Is it worth rebuilding a wheel myself to save money? The 2019 Stack Overflow Developer Survey...

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Is it worth rebuilding a wheel myself to save money?



The 2019 Stack Overflow Developer Survey Results Are InOptimal Maintenance ScheduleHome-made sealed freewheel?What alternative spoke lacing patterns exist (that make a decent wheel)?Spokes keep breaking - bad hub or bad build?Minimal effort chain cleaningHow to avoid turning the spokes while tuning the wheelDoes rebuilding a hub increase efficiency?Rebuilding Easton Haven Carbon WheelsAttempting to Rebuild a 2000 Trek 7700 MultitrackIs it worth rebuilding a broken front wheel












10















The bearings and hubs on my bike have worn out and need replacing. The local bike shop charges $120 to have the wheel rebuilt with a new hub not including the part cost. I am considering doing this myself to save the money. I have never rebuilt a wheel before but I have done other maintenance on my bike and watched some videos on wheel rebuilding.



After considering buying the tools needed and the risk of breaking any parts, is it worth building a wheel for the first time just to save money?



I have done other repairs like chain replacements and brake pad replacements. I don't mind spending a weekend messing with it and I have other bikes I can use in the meantime.










share|improve this question




















  • 6





    To the downvoter, just because the asker is wrong and the answer is no, doesn't mean it's an unreasonable question.

    – whatsisname
    yesterday






  • 3





    @whatsisname To the commenter, just because you have a theory about why the question was downvoted, doesn't mean that was the actual reason. The downvote wasn't mine but this looks pretty opinion-based, to me.

    – David Richerby
    yesterday











  • What kind of hub is this? You can replace the bearings on many hubs. This doesn't involve rebuilding the wheel.

    – Artefacto
    yesterday











  • IMO, there's a point no one has raised yet: lacing a wheel is super easy if you follow a pattern, but pre-stressing it and then truing it to correct tension isn't. Considering the OP's experience, I'd say it's probably not economical as something might very well go wrong sooner with the rebuilt wheel than with a factory built new wheel.

    – Gabriel C.
    yesterday
















10















The bearings and hubs on my bike have worn out and need replacing. The local bike shop charges $120 to have the wheel rebuilt with a new hub not including the part cost. I am considering doing this myself to save the money. I have never rebuilt a wheel before but I have done other maintenance on my bike and watched some videos on wheel rebuilding.



After considering buying the tools needed and the risk of breaking any parts, is it worth building a wheel for the first time just to save money?



I have done other repairs like chain replacements and brake pad replacements. I don't mind spending a weekend messing with it and I have other bikes I can use in the meantime.










share|improve this question




















  • 6





    To the downvoter, just because the asker is wrong and the answer is no, doesn't mean it's an unreasonable question.

    – whatsisname
    yesterday






  • 3





    @whatsisname To the commenter, just because you have a theory about why the question was downvoted, doesn't mean that was the actual reason. The downvote wasn't mine but this looks pretty opinion-based, to me.

    – David Richerby
    yesterday











  • What kind of hub is this? You can replace the bearings on many hubs. This doesn't involve rebuilding the wheel.

    – Artefacto
    yesterday











  • IMO, there's a point no one has raised yet: lacing a wheel is super easy if you follow a pattern, but pre-stressing it and then truing it to correct tension isn't. Considering the OP's experience, I'd say it's probably not economical as something might very well go wrong sooner with the rebuilt wheel than with a factory built new wheel.

    – Gabriel C.
    yesterday














10












10








10








The bearings and hubs on my bike have worn out and need replacing. The local bike shop charges $120 to have the wheel rebuilt with a new hub not including the part cost. I am considering doing this myself to save the money. I have never rebuilt a wheel before but I have done other maintenance on my bike and watched some videos on wheel rebuilding.



After considering buying the tools needed and the risk of breaking any parts, is it worth building a wheel for the first time just to save money?



I have done other repairs like chain replacements and brake pad replacements. I don't mind spending a weekend messing with it and I have other bikes I can use in the meantime.










share|improve this question
















The bearings and hubs on my bike have worn out and need replacing. The local bike shop charges $120 to have the wheel rebuilt with a new hub not including the part cost. I am considering doing this myself to save the money. I have never rebuilt a wheel before but I have done other maintenance on my bike and watched some videos on wheel rebuilding.



After considering buying the tools needed and the risk of breaking any parts, is it worth building a wheel for the first time just to save money?



