I’ve just booked myself on this course, any informed tips?
“Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime. Teach a man to cycle and he will realize fishing is stupid and boring”
Download the Masson book, read it twice and crack on. £400 would buy you the Park tool clone 'bikehand' stand from Spa cycles, a collection of Spokey brand keys, a Park tension gauge, cheap dishing stick and a nice nipple spinner with cash left over towards your first set of components.
That's what I did, I've built around 20 wheels now, some pairs have done several thousand miles and gone through some fairly hard off road use and all good.
The most important factors for me in getting a nice tight true robust wheel were setting the spoke ends in the hubs well and giving them a really good beating at the de-stressing stage.
I wanted to fast track my understanding and learning as I've always subscribed to the view that training accelerates skills & development. To be honest I never considered wheel building as a business but any avenues may be worth exploring as my initial aim was to build a few wheels, just for personal satisfaction.
Anyone who has had the tenacity drive and intelligence to self learn this skill has my respect. One of the life lessons i took on board was while being coached on riding a motorcycle quickly round a race track was the view I formed that I could ride for 10 years and would have never considered aspects and tips I was given. Then again i have to accept the fact that i could be thick as shite!
Still you never regret the things you do , only the things to don't do ;-)
“Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime. Teach a man to cycle and he will realize fishing is stupid and boring”
As Edward.S says above, get the book by Roger Musson - only 9 quid online and you'll find more than enough info to get you underway. It's very good. I also did that, have built maybe a dozen sets all up in the last 9 years and none of them have killed me (yet). Took the first few I finished to my LBS expert (and he really *is* an expert wheel guy) to be checked out.
It's a matter of confidence and if the OP prefers to learn on a course, that is absolutely fine.
I also learned DIY, using Gerd Schraner book, which is not as tedious as Roger Musson's one. Of course the first set I built, I passed them on to someone braver, just in case...
It's a matter of confidence and if the OP prefers to learn on a course, that is absolutely fine.
I also learned DIY, using Gerd Schraner book, which is not as tedious as Roger Musson's one. Of course the first set I built, I passed them on to someone braver, just in case...
I used the Musson book and Ugo checked my first set. I then got a tension gauge as I found that was the only way to be sure of even spoke tension. Done a few more since.
It's a matter of confidence and if the OP prefers to learn on a course, that is absolutely fine.
I also learned DIY, using Gerd Schraner book, which is not as tedious as Roger Musson's one. Of course the first set I built, I passed them on to someone braver, just in case...
I have the Schraner book as well, I still get it out for every wheel I build because it's something I do infrequently enough that it's good to check. I have a (cheap) truing stand, a (cheaper) dishing gauge and a tension meter, but you don't actually need any of those. The first couple of sets I built were done with minimal equipment, a frame with a couple of pencils zip-tied to it is a pretty good truing stand and the tension can be compared to an existing wheel by hand (squeeze the spokes and see how much they deflect).
Gen up: is it as difficult as people make it out to be?
I can't see it being rocket science, so is it more pain in the backside tedious rather than aaaaaaarrrrggghhh i can't do this?
the anticipation is worse than the doing it. its actually very straightforward. the musson book has every thing a group of MFs need to know scan it, dont read it, or youll sleep for a thousand years.
Its not difficult. You need to be methodical and take your time. The Musson book is a bit dry but if you follow his recipie you'll be likely to get a good result.
The nice bit about building your own is you have oodles of time. I suspect my wheels are just as good as bought 'handmades', the difference is it probably takes me 10 times as long to build them. I don't care as I'm sitting in an armchair with the telly on and a cuppa on hand, not depending on it for paying the mortgage.
Posts
I always thought I could run wheel building courses, but I'd have to buy more stands...
Can you hear me sucking through my teeth?
Marin Nail Trail
Cotic Solaris
If you're intending to make it something more like a business then maybe a training course might be of value.
That's what I did, I've built around 20 wheels now, some pairs have done several thousand miles and gone through some fairly hard off road use and all good.
The most important factors for me in getting a nice tight true robust wheel were setting the spoke ends in the hubs well and giving them a really good beating at the de-stressing stage.
Anyone who has had the tenacity drive and intelligence to self learn this skill has my respect. One of the life lessons i took on board was while being coached on riding a motorcycle quickly round a race track was the view I formed that I could ride for 10 years and would have never considered aspects and tips I was given. Then again i have to accept the fact that i could be thick as shite!
Still you never regret the things you do , only the things to don't do ;-)
Desmond Tutu
Linkie here:
https://www.wheelpro.co.uk/wheelbuilding/book.php
I also learned DIY, using Gerd Schraner book, which is not as tedious as Roger Musson's one. Of course the first set I built, I passed them on to someone braver, just in case...
Marin Nail Trail
Cotic Solaris
I can't see it being rocket science, so is it more pain in the backside tedious rather than aaaaaaarrrrggghhh i can't do this?
scan it, dont read it, or youll sleep for a thousand years.
The nice bit about building your own is you have oodles of time. I suspect my wheels are just as good as bought 'handmades', the difference is it probably takes me 10 times as long to build them. I don't care as I'm sitting in an armchair with the telly on and a cuppa on hand, not depending on it for paying the mortgage.