Buying handbuilt wheels

[GrumpyGregry]

Yep and that last bit is the scariest, I don't really need to extend my current bike fettling addiction. I'm sure I'll give it a go sometime but I may wait until there is a problem with an existing wheel.

Though I do need, at some point, to build myself up a spare SS wheel.

LOL I took it up because I needed to build an Alfine hub wheel to match the front one you sold me. So it is ALL.YOUR.FAULT!

I started with a flipflop hubbed rear btw.

 

[ColinJ]

I got about 10 years use out of a pair of Open Pros, mainly fair weather riding.

Before any cheeky bugger says that I only ride a tiny distance in a year - in those days I was doing 3.5-5,000 miles a year so I probably did about 25,000 miles on those wheels (I have other bikes)!

I think they are showing signs of wear now so I might get the LBS to take some callipers to the rims and see if they have much life left in them.

The rims were Open Pro SUP CDs. I don't know what the SUP and CD mean - can anyone explain those terms for me?

 

[I like Skol]

Supp is the welded joint (as opposed to a dowelled and pressed joint) so their is no visible join in the hoop of the rim which presumably is bent from a straight extruded aluminium section then joined to form the circle. CD is the dark anodising so I guess your rims are/were grey/black?

 

[ColinJ]

Supp is the welded joint (as opposed to a dowelled and pressed joint) so their is no visible join in the hoop of the rim which presumably is bent from a straight extruded aluminium section then joined to form the circle. CD is the dark anodising so I guess your rims are/were grey/black?

Thanks. Yes, the rims are dark but the braking surfaces gradually got shinier over the years as the coating wore away.

I think they are probably at the end of their safe useful life now because the rims feel slightly concave to the touch. I'll have them measured to make sure, but I don't want to risk a rim popping on one of my 50 mph descents!

 

[lulubel]

lulubel -I've not built with those DT Swiss Rims yet - although I hope to be doing so in the near future.
The DT Swiss Spoke Calculator - and another database I found both give an ERD of 599mm
Hope that helps

Thanks for that.

I've got a bit distracted today trying to pick the components I need for the rest of the bike. I think the credit card will have to watch out tomorrow!

 

[Hicky]

Lulubel, I've had a look at the build spec for my bike....sapim spokes used also.
I'm sure the shop I used would ship the frame(headset fitted) and wheels....there's a couple of pics of mine knocking around on this site and I think one or two on here know the owners of the shop(keeppedalling Manchester).
They're very helpfull and quick to answer emails, I couldnt fault them.
Couldnt tell you of the price though as mine was on Cycle to work and all I was concerned about was under the £1000 mark and a new crosscheck is £1000 anyway, my build doesnt differ greatly.

 

[lulubel]

It's OK.

This stuff (learning how to put bikes together, take them apart, and make them work properly) is something I've been meaning to do for a long time. It's taken a nasty crash and a trashed frame to give me the kick up the backside I needed.

 

[Christopher]

Just wondering if the OP has considered:

1) How are you going to dish the wheels without a dishing tool? Are you going to get one? Suppose you could do it by placing the wheels in the frame, measuring how far off-centre the rim is and then adjusting accordingly;
2) If you know the model number for your hubs (like FH-5500 for an older 105 model) then you should be able to get the dimensions off the interweb somewhere and feed them into Spokecalc (an Excel file by Damon Raynards IIRC that works great, you can put in any hub dimensions and spoke count etc);
3) If not do you have a micrometer to measure the hubs? Not strictly necessary but easier and more precise than using a ruler;
4) I assume you're getting a pair of 105 hubs which is great but if you have the opportunity you could ride XT on the front or summat in 28 hole built 3x on the front - I have the latter in Ultegra, it rides great on rough roads and I weigh 14 stone;
5) I buy spokes from Chain Reaction, good price but I can't remember if you have to get 18 or 36 at a time;
6) Sapim spokes are fine, I use DT Swiss ss db which are great too
7) Keep us posted!

 

[lulubel]

1) How are you going to dish the wheels without a dishing tool? Are you going to get one? Suppose you could do it by placing the wheels in the frame, measuring how far off-centre the rim is and then adjusting accordingly

I'm going to follow the instructions in the book PpPete recommended (which I downloaded, and read, and read parts of again, and it's very good, by the way).

I've bought 105 hubs, the DT Swiss rims, and I've got Sapim Race spokes that I think are the correct length sitting in my basket at whichever shop turned out to be cheapest - can't remember which at the moment, but I've bookmarked it. I've reluctantly decided to not buy the spokes until the rims arrive, just in case the measurements Pete found are wrong. It would be really irritating if they came and I found the spokes are the wrong length, so I'll be patient.

I'm not going to bother measuring the hubs because I've found 2 sets of measurements online that were the same, and I discovered by experimenting with the spoke length calculator that the hub measurements can be out by quite a long way before it changes the spoke length.

It takes a while for stuff to arrive here (generally a week after it's shipped if it's coming from the UK) so updates won't be happening in a hurry.

 

[Scoosh]

It's getting very exciting - and that's just for me here !

 

[Christopher]

Coo - you've sorted it all. Look forward to the pics!

Suppose you know this but assembling the wheels is easy compared to truing the things, especially radially. I take a few evenings over it and stop when I get frustrated or my fingers start to hurt from the pressure of the spoke key. Sounds like you have the time and you certainly have the temperment to build some great wheels.

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

oops

 

[MacB]

oops

???

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

my internet is playing up, i was answering an earlier post...only to find there was another page.

 

[lulubel]

Sounds like you have the time and you certainly have the temperment to build some great wheels.

Yes, I can be incredibly patient and persistent when the mood takes me, but I'm not good at waiting. Hopefully the frame won't take long to arrive, and I can get on with the rest of the build.