How to true a bicycle wheel

2 months ago
25

Detailed instructions on how to true a bicycle wheel

List of all the BikeGremlin YouTube videos, sorted by topic (and cycling/mechanics articles):
https://bike.bikegremlin.com/youtube/

Table of contents:
00:00 Introduction
00:24 1 a) Preparation of spokes, nipples and the rim for truing
01:28 1 b) Loosening all the spokes
- for finished wheels with a greatly uneven spoke tension, it is better to loosen all the spokes, check the state of the rim, then screw them back equally
- when building a new wheel, the spokes are already loose after lacing the wheel, so this step is not needed
02:19 2. Initial screwing in of all the nipples, so they are equally screwed in
04:20 3. Initial dish checking and correcting
07:29 4. Initial spoke slack take up
09:25 5. Aligning the spokes, bedding them in at the hub flanges and at the nipple end
11:41 6. Taking up all the spoke slack
12:04 7 a) Initial lateral truing
25:38 7 b) Initial radial truing
29:37 8. Equalising spoke tension
40:34 9. Spoke stress relieving and tensioning
43:30 10. Final spoke tightening, truing (both lateral and radial), equalising spoke tension and stress relieving

Tools needed:
"Light" (low viscosity) oil
Nipple (screw)driver
Spoke wrench
Truing stand
Dishing gauge
Tension meter
Leather gloves for stress relieving

My article on bicycle wheelbuilding tools:
https://bike.bikegremlin.com/11876/bicycle-wheelbuilding-tools/

Bicycle wheelbuilding basics:
https://bike.bikegremlin.com/9276/bicycle-wheel-building-basics/

Wheel tolerances:
Wheel dish +- 0.5 mm (dishing gauge shows this error as +- 1 mm, since it practically doubles it when measuring)
Lateral trueness: +- 0.2 mm
Radial trueness: +- 0.5 mm

id: 0009

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