I have done other repairs like chain replacements and brake pad replacements. I don't mind spending a weekend messing with it and I have other bikes I can use in the meantime.







maintenance wheel-building






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited yesterday









David Richerby

14k33869




14k33869










asked 2 days ago









QwertieQwertie

21011




21011








  • 6





    To the downvoter, just because the asker is wrong and the answer is no, doesn't mean it's an unreasonable question.

    – whatsisname
    yesterday






  • 3





    @whatsisname To the commenter, just because you have a theory about why the question was downvoted, doesn't mean that was the actual reason. The downvote wasn't mine but this looks pretty opinion-based, to me.

    – David Richerby
    yesterday











  • What kind of hub is this? You can replace the bearings on many hubs. This doesn't involve rebuilding the wheel.

    – Artefacto
    yesterday











  • IMO, there's a point no one has raised yet: lacing a wheel is super easy if you follow a pattern, but pre-stressing it and then truing it to correct tension isn't. Considering the OP's experience, I'd say it's probably not economical as something might very well go wrong sooner with the rebuilt wheel than with a factory built new wheel.

    – Gabriel C.
    yesterday














  • 6





    To the downvoter, just because the asker is wrong and the answer is no, doesn't mean it's an unreasonable question.

    – whatsisname
    yesterday






  • 3





    @whatsisname To the commenter, just because you have a theory about why the question was downvoted, doesn't mean that was the actual reason. The downvote wasn't mine but this looks pretty opinion-based, to me.

    – David Richerby
    yesterday











  • What kind of hub is this? You can replace the bearings on many hubs. This doesn't involve rebuilding the wheel.

    – Artefacto
    yesterday











  • IMO, there's a point no one has raised yet: lacing a wheel is super easy if you follow a pattern, but pre-stressing it and then truing it to correct tension isn't. Considering the OP's experience, I'd say it's probably not economical as something might very well go wrong sooner with the rebuilt wheel than with a factory built new wheel.

    – Gabriel C.
    yesterday








6




6





To the downvoter, just because the asker is wrong and the answer is no, doesn't mean it's an unreasonable question.

– whatsisname
yesterday





To the downvoter, just because the asker is wrong and the answer is no, doesn't mean it's an unreasonable question.

– whatsisname
yesterday




3




3





@whatsisname To the commenter, just because you have a theory about why the question was downvoted, doesn't mean that was the actual reason. The downvote wasn't mine but this looks pretty opinion-based, to me.

– David Richerby
yesterday





@whatsisname To the commenter, just because you have a theory about why the question was downvoted, doesn't mean that was the actual reason. The downvote wasn't mine but this looks pretty opinion-based, to me.

– David Richerby
yesterday













What kind of hub is this? You can replace the bearings on many hubs. This doesn't involve rebuilding the wheel.

– Artefacto
yesterday





What kind of hub is this? You can replace the bearings on many hubs. This doesn't involve rebuilding the wheel.

– Artefacto
yesterday













IMO, there's a point no one has raised yet: lacing a wheel is super easy if you follow a pattern, but pre-stressing it and then truing it to correct tension isn't. Considering the OP's experience, I'd say it's probably not economical as something might very well go wrong sooner with the rebuilt wheel than with a factory built new wheel.

– Gabriel C.
yesterday





IMO, there's a point no one has raised yet: lacing a wheel is super easy if you follow a pattern, but pre-stressing it and then truing it to correct tension isn't. Considering the OP's experience, I'd say it's probably not economical as something might very well go wrong sooner with the rebuilt wheel than with a factory built new wheel.

– Gabriel C.
yesterday










4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes


















14














For most applications, most of the time, in the global north, if you're trying to save money then just buying a new wheel is the most economical. The main exception that comes up is if you have a premium quality hub that's built to go indefinitely and is worth re-rimming.



But, good handbuilt wheels offer the highest level of reliability and longevity, and that can have its own economy depending on your situation. In practice a major example of this is that they don't break spokes from fatigue over the course of the service life of the wheel (and really ever with properly stress relieved spokes, but that's a bigger topic) whereas the cheaper end of machine built wheels often will, pushing back against the cost savings of buying one for a bike that gets ridden. And there are also times and places where a rim with life left isn't something you'd throw away. So there is no one answer here. A person who really needs their bike to work as best as possible and also needs to spend the minimum amount of money possible might be perfectly well advised to rebuild the rim.



Another factor is that the world has an overabundance of functional cheap or free used hubs with life left from wheels where the rim died. If you can get a suitable one of those and if minimizing cost is literally the only goal and if you've definitely got a rim with life left, then you're only out the cost of spokes and rebuilding it might make all kinds of sense.



