Should spokes/nipples have that loud/sudden "PING"?

[Veloo]

Sometimes when I true a wheel, I'm turning the spoke wrench and it doesn't seem to really turn, then there's that sudden give and loud PING.

Is that "normal" or should the nipple be turning completely smoothly?

Full disclosure, I've never built a wheel, I kinda suck at/ am not crazy about truing. Most bikes I work on these days are Acera level stuff.

Just a symptom of cheaper bikes that have not had the spoke threads greased/prepped properly?

[Hindmost]

Tiney drop of oil, spoke pliers...

[Mark McM]

There are multiple mechanism for spokes to give a "pinging" sound. In this particular case, do you turn the nipple, and does the torque to turn the nipple feel like it is steadily increasing until the spoke suddenly goes "ping!", accompanied by a drop in the torque on the nipple? If so, then it is likely sticky threads. As the nipple turned, the spoke twisted with the nipple, until there was enough torque to break the friction in the threads, and the spoke suddenly twisted back in the nipple (that sudden untwisting causing the spoke to make a noise). Sticky threads can make it more difficult to true a wheel, so you want to unstick the threads by wicking some penetrating lubricant into the threads.

Or maybe you are applying torque to the spoke wrench, the wrench and nipple don't turn until you reach a some particular torque, and then all of sudden the wrench and nipple turn. In this case, the nipple might be stuck in the rim. In this case you want to wick some penetrating lubricant between the nipple and the rim.

[deluz]

https://www.parktool.com/en-us/produ...e-holder-csh-1

[November Dave]

Short answer, no, they shouldn't do that. A bunch of years ago we went through a period where Sapim spokes were doing that absolutely no matter what you did for thread prep, including chasing the threads with our spoke cutter/threader. I confirmed this with a bunch of other wheel builders, all of whom were losing their minds about it. It was only black spokes, so it must have been something with the oxide coating.

The only solution we found was using Wheelsmith plated nipples. This turned out to be an excellent solution because their "black" plating at the time was this captivating black chrome finish that looked amazing. Then a few years later they changed finishes without warning. Fortunately by then, whatever it was with the Sapim threads had passed.

At this point, your only responses to this have already been given - drop something in there that's going to penetrate and hopefully relieve some of the stiction (PB Blaster would be good to try) and hold the spoke as much as possible.

[bikinchris]

Before truing, it's a good idea to use something like TriFlow to lubricate the threads and nipple.

[MikeD]

It's called spoke wind-up. Definitely lube the spoke threads (and the base of the nipple where it exits the rim too) but overshoot 1/4 turn and twist back 1/4 turn when tightening spokes. That's described in the Wheel Book by Jobst Brandt.

[carpediemracing]

Originally Posted by Veloo

Sometimes when I true a wheel, I'm turning the spoke wrench and it doesn't seem to really turn, then there's that sudden give and loud PING.

Is that "normal" or should the nipple be turning completely smoothly?

Full disclosure, I've never built a wheel, I kinda suck at/ am not crazy about truing. Most bikes I work on these days are Acera level stuff.

Just a symptom of cheaper bikes that have not had the spoke threads greased/prepped properly?

When I true a wheel, I turn the spoke nipple with the tool in one hand. The other hand I am either holding the rim or, if I'm expecting some spoke wind up, I'm lightly holding the spoke, maybe 2-3 inches down from the nipple.

I'll see what spoke I want to turn, grab it with my finger and thumb, with the other hand I'm holding the spoke wrench basically pointing up, and I turn the wheel so the spoke nipple comes up to the spoke wrench. Then I generally hold the spoke with one hand while I turn the wrench with the other. I can feel the spoke wind up, if it winds up. Then I turn the wheel back down to check where it is relative to the truing stand things.

I mention this because you can feel the spoke start to twist. If it does, you know you need to lubricate between the spoke nipple and the spoke. If it's particularly difficult to turn the spoke nipple, but the spoke itself is not winding up, then you may need to lubricate between the spoke nipple and the rim.

Warning: if it winds up and lets go, and you're holding the spoke, it can make your finger/thumb go numb a bit, from the vibration of the spoke. However, sometimes I need to do that to break the spoke nipple loose. I might wind up the spoke a full turn before it lets go.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by Veloo

Sometimes when I true a wheel, I'm turning the spoke wrench and it doesn't seem to really turn, then there's that sudden give and loud PING.

Is that "normal" or should the nipple be turning completely smoothly?

Full disclosure, I've never built a wheel, I kinda suck at/ am not crazy about truing. Most bikes I work on these days are Acera level stuff.

Just a symptom of cheaper bikes that have not had the spoke threads greased/prepped properly?

Drag between nipple and spoke or drag between nipple and rim. Lots of machine built or poorly built wheels have no lube or 'glue', otherwise called 'spoke prep' but glue none-the-less on spoke threads.

Drop of lube around nipple..and if the spoke is still 'barber poling'..a tool to hold the spoke while turning the nipple(expensive tho)..But try some oil first.