nick_the_wheelbuilder

Yup. Full day (6-8 hours) Use my tools Must start with a new rim and spokes, any hub. R1995 includes a "textbook" I can help source any parts.

In for the marathon - single speed. Who's with me?

Next week you can post pics of the wheels I'm sending you....

Patch....my man. Anyone who kills wheels actually, talk to me first

Will definitely be there - great pre-JoBerg2C prep ride, great atmosphere and for a great cause.

Here's an interesting article on the pro's and con's of ceramic bearings.... https://road.cc/content/feature/175644-ceramic-bearings-pros-and-cons And I quote: "Hope’s Alan Weatherill concurs with Paul Lew’s conclusion that ceramic bearings are not suited to the demands of cycling and says their suitability to industrial machinery doesn’t necessarily provide the performance benefit for cyclists that many people and companies claim they do.“Another issue with using them [ceramic bearings] on bicycles is their hardness,” says Weatherill. “While this again is an advantage in many industrial applications, it's a major drawback on bikes. The shocks from hitting potholes and other road blemishes impact the hard ceramic balls into the softer steel races commonly used. This dent in the race is then felt when the bearing is rotated, giving you rough bearings.”

Depends on how strong you are and how good you are at very fast and very slow cadence riding. 32x18 is a great all-round gear to start with, but buy 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20t cogs and you have a gear for anything.

Brand new XT hub from CRC for less than R600.... https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/za/en/shimano-xt-rear-hub-t780/rp-prod67242

I may have one, PM me your number.

Sweet bike! I loved mine.... I sent you a PM about wheels - get in touch and let's build something awesome!

Yikes! I've built a handful of sets with those rims and haven't seen that happen yet. Holding thumbs....

Yes, many rims have a small hole in the external wall of the rim. I can only assume this is to compensate for air pressure changes or to drain any water from the rim that may find it's way in there..... A proper taping inside the rim is normally all that's needed for good tubeless performance, as long as tubeless-ready rims and tyres are used.

https://www.instagram.com/wheelbuilder_jhb/

In my honest opinion, based on experience, alloy rims made too light are just going to be weak. Crest Mk3 rims are very very light at 365g per rim. Compare to a strong rim, like a Spank Oozy Trail 295 or WTB Frequency or Raceface ARC at around 450-490g. That's a lot of metal "missing".

My mistake, I thought I'd seen 95..... I still won't build them past 110....

I've had a bunch of these cracked wheels in for rim replacements and I measure the existing spoke tensions every time. No surprises, every time the tensions are between 110 and 130 kgf, where recommended tension, even on the Arch Mk3 is 95kgf.

The evolution is obvious....

IsikoSports.

I lube the spoke threads with oil or a light grease, but not the rim/nipple interface. That way, if sufficient tension is reached, there's enough friction between the rim and nipple to prevent loosening, but the nipples remain turnable for truing later on if need be.

Wheels I'm currently busy with: Crest Mk3 on Hopes. 1693g without tape or valves.

https://www.instagram.com/wheelbuilder_jhb/

On bike 1, it sounds like the spokes had such uneven tension to get the rim straight, it would just not stay that way. That rim should have been replaced. On the Merida, sounds like typical stock wheels not built very well. My advice would be to have the rear wheel completely rebuilt with new spokes. They snap due to metal fatigue caused by improper tensions from the start. Essentially you're in for new spokes and nipples and the cost of a rebuild. PM me if you need more info.

I finally had the opportunity to build some cSixx wheels. What a pleasure. I used Wheelsmith spokes, black brass nipples and Hope Pro4 hubs. The wheels came together very well. These rims are pure class.

The last few wheels I built up for customers:

Not specifically no. The guys who import Sapim won't sell directly to me because I work from home as opposed to a shop. I get similar bladed spokes from Rapide.co.za and they're about a third of the price.