Most rim brake rims are going to be pretty haggard by the time a hub has actually worn out. (Note that 'worn out' implies a different situation than a hub that had issues or failed.) There are exceptions here too; I've rebuilt one or two Dura Ace C50 tubular rims whose hubs died by pressure washer. That's obviously kind of an extreme example, but it happened.



Disc rims that aren't being mountain biked on can have pretty easy lives, especially when paired with a fat tire that's minimizing the severity of the fatigue cycles it experiences.



When rebuilding a used rim or contemplating it, it's a good idea to check for any out of round or out of true spots that are intrinsic to the rim itself, i.e. acquired via damage. A very good way to do this is take the bare rim and lay it on top of a new, high-quality, preferably machined sidewall rim of the same size. Any radial or lateral deformation should be apparent. To be able to get a true wheel with even spoke tension, you want the bare rim to have zero perceptible radial deformation, either flat spots or ovalisation, and 1-2 mm of lateral imperfection at most. (There are methods and tools for getting rims with any of these issues back into shape or at least making them better, but that's another topic.)



When unlacing a rim you intend to rebuild, be gradual so you avoid bending the material around too much. I do half turn loosening passes until the spokes are slack, then I do the rest all at once or cut if they're not being re-used (which they usually shouldn't be).






share|improve this answer


























  • Re. unlacing the spokes. After slackening them, I then replace the spokes as I remove them, that way you have a nice guide as to the correct lacing and nipple destination. Very easy to maintain the valve hole to hub logo orientation (if that matters to you). It doesn't need to be one to one, but perhaps in a group of all leading drive-side spokes for instance (rear example).

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday



















6














Buying a new machine-made wheel is probably more economical if you put any price on your time. However, building wheels is in my opinion quite fun, and it also teaches you more about how spoked wheels work. This knowledge can come handy when you want to trim out-of-true wheels later.



You can go cheap on the tools. The only special tool needed is a spoke wrench, which you might already have. You also need a way to attach the wheel axle to something, which could be e.g. your bike turned upside down. Everything else, such as dial indicators and tensiometers are optional - they will improve the end result and make the wheel more durable and long-lasting, but you can make a perfectly functional wheel without them.



So if I were you, I'd give it a try, but just for the experience.






share|improve this answer
























  • I did it for the experience once, and have now done ~5 wheel rebuilds. Its not hard, its just a combination of many requirements followed by iterative truing. +1 for experience.

    – Criggie
    yesterday











  • I would add to this answer the main points that are important to a good build: 1) Even tension, 2) vertical truing, 3) even tension, 4) horizontal truing, and 5) even tension. The two truing parts are obvious, but the even tension is critical to the longevity of the resulting wheel.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago



















1














Given enough (free of charge) time, good instructions, and some basic tools you can rebuild the wheel by yourself, at rather small cost. If your time is not free, and / or each day bicycle is out of operation costs you (like you have to pay gas for that day, or public transportation) then it is probably more economical to let the LBS rebuild it.



I have not included "just buy a new wheel" option since I suspect it might be an e-bike wheel with included hub motor, and therefore not easily or cheaply sourced as standard wheel.






share|improve this answer
























  • Its a bosch ebike with no hub motors

    – Qwertie
    yesterday



















-2














No.



Even with free labor, and even if you already have the tools, a custom wheel will rarely be cheaper than factory made.



Building wheels is primarily for making unique wheels, or the satisfaction of making them / enjoyment of the craft, but virtually never for cost reasons.



Also, re-using a rim is a bad idea. If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too.






share|improve this answer



















  • 1





    Disagree on the rim part -- you're free to re-use a good rim but agree that it will not be economical.The part that you don't want to re-use is spokes.

    – Batman
    yesterday











  • The wheel has only done 5000km but apparently some dirt got in to the bearings combined with the extra force from being an ebike caused it to wear out fast. Although I don't think the rim was particularly good anyway so this seems like it might be the right answer.

    – Qwertie
    yesterday






  • 2





    Downvoted for "If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too"

    – ojs
    yesterday











  • Any extra speed and mass that and e-bike will subject the hub to shouldn't wear it out that fast. Was a cheap wheel? In that case I would have thought the extra tension on the spokes from drive torque would have been more of a potential issue...

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday











  • In my experience, there's no point to swap either rim or spokes: I have rebuilt wheels with old rims and/or spokes, and they worked fine. You need a new rim if it's brake surfaces are worn out, or when it's deformed, otherwise the old rim is good. And a full set of old spokes can be reused just fine as long as you make sure that they come out with near perfect even tension, the used spokes just make it harder to get to that point of even tension. I would never throw a wheel away just because I need a new hub.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago












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4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes








4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes









active

oldest

votes






active

oldest

votes









14














For most applications, most of the time, in the global north, if you're trying to save money then just buying a new wheel is the most economical. The main exception that comes up is if you have a premium quality hub that's built to go indefinitely and is worth re-rimming.



