[Hangingchads]

I started tightening my spokes on my rear wheel cause they seemed be getting loose and never been adjusted from new. So I got them all tight and of course threw everything out of true. I trued it up the best I can with the wheel on the bike and only has a slight movement in lat and roundness. I tried for hours doing vary fine adjustments but don't think I can get it down to perfect without a truing stand.

My question is will it be fine with it not being true to a new wheel done by hand standards?

Also maybe its just in my mind but tightening up the spokes in the rear helped tighten up the rear end a little and does not feel as loose and out of control as it was. Is this just in my head?

Thanks for the help.

 

[Speedub.Nate]

Maybe not necessarily "just in your head," but everything is relative and dependent on how loose your wheel build was originally.

You most definitely can get the wheel trued to as close a tolerance as you desire just by zip-tying a pencil onto your chainstay to use as a feeler gauge, and flip-flopping the wheel in the dropouts to check for proper dish. A truing stand would make your job a little easier, but it's also not that difficult without one. The main obstacle is to understand what you're doing.

You ask, "will it be fine?" The most important thing you can do is make your way around the wheel and pluck each and every spoke like a guitar string, and listen for consistent tone. The cassette side spokes will be higher pitched than the non-drive side, but each should be similar in tone to the other spokes on the same side of the wheel.

Continue making your way around adjusting in quarter-turn increments, both for trueness and for tone. In the end, it's probably more important that the tension (tone) is even, even it it means the wheel is slightly out of true.

 

[doug4sail]

Use a zip tie on your frame as your guide and try to do two spokes on the the side thats out at a time only do 1/4 turns.

Check Sheldon Browns article it could help.
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tooltips/truing.html

 

[Mike T.]

The limiting factor to how true you got your wheels was not the frame that you were using as your wheel truing stand. That's what I used for decades, with a screwdriver clamped to the stay (or fork leg) with thumb & finger as a wobble feeler. Then I progressed to an old fork clamped in a vice as my stand. In recent years a "real" stand was donated to me by someone who felt sorry for me (I guess). That real stand can't get my wheels any more true than my bike frame and fork, as it's the truer not the tool that sets the standard; it's just easier to use than the upside-down or hanging bike frame.

Your spoke tension equalness (is that a word?) will be all out of whack (it was probably never in whack) and is more important than absolute trueness. Read the info and resources in my sig and you will be a read-up expert on wheels and what they need.

 

[Hangingchads]

Hmm I knew my guitar playing would come in handy for working on my bikes someday. So here is the next question. I got all the spokes tension good on both sides and all the spokes are in harmonic tune on left and right with the two sides being slight different pitch... but the wheel has some bad wobble now. Not enough to hit anything but its out pretty good on being true. So do I just true it up a bit to reduce wobble and let it ride or keep going to get a good true?

Thanks!

 

[Mike T.]

Hmm I knew my guitar playing would come in handy for working on my bikes someday. So here is the next question. I got all the spokes tension good on both sides and all the spokes are in harmonic tune on left and right with the two sides being slight different pitch... but the wheel has some bad wobble now. Not enough to hit anything but its out pretty good on being true. So do I just true it up a bit to reduce wobble and let it ride or keep going to get a good true?
Thanks!

You've got the idea. If you can play the opening intro to "Stairway" on your wheel then it's a bad one and won't last long. There has to be a compromise between evenness of tension and trueness. Ideally we should go back & forth all day equalizing and truing until we get as near to perfection as possible. But that's not reasonable.

I'm a big "plucker" and I equalize once, true the wheel, stress relieve and re-true a few times (maybe 2-3) and then ride. A wheel like that will last "forever".

 

[Hangingchads]

Awesome, thanks for the help. I think I got it where it needs to be. Looks to be within .5mm on roundness, 1mm or so on truing, and spokes are all close to the same tone. Stress relieved as well. There is still a small bump in it but it looks to be in a spot that there is a nice gash in the rim from a rock and no matter what I do I can't get it to come out and keep constant tension so I am guessing its a little bent in that spot. Guess I will go ride it and keep checking it.

Thanks again!

 

[Speedub.Nate]

1mm & .5mm? That's damn near perfect in my book. And don't forget -- disc brakes are a crutch!

 

[Hangingchads]

I might be off my .5mm in there cause I am just eyeing it with my calipers but it looks damn near close.

The tensions are good and the wheel is pretty good true so I am happy. Like I said the only bump in it is right over that gash in the rim. Guess I ride em till they die and then rebuild them which should be a while.

Thanks again for all the help, you guys are amazing!

 

[Speedub.Nate]

I learned everything I know from Mike T.