Guni wheel-build question

[steveyo]

So I got my KH/Schlumpf hub today, and I've laced up all the spokes to the rim following the Uni Magazine's instructions. (This is my first wheel build, BTW).

I've tightened up all the spokes to the same length and my next step should be "relieving" the wheel, that is, putting the wheel on the floor and standing on the rim. The problem is I have this new bazillion-dollar hub and if I do this it will be holding my weight right on one of the shifting buttons, which I've heard are somewhat delicate.

How do I "relieve" the wheel while building with this hub?

[harper]

Steve-

Can you get a small cylinder, like a steel can, that is just the right size to act as a protective cup? Ideally it would contact the flange without threatening the spokes and allow the axle to drop down into the can and hang in mid air. A short length of pipe of the right diameter would work as well. PVC is OK and less likely to scratch anything. Then stand on it. A rag around the rim of the can would distribute forces more uniformly on the spoke surfaces if you can't avoid them.

[tholub]

Originally Posted by steveyo

So I got my KH/Schlumpf hub today, and I've laced up all the spokes to the rim following the Uni Magazine's instructions. (This is my first wheel build, BTW).

I've tightened up all the spokes to the same length and my next step should be "relieving" the wheel, that is, putting the wheel on the floor and standing on the rim. The problem is I have this new bazillion-dollar hub and if I do this it will be holding my weight right on one of the shifting buttons, which I've heard are somewhat delicate.

How do I "relieve" the wheel while building with this hub?

You don't need to stand on the wheel; I wouldn't say that's a very good way to stress-relieve. (Nor would Jobst Brandt: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/s...relieving.html).

You can just put on some gloves and firmly squeeze the sets of parallel spokes on each side of the wheel by hand, going all the way around the wheel.

Enjoy the Schlumpf! I just got my replacement for the one Continental lost. Feh.

[Chrashing]

Hello Steve,
Glad to read you got your hub arrived.

I'm no expert on wheel building, but have built a few. The method I've been using do to relieve the stress of the wheel is, when the spokes begin to tighten up, mount the wheel (with bearing caps on) in the fork. Grab the rim near the fork, push and pull side to side within the fork, turn the wheel ~45 degrees and repeat for an entire rotation. The tight wheel often makes a cool creak with each push/pull as the stress is relieved. It takes a little strength, to push/pull the rim towards the fork.

This works out well because if you true the wheel in the fork, and it then becomes a adjust and relieve, process.

Man, you got a geared hub and am building a wheel, that is two great things.

[unigoat]

Steve,

I've built several wheels (unfortunately none of them with a Schlumpf!), but have followed the late (and absolutely great) Sheldon Brown's advice.

http://sheldonbrown.com/wheelbuild.html

The old crankarm trick has served me very well. My 29er rigid singlespeed (bike) has taken an incredible beating and the wheels have needed almost no work.

I've also found the cheap Park Tool TM-1 (around $70 or so) to be indespensible for all wheel work. The numbers don't lie.

[corbin]

steve! what'cha building? I *just* got my KH24 guni built up last night. I can't wait to take it for a true muni spin around the block. But I still don't have a KH36 yet, nor another hub, to do some super fast riding.

corbin

[joemarshall]

I've used the sheldon brown crankarm technique. My wheels have all stayed true, with the exception of my muni, which needed a minor truing in the alps after 4 days of hard downhilling, but pretty much everyone had the spoke keys out at some point on that trip, it was quite hard on wheels somehow.

Joe

[osmundo]

Steve- Congrats on the schlumpf! You are heroic to build your first wheel with this hub. I hope you like it as much as I do. Initially I was discouraged by the amount of slop and my inability to..
1. Trust my equipment at high speed
2. Change gears without falling.
Soon these concerns melted away. The 36 inch guni is a beautiful thing and i am now changing gears pretty well. It is so much fun and I cannot imagine riding a single speed Coker anymore! Looking forward to hearing your impressions!

[joemarshall]

Also, if you have an ear for pitch, you can get spoke tension even by listening to them and comparing them to a known note - there's instructions on it on

http://www.bikexprt.com/bicycle/tension.htm#pitchtable

I always used to build my wheels next to the piano - although nowadays I have a ukulele which is an alright source of pitch - I just make sure one of the strings is tuned to the pitch I want.

If it's a coker wheel, I can't remember what the note is though - there are equations on that site for working out tension vs. pitch, you'd need to find out from unicycle.com what tension they recommend.

Alternatively, you can use this just as a relative measure, to tell which spokes are less tight than others by listening to the pitch.

Joe

[TonyMelton]

I stood on all four Schlumpf wheels I built! As long as the button facing the floor is pushed in I see no reason why not.

[GizmoDuck]

Fat Tony stood on my wheel?

No wonder it's gone all funny

[capuni]

Originally Posted by corbin

I *just* got my KH24 guni built up last night.

I built up a KH29 guni yesterday and took it for my first guni ride. I zipped down (and I do mean zipped.... damn this thing is fast) to the local trail to test it out. Once I got off the pavement in geared up mode, my first thought was "what would this be like on a 24guni?"

Looking forward to hearing about your experience on the 24 Corbin.

[steveyo]

A new guni wheel-build question:

I dissembled my guni wheel, sent the hub back, just rcved new hub, and I'm now looking at rebuilding the 29er wheel.

Should I reuse the old spokes, or buy new ones?

[tholub]

Originally Posted by steveyo

A new guni wheel-build question:

I dissembled my guni wheel, sent the hub back, just rcved new hub, and I'm now looking at rebuilding the 29er wheel.

Should I reuse the old spokes, or buy new ones?

There's nothing inherently wrong with re-using the spokes, but they will be somewhat more likely to fail than new spokes would be. Depends on your tolerance for fixing broken spokes.

[MuniAddict]

Just like all metals that are put under stress, spokes will also be subjected to metal fatigue over time. If the are still fairly new, and were properly tensioned and kept clean and dry, they should be reusable, but the best course would be to replace them with new black stainless, double butted, brand name spokes.