But, good handbuilt wheels offer the highest level of reliability and longevity, and that can have its own economy depending on your situation. In practice a major example of this is that they don't break spokes from fatigue over the course of the service life of the wheel (and really ever with properly stress relieved spokes, but that's a bigger topic) whereas the cheaper end of machine built wheels often will, pushing back against the cost savings of buying one for a bike that gets ridden. And there are also times and places where a rim with life left isn't something you'd throw away. So there is no one answer here. A person who really needs their bike to work as best as possible and also needs to spend the minimum amount of money possible might be perfectly well advised to rebuild the rim.



Another factor is that the world has an overabundance of functional cheap or free used hubs with life left from wheels where the rim died. If you can get a suitable one of those and if minimizing cost is literally the only goal and if you've definitely got a rim with life left, then you're only out the cost of spokes and rebuilding it might make all kinds of sense.



Most rim brake rims are going to be pretty haggard by the time a hub has actually worn out. (Note that 'worn out' implies a different situation than a hub that had issues or failed.) There are exceptions here too; I've rebuilt one or two Dura Ace C50 tubular rims whose hubs died by pressure washer. That's obviously kind of an extreme example, but it happened.



Disc rims that aren't being mountain biked on can have pretty easy lives, especially when paired with a fat tire that's minimizing the severity of the fatigue cycles it experiences.



When rebuilding a used rim or contemplating it, it's a good idea to check for any out of round or out of true spots that are intrinsic to the rim itself, i.e. acquired via damage. A very good way to do this is take the bare rim and lay it on top of a new, high-quality, preferably machined sidewall rim of the same size. Any radial or lateral deformation should be apparent. To be able to get a true wheel with even spoke tension, you want the bare rim to have zero perceptible radial deformation, either flat spots or ovalisation, and 1-2 mm of lateral imperfection at most. (There are methods and tools for getting rims with any of these issues back into shape or at least making them better, but that's another topic.)



When unlacing a rim you intend to rebuild, be gradual so you avoid bending the material around too much. I do half turn loosening passes until the spokes are slack, then I do the rest all at once or cut if they're not being re-used (which they usually shouldn't be).






share|improve this answer


























  • Re. unlacing the spokes. After slackening them, I then replace the spokes as I remove them, that way you have a nice guide as to the correct lacing and nipple destination. Very easy to maintain the valve hole to hub logo orientation (if that matters to you). It doesn't need to be one to one, but perhaps in a group of all leading drive-side spokes for instance (rear example).

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday
















14














For most applications, most of the time, in the global north, if you're trying to save money then just buying a new wheel is the most economical. The main exception that comes up is if you have a premium quality hub that's built to go indefinitely and is worth re-rimming.



But, good handbuilt wheels offer the highest level of reliability and longevity, and that can have its own economy depending on your situation. In practice a major example of this is that they don't break spokes from fatigue over the course of the service life of the wheel (and really ever with properly stress relieved spokes, but that's a bigger topic) whereas the cheaper end of machine built wheels often will, pushing back against the cost savings of buying one for a bike that gets ridden. And there are also times and places where a rim with life left isn't something you'd throw away. So there is no one answer here. A person who really needs their bike to work as best as possible and also needs to spend the minimum amount of money possible might be perfectly well advised to rebuild the rim.



Another factor is that the world has an overabundance of functional cheap or free used hubs with life left from wheels where the rim died. If you can get a suitable one of those and if minimizing cost is literally the only goal and if you've definitely got a rim with life left, then you're only out the cost of spokes and rebuilding it might make all kinds of sense.



Most rim brake rims are going to be pretty haggard by the time a hub has actually worn out. (Note that 'worn out' implies a different situation than a hub that had issues or failed.) There are exceptions here too; I've rebuilt one or two Dura Ace C50 tubular rims whose hubs died by pressure washer. That's obviously kind of an extreme example, but it happened.



Disc rims that aren't being mountain biked on can have pretty easy lives, especially when paired with a fat tire that's minimizing the severity of the fatigue cycles it experiences.



When rebuilding a used rim or contemplating it, it's a good idea to check for any out of round or out of true spots that are intrinsic to the rim itself, i.e. acquired via damage. A very good way to do this is take the bare rim and lay it on top of a new, high-quality, preferably machined sidewall rim of the same size. Any radial or lateral deformation should be apparent. To be able to get a true wheel with even spoke tension, you want the bare rim to have zero perceptible radial deformation, either flat spots or ovalisation, and 1-2 mm of lateral imperfection at most. (There are methods and tools for getting rims with any of these issues back into shape or at least making them better, but that's another topic.)



