42e-7234-4d3b-bd2b-926bb8082544n%40googlegroups.com.
