::::~ Wheelbuilders thread ~::::

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

Props to Velocity.

Well, that's all there is to it Parera. I see Blunt SL's in your future. Now all you have to do is to tell your wheel builder to pull his head out his ___ and build you a set.

 

[Parera]

Well, that's all there is to it Parera. I see Blunt SL's in your future. Now all you have to do is to tell your wheel builder to pull his head out his ___ and build you a set.

I see more companies heading down this route, to be honest. Rising fuel costs coupled with higher wages in the Far East are killing once eye-popping margins for bike components, more prudent to just keep manufacturing stateside.

 

[TexPat]

I see more companies heading down this route, to be honest. Rising fuel costs coupled with higher wages in the Far East are killing once eye-popping margins for bike components, more prudent to just keep manufacturing stateside.

This doesn't help me at all. Now the Velocity rims will take twice as long to get to NZ, and cost twice as much. Have to love the economies of scale.

 

[Boeing]

Well there's your answer Parera. One guy who's riding on them has had a good experience with Stan's, three guys who work in the bike business and deal with numerous riders and reps think they're crap. I'd pay attention to those three guys if I were you. Me, I'll just hope my good luck continues.

something tells me their sample surveys are not that much bigger than yours so I wouldn't sweat a little shop monkey bias

My flows (built by someone who knows what they are doing which is key) on Hopes are bomber

My Velocity P35's on my SS are bomber as well and light and make a 2.4 look like a 6. no issues holds air well and easy to set beed

However I have experienced blunts and they are quite flexy IMHO and the powdercoating cracks and setting tubeless was awkward. Ive rolled blunts that dont crack like coating on the rims I had. Hated those things and tubeless they didnt hold air the best for me and why in gosh mane do they want to coat a rim? although the P35s are coated

In addition I had HP printer fail on me therefore all HP printers blow so....

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

something tells me their sample surveys are not that much bigger than yours so I wouldn't sweat a little shop monkey bias

My flows (built by someone who knows what they are doing which is key) on Hopes are bomber

My Velocity P35's on my SS are bomber as well and light and make a 2.4 look like a 6. no issues holds air well and easy to set beed

However I have experienced blunts and they are quite flexy IMHO and the powdercoating cracks and setting tubeless was awkward. Ive rolled blunts that dont crack like coating on the rims I had. Hated those things and tubeless they didnt hold air the best for me and why in gosh mane do they want to coat a rim? although the P35s are coated

In addition I had HP printer fail on me therefore all HP printers blow so....

Yep that's right, and you're what 210lbs, something like that. My guess is that you'd flex and crack many a rim out there. I wonder how many miles you'd get out of a Stan's rim? I'm thinking less than half life comparatively at your weight. Of the 200+ shops I have relationships with more than 75% will NOT touch Stan's rims. Is that a big enough sample for you?

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

...and 75% is being generous, very generous.

 

[Parera]

Well, that's all there is to it Parera. I see Blunt SL's in your future. Now all you have to do is to tell your wheel builder to pull his head out his ___ and build you a set.

Hey, play nice; in his defense I'm really the only a--hole cusomter he has that bothers with 29ers seriously. Rest of the crew is still on 26 inch, and most of the 29ers he sells to other folks are the weekend warrior crowd who basically would never even contemplate handbuilts. In other words, his sample size isn't the best which is why I ask questions here!

Out of curiosity since I'm a State of Jefferson homebody, are 29ers really taking off? Dirt magazines seem to play this angle (maybe to stir **** up) but honestly the Ashland scene is still thoroughly dominated by 26 inch wheels. A lot of downhilling is part of the reason, but even on trail bikes I'm the rare one to have a 29er that is at least halfway serious about it. I don't buy into the cultish mentality some people have about 29 inch rims, I just like the feel going from my road bike to the trail using a similar wheel size.

So for those of you building wheels elsewhere, is that the bulk of your mountain bike orders these days? Split? Or are people staying "pure" about their mountain bikes?

I admit, some trails I wish I had an Trance X instead of a Anthem 29er...there's a lot to be said about nimble handling and finessing a bike as opposed to just blowing through everything.

 

[Notso Swift]

Props to Velocity.

??? Mate, get some perspective - this is low cost country sourcing, how is this "props"

Like Mercedes Benz made in South Africa or Alabama, it will be cheaper and there will be more of them, but better...

 

[Bustedknuckle]

I see more companies heading down this route, to be honest. Rising fuel costs coupled with higher wages in the Far East are killing once eye-popping margins for bike components, more prudent to just keep manufacturing stateside.

Plus tough to monitor quality control from so far away. Ask sram. When the 'boss' isn't around, it's time to take shortcuts, save $ and pocket it.

