Lacing wheels

I have always been intrigued with how a spoked wheel is laced. If you don’t know the pattern then it certain looks complicated. Half the spokes go one way and the other half go the other way. Some look like they are inserted from the inside and others look like they are inserted from the outside. How in the world does anyone know which spoke goes where?!

With this bike build, I decided to debunk the myth and get to same answers. There are several useful resources. First is the book, The Bicycle Wheel, by Jobs Brandt. It’s a very technical delving into bicycle wheel mechanics and function. If all you want to do is learn how to lace wheels then flip to somewhere in the middle of the book and follow the simple instructions. After a while of referencing the book, you’ll find yourself flipping to other sections and getting into the nitty gritty. I have the second edition and it looks like there is a 3rd edition available now. Sometimes it helps to watch someone do it too. If you can’t hover over someone’s shoulder then I recommend getting the Bicycle Wheel Building 101 video. Sometimes it’s easier and cheaper to find it on eBay. You’ll have to pull out your old VCR. This doesn’t come on DVD. I have a second book called The Art of Wheelbuilding by Gerd Schraner. This is more of a coffee table book for someone to flip through. I didn’t find it too helpful.

Of course, there are lots of online sources such as spoke calculators and lacing pattern drawings. Sheldon Brown has an indepth page on his site. Do a Google or Yahoo search on wheel building and you’ll be swimming in an ocean of spokes and nipples in no time.

The first few efforts at wheel lacing were pretty tough for me. It’s not that it’s a difficult pattern to follow but it is something new to get used to – a different way of thinking – and I’m not all that great with patterns. I won’t get into the the pattern here. The best way to understand wheel lacing is to try it. Get the cheapest rim and hub from eBay. Measure them both and feed the numbers into a spoke length calculator. Find the cheapest spokes of the right length and some nipples. Start lacing. Don’t worry about not getting premium stuff. Just practice. Once you get the hang of it then start thinking about blinging up. Don’t even worry about oiling the threads and locking them afterward unless you plan to tension the wheel. Again, just start practicing.

With my Deore hubs and Saavedra rims, Brandt’s spoke length calculator says I need 295mm long spokes. I had a set of 297mm length spokes from my practice build. Will these be too long? Like I said in my previous postings, my fear is that I will simply run out of threads. We’ll see. If that’s the case then I can easily find a set of 295mm length spokes on eBay and elsewhere.

I got a nifty Park SW-7 spoke wrench. It can accommodate three of the most popular sizes of spoke nipples. It can be had for $9 with S&H from eBay.

Following the lacing patterns outlined by Brandt and the Bicycle Wheel Building 101 video, I got the following results.

It's starting to look like a real bike now!

You’d think that you can almost get on the bike and start riding it.

Thank goodness I used a lightweight set of rims! The rear and front wheels weigh in at 1120 and 920 grams each! At 2040g together, that is a heavy set of wheels.

Now that I have the pattern down pat, I’m going to unlace the wheels and put them together one more time. I didn’t oil the threads because I knew that I wouldn’t have the time to tension them just yet. Plus, this will give me more practice in lacing.