Wheelbuilding Question

[johngmartin]

I attempted to build my first wheel recently. A friend of mine builds wheels often and offered to walk me through it. I started with the flip-flop rear wheel. I am lacing a H Plus Son TB14 (http://hplusson.com/products/TB14) rim and All-City Standard track hubs (http://allcitycycles.com/products/hubs/standard) (not sheriff star). 32 spokes. This is the calculator I used: http://www.prowheelbuilder.com/spokelengthcalculator/

The calculator gave me 296.4 for the front and 295.9 for the rear. I bought some DT Competition 2.0/1.8 296mm spokes because I read that they just need to be within 2mm +/- from each other, and I figured 296mm was a good middle ground.

Once I got all the spokes on there in a 3-cross pattern, some of the nipples were sitting perfectly and some were sticking too far out. The culprits are the trailing spokes on one side and the leading spokes on the other side of the hub. I checked over the pattern, and it looked right. In the photos, the spokes you are seeing that stick out are screwed all the way down - there is no thread left.

Hopefully that is enough information to diagnose. What did I do wrong? Wrong size spokes? Did I mess the pattern up?

http://i.imgur.com/X0PBsQ7.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/zOkxTJ7.jpg

[ultraman6970]

with the picture you have in there is hard to tell... do you have a close up of the spokes at the hub to check out the spacing between spokes at the hub?

My best guess is that of the calculator gave you the wrong answer because the ERD was wrong (you have to measure that yourself), the spokes are longer or something else but w/o seeing in person is hard to know.

Used the same spoke calculator you used and I get 296ish...using a 36 or a 32 flange distance.

You have to start again IMO.

[10-4]

Make sure spokes side-to-side are correct. Just because they are 3x doesn't mean they are right. Start with your key spoke (let's say to the right of the valve), then check the next spoke and make sure it's one "spot" behind the key spoke on the opposing side. I've seen some people lace incorrectly this way and they end up with the same scenario as you.

[10-4]

Can you provide a direct link to the second photo? They are too small to zoom way in and check your work.

Here's what I'd need to help: put your valve at 12:00, then snap a big photo of the whole wheel from the side (like the one you already took), as well as a closer one of the hub from the same profile angle but high enough so I could see both flanges.

[johngmartin]

Thanks everyone! Here are some better photos with the valve at 12:00: http://imgur.com/a/DWE56

Let me know if you need more photos.

I guess the question is, did I lace it wrong or did I buy the wrong length spokes? The layman in me would think that if I bought the wrong length spoke, then they would all be evenly wrong, not half too short and half too long... But maybe not...

EDIT: I just took my caliper to the hubs, and everything seems to check out. Also, the 610mm ERD on the rims looks right as well (+/- 5mm).

[ultraman6970]

IMO the crossing is wrong, the angle between the spokes is not what it should looks like.

In one of the pictures..

http://imgur.com/a/DWE56#7bb2iry

Looks like you have the spokes at the wrong side of the rim... that means that to the left of the valve hole... look at the second spoke to the left of the valve hole, that to me look like is the spoke that should be next to the valve hole (not the right way to do it ok? I know).

As i said before, you have to lace that thin again, the spokes look at the wrong side of the rim and the crossin looks off 1 hole at the rim.

Hope this helps.

[10-4]

The spokes on the "back side" away from the camera only look to be 2x, can you check that first?

Gotta start over man, if I could put my hands on it I could probably help.

Starting at the "key" spoke to the right of the valve, the second spoke clearly isn't going to the correct point on the hub on the back side and only looks to be 2x, not 3x (though I can't tell for sure).

[giverdada]

i'd go with 10-4 on this one, and re-lace all the way from the get-go.

happened on my last build and turned out i hadn't wound up the hub enough before putting in the second set of spokes. ugh. took it all apart, got the spokes in the correct holes, held the wind-up more securely, re-laced, and now it's gorgeous. best of luck.

n.

[johngmartin]

Thanks all. I will tear it apart and give it another try. I'll let you know how it goes! Appreciate the feedback!

[Louis]

Thanks all. I will tear it apart and give it another try. I'll let you know how it goes! Appreciate the feedback!

I'm not a wheelbuilder, but if I were you I'd leave it built up for now and identify the problem first, then undo the whole thing. That way you're less likely to repeat the same error the second time around.

[Drover]

For my first post on the forum I would like to say, that I have done this before. and it was because I twisted it the wrong way.