Possible to true your wheels at home without botching it?

[capediver]

Kindaofa hijack but same sorta topic: can a tyre be out of whack? I have a slight wobble on my front wheel and have tried a number of ways to check the rim but they all showed no major problems....but with the wheel fitted I can see the tyre out of line....any ideas?

[johannrissik]

Kindaofa hijack but same sorta topic: can a tyre be out of whack? I have a slight wobble on my front wheel and have tried a number of ways to check the rim but they all showed no major problems....but with the wheel fitted I can see the tyre out of line....any ideas?

Could be that the tyre bead is not properly seated in the rim.

[Skylark]

Kindaofa hijack but same sorta topic: can a tyre be out of whack? I have a slight wobble on my front wheel and have tried a number of ways to check the rim but they all showed no major problems....but with the wheel fitted I can see the tyre out of line....any ideas?

 

Ja if the bead isn't seated evenly or if the tire is deformed from useage/age/being defective then the tyre will look like its wobbling even if the rim is 100% true

[capediver]

Could be that the tyre bead is not properly seated in the rim.

that's what I thought originally but I re-fitted the tyre a number of times and tried different positions....still the "tyre" wobble was there?! I do remember slamming a root rather hard earlier and thought it may have done the rim but checks didn't show any major warp in the rim. Can a tyre stretch? (The Captain Control)

[Brighter-Lights]

Very easy. Turn your bike upside down and create a guide of sorts - use presstick, pegs, sellotape, whatever.

 

Rule no 1: Only tighten spokes, never loosen. Why? Spokes cannot tighten themselves but they can come loose. Thereofore you only correct what went wront, not creating new issues.

 

Rule no 2: Tighten spokes opposite to the bulge. In other words, you are always pulling the bulge back.

 

Rule no 3: if there is a dent (the opposite of a bulge, not real dent), then you change your perspective and view it as a bulge on the other side and refer to rule no 2:.

 

And just to add to Johan's advice. Sometimes the 'dent' or 'bulge' happens over an area of several spokes. Eye the beginning and the end of the area out of true (can mark with tape also) - I look and remember - then before adjusting the 2 to 4 or more spokes to get that area true, just pluck the spokes like a guitar string and listen to the tone. Do the same for the opposite side's spokes and hear if there isn't perhaps one severely over-tightened spoke, or one very loose spoke and start by tightening the spoke with the least tension.

 

Sometimes adjusting that one spoke that was very loose (low tone, dull sound when plucked) can already improve the whole section quite a bit. Compare the tone of the spokes right through the wheel, start working around the slack spokes and balance them out.

[Brighter-Lights]

Kindaofa hijack but same sorta topic: can a tyre be out of whack? I have a slight wobble on my front wheel and have tried a number of ways to check the rim but they all showed no major problems....but with the wheel fitted I can see the tyre out of line....any ideas?

 

Yes a tyre can be out of whack, even seated properly. I've seen a few - as if it's moulded skew... I actually have one here that I won at a race, useless...

[lloydkayak]

Kindaofa hijack but same sorta topic: can a tyre be out of whack? I have a slight wobble on my front wheel and have tried a number of ways to check the rim but they all showed no major problems....but with the wheel fitted I can see the tyre out of line....any ideas?

 

I just had the exact same thing happen to a maxxis tubeless tyre, somehow the tyre deformed and had an insane wobble... Rim and seating was 100%

[Skylark]

Ok it's not so hard to do wheel truing, did mine this afternoon

BUT!!!

Lube/oil each spoke nipple before you tighten/loosen it, cause if your wheels are a little older than just about new things will be a bit seized.

 

AND

buy a good spoke wrench for the exact size of your spoke nipples not the 3 in one tools, and the tool must have good leverage, ie nice wings to push against - cause stripping a spoke nipple resulting in needing to strip and replace it is no fun - ESP if you are running tubeless, I came close - getting a Park Tool spoke key tomorrow!!

Edited June 16, 2013 by Skylark

[Big H*]

Ok it's not so hard to do wheel truing, did mine this afternoon

BUT!!!

Lube/oil the spoke nipple before you tighten/loosen it, cause if your wheels are a little older than new things will be a bit seized.

 

AND

buy a good spoke wrench for the exact size of your spoke nipples not the 3 in one tools, and the tool must have good leverage, ie nice wings to push against - cause stripping a spoke nipple resulting in needing to strip and replace it is no fun - ESP if you are running tubeless, I came close - getting a Park Tool spoke key tomorrow!!

 

Wheelbuilding is NOT a dark art, contrary to what many would make you believe

 

Good quality and correct tools is important, not only when you work on a bicycle

Edited June 16, 2013 by Big H*

[Skylark]

Forgot to mention the Park Tool spoke keys have 4 sides vs only 2 on most spoke keys, so chances of slipping and rounding the spoke nipple is lessened quite considerably

[Johan Bornman]

that's what I thought originally but I re-fitted the tyre a number of times and tried different positions....still the "tyre" wobble was there?! I do remember slamming a root rather hard earlier and thought it may have done the rim but checks didn't show any major warp in the rim. Can a tyre stretch? (The Captain Control)

Tyres have a casing that's made up of bits of string that run diagonally from bead to bead at a 35 degree angle. This string is thin and made from something that doesn't stretch, rayon or silk (old fashioned tubbies) or other secret stuff. This woven casing contains is coated with rubber and you don't really get to see it. It's job is to maintain the tyre's shape no matter what the pressure. You'll notice that an inflated tyre stays the same shape no matter the pressure - unlike a balloon without al casing.

 

Now, every so often an impact pinches the tyre on the rim and cuts one or two of these criss-cross strings. Now the tyre is "unbalanced" at that position and looks like a boxer with a broken nose. It will never run properly.

 

Other tyres are just crap - Maxxis tyres are often out of true by 10mm. Others again, aren't uniform in side. Others are out of spec and won't seat where they're supposed to seat.

 

I just move those tyres to the back where they don't irritate me.

[Johan Bornman]

that's what I thought originally but I re-fitted the tyre a number of times and tried different positions....still the "tyre" wobble was there?! I do remember slamming a root rather hard earlier and thought it may have done the rim but checks didn't show any major warp in the rim. Can a tyre stretch? (The Captain Control)

 

As a point of interest, no a tyre cannot stretch.

[Johan Bornman]

 

 

Maybe JB can reveal a secret or 2 about loosening seized nipples

 

He can't. There is no secret. If the nipple is seized, we cut the spoke. You'll just frustrate yourself if you try and work loose a seized aluminium nipple. Brass nipples never ever seize.