At what point does wheel refurb become wheel rebuild?

Diamant_Don · Apr 11, 2014

Hi Guys

I'm restoring this beautiful Ian May 531 racer, which has improved hugely since this terrible photo was taken. New cables, new (old) brake levers, new tape etc.

The main issue I have now (apart from the perished tyres) is the state of the wheels (Campagnolo Record hubs/Mavic rims). The front is out of true, but there's no rust and no missing spokes, so should be fairly straightforward to fix. The rear, however, has several rusty spokes and one missing one. Is this refurbishable, or am I looking at a rebuild? In which case, what kind of costs and does anyone know anyone cheap and good in the Liverpool area?

Cheers
Don

Robbied196 · Apr 11, 2014

It depends how much you want to spend. For the cheap option you could just remove a rusty spoke, measure the length and buy a few new stainless to replace the duff ones and then re-true the wheel. The best option would be to rebuild with a new set of spokes. In Shrewsbury its about £25 plus the cost of the spokes, I think that's about the going rate

Diamant_Don · Apr 11, 2014

Thanks Robbied196 - ideally I'd like to have a crack at this myself (therefore, in my utopian world, I'd buy spokes and fit as necessary, truing like a pro as I go) but with absolutely zero experience I think that's a bit optimistic! Cheers for costings!

Robbied196 · Apr 11, 2014

I've only built a couple of wheels and although its a great sense of satisfaction it took me about 4 hours for each wheel! I had a bit of trail and error particularly with getting the pattern in the right place so the valve sat in the right position. They finished up ok but I tend to think if I build two wheels in a year, they are not going to be as good as the guy who builds two wheels or more a week, so now I pay the £25!

There are some good youtube videos on wheelbuilding.

Diamant_Don · Apr 11, 2014

For £25 I think I'll trust an expert! Thanks again dude!

mrcpea · Apr 13, 2014

Hi Don,
I can recommend this without a doubt if you're looking to go into the world of wheelbuilding.

http://www.wheelpro.co.uk/wheelbuilding/book.php

I've built loads of wheels now and this is the best guide I've come across by a country mile.

Cheers

Rich

Diamant_Don · Apr 14, 2014

Rich, that's fantastic. Cheers mate!

NeilM · Apr 14, 2014

Re:

I've also used the wheel pro book.

Also, speak to Malcolm at the cycle clinic (site sponsor), as he can supply spokes and nipples, and really knows his stuff on wheel building.

At what point does wheel refurb become wheel rebuild?

Diamant_Don

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