Learned about wheel true from a grumpy old mechanic back in 2015

A guy at the shop in Portland told me I was using too much tension on the spokes, said I was making the rim as stiff as a steel girder. He showed me how to let some tension off and let the wheel flex a bit, which actually made it stronger in the long run. Anybody here ever gotten advice that completely changed how they build wheels?

3 comments

3 Comments

gracethomas11d ago

My 89 year old neighbor taught me the opposite, tension high and stress relieve after.

ruby65911d ago

Right? It's funny how backing off sometimes makes things stronger.

evan54311d ago

Nah, I don't think that's quite right actually. Backing off only works if the other person is already invested. If they're barely interested, pulling away just makes them forget you exist.