 

[Jukebox]

I have a question about 1x lacing. Lacing a traditional alternating heads in/heads out pattern would seem to put a ton of stress on the spoke head with this method, Ive also heard about doing this with all heads out. What are the limitations and uses for 1x? Is it basically an event only wheel since you have to be in the 20 or 24 spoke range anyway for it to make much sense, or is 1x a viable option for wheels that will hold up to frequent use?

 

[Bustedknuckle]

I have a question about 1x lacing. Lacing a traditional alternating heads in/heads out pattern would seem to put a ton of stress on the spoke head with this method, Ive also heard about doing this with all heads out. What are the limitations and uses for 1x? Is it basically an event only wheel since you have to be in the 20 or 24 spoke range anyway for it to make much sense, or is 1x a viable option for wheels that will hold up to frequent use?

If you are going to do 1 cross, do radial. 1 cross does nothing that radial doesn't do. BUT for 20h, do 2 cross as with 24h.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

I have a question about 1x lacing. Lacing a traditional alternating heads in/heads out pattern would seem to put a ton of stress on the spoke head with this method, Ive also heard about doing this with all heads out. What are the limitations and uses for 1x? Is it basically an event only wheel since you have to be in the 20 or 24 spoke range anyway for it to make much sense, or is 1x a viable option for wheels that will hold up to frequent use?

When you're lacing radial or 1x heads in or out depends on flange spacing, for really wide hubs I do heads out, narrower spacing you can do heads in, or alternating heads in/out. The belief is that a radial lace with heads in/elbows out gives you better stability on the front, but this is one of those wheel builder myths that don't hold water, it's all about aesthetics. Really depends what your hub rim combo can handle. The 1st post of this thread displays a 32h front wheel that I laced radially alternating heads in/out, still going strong, commute on them almost everyday.

 

[Jukebox]

Thanks for the replys.

Also, does anyone have experience with Velocity hubs? The Race hubs look good as far as price and weight go, but I'm curious about durability.

 

[Bustedknuckle]

Thanks for the replys.

Also, does anyone have experience with Velocity hubs? The Race hubs look good as far as price and weight go, but I'm curious about durability.

What we use for less expensive, go to hubs for Campagnolo(along with Miche). Well made, not expensive. cart bearings thruout that can be replaced with higher quality ones easily. Good value.

 

[42x16ss]

Hey everyone, just thought I'd bump this thread with all of the wheelbuilding/wheelbuying threads around at the moment.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

If any of the wheels I've built over the past year had a way of saying Merry Christmas, it would be these.

 

[Race Radio]

If any of the wheels I've built over the past year had a way of saying Merry Christmas, it would be these.

Where those for Don "The Magic" Juan?

 

[gregod]

does anybody have an opinion on 32 hole campagnolo barcelona rims? i have used them for years, but i am curious about other people's experiences.

cheers.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

does anybody have an opinion on 32 hole campagnolo barcelona rims? i have used them for years, but i am curious about other people's experiences.

cheers.

I had a set of those. Of all the Campy rims those were the worst. Soft aluminum, eyelet pulled through after just a couple seasons, easily dinged, and the ride was like a wet noodle. Not Good.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

Where those for Don "The Magic" Juan?

Ha! Close though, built for a punk lumberjack. Style for miles, ya know!

 

[gregod]

I had a set of those. Of all the Campy rims those were the worst. Soft aluminum, eyelet pulled through after just a couple seasons, easily dinged, and the ride was like a wet noodle. Not Good.

rdv, i was afraid you were going to say that.

i love these rims for their looks, but i have had to be careful with them because i have had the same experience that you describe. i thought it was perhaps my building skill, or lack thereof that was the problem.

i have a pair of campagnolo omega rims that have been bulletproof and i have hit a curb with my boras and they survived without even a scratch.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

rdv, i was afraid you were going to say that.

i love these rims for their looks, but i have had to be careful with them because i have had the same experience that you describe. i thought it was perhaps my building skill, or lack thereof that was the problem.

i have a pair of campagnolo omega rims that have been bulletproof and i have hit a curb with my boras and they survived without even a scratch.

Omegas were much tougher, hard anodized, great rim. Much like the Ambrosio Nemesis I frequently build with now.

 

[gregod]

Omegas were much tougher, hard anodized, great rim. Much like the Ambrosio Nemesis I frequently build with now.

so do you recommend ambrosio's? i am thinking of replacing the barcelonas with something else and since campy doesn't make rims anymore and a lot of pros use ambrosios for roubaix, i thought this might be a good training tubular.

 

[gregod]

nemesis, formula 20 or montreal?

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

so do you recommend ambrosio's? i am thinking of replacing the barcelonas with something else and since campy doesn't make rims anymore and a lot of pros use ambrosios for roubaix, i thought this might be a good training tubular.

Yessir, Ambrosio makes the best aluminum rims for the majority of their 80 year existence. The Nemesis would make for a great training tubular, if it can handle Roubaix it can handle whatever us mortals have to dish out.