When unlacing a rim you intend to rebuild, be gradual so you avoid bending the material around too much. I do half turn loosening passes until the spokes are slack, then I do the rest all at once or cut if they're not being re-used (which they usually shouldn't be).






share|improve this answer


























  • Re. unlacing the spokes. After slackening them, I then replace the spokes as I remove them, that way you have a nice guide as to the correct lacing and nipple destination. Very easy to maintain the valve hole to hub logo orientation (if that matters to you). It doesn't need to be one to one, but perhaps in a group of all leading drive-side spokes for instance (rear example).

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday














14












14








14







For most applications, most of the time, in the global north, if you're trying to save money then just buying a new wheel is the most economical. The main exception that comes up is if you have a premium quality hub that's built to go indefinitely and is worth re-rimming.



But, good handbuilt wheels offer the highest level of reliability and longevity, and that can have its own economy depending on your situation. In practice a major example of this is that they don't break spokes from fatigue over the course of the service life of the wheel (and really ever with properly stress relieved spokes, but that's a bigger topic) whereas the cheaper end of machine built wheels often will, pushing back against the cost savings of buying one for a bike that gets ridden. And there are also times and places where a rim with life left isn't something you'd throw away. So there is no one answer here. A person who really needs their bike to work as best as possible and also needs to spend the minimum amount of money possible might be perfectly well advised to rebuild the rim.



Another factor is that the world has an overabundance of functional cheap or free used hubs with life left from wheels where the rim died. If you can get a suitable one of those and if minimizing cost is literally the only goal and if you've definitely got a rim with life left, then you're only out the cost of spokes and rebuilding it might make all kinds of sense.



Most rim brake rims are going to be pretty haggard by the time a hub has actually worn out. (Note that 'worn out' implies a different situation than a hub that had issues or failed.) There are exceptions here too; I've rebuilt one or two Dura Ace C50 tubular rims whose hubs died by pressure washer. That's obviously kind of an extreme example, but it happened.



Disc rims that aren't being mountain biked on can have pretty easy lives, especially when paired with a fat tire that's minimizing the severity of the fatigue cycles it experiences.



When rebuilding a used rim or contemplating it, it's a good idea to check for any out of round or out of true spots that are intrinsic to the rim itself, i.e. acquired via damage. A very good way to do this is take the bare rim and lay it on top of a new, high-quality, preferably machined sidewall rim of the same size. Any radial or lateral deformation should be apparent. To be able to get a true wheel with even spoke tension, you want the bare rim to have zero perceptible radial deformation, either flat spots or ovalisation, and 1-2 mm of lateral imperfection at most. (There are methods and tools for getting rims with any of these issues back into shape or at least making them better, but that's another topic.)



When unlacing a rim you intend to rebuild, be gradual so you avoid bending the material around too much. I do half turn loosening passes until the spokes are slack, then I do the rest all at once or cut if they're not being re-used (which they usually shouldn't be).






share|improve this answer















For most applications, most of the time, in the global north, if you're trying to save money then just buying a new wheel is the most economical. The main exception that comes up is if you have a premium quality hub that's built to go indefinitely and is worth re-rimming.



But, good handbuilt wheels offer the highest level of reliability and longevity, and that can have its own economy depending on your situation. In practice a major example of this is that they don't break spokes from fatigue over the course of the service life of the wheel (and really ever with properly stress relieved spokes, but that's a bigger topic) whereas the cheaper end of machine built wheels often will, pushing back against the cost savings of buying one for a bike that gets ridden. And there are also times and places where a rim with life left isn't something you'd throw away. So there is no one answer here. A person who really needs their bike to work as best as possible and also needs to spend the minimum amount of money possible might be perfectly well advised to rebuild the rim.



Another factor is that the world has an overabundance of functional cheap or free used hubs with life left from wheels where the rim died. If you can get a suitable one of those and if minimizing cost is literally the only goal and if you've definitely got a rim with life left, then you're only out the cost of spokes and rebuilding it might make all kinds of sense.



Most rim brake rims are going to be pretty haggard by the time a hub has actually worn out. (Note that 'worn out' implies a different situation than a hub that had issues or failed.) There are exceptions here too; I've rebuilt one or two Dura Ace C50 tubular rims whose hubs died by pressure washer. That's obviously kind of an extreme example, but it happened.



Disc rims that aren't being mountain biked on can have pretty easy lives, especially when paired with a fat tire that's minimizing the severity of the fatigue cycles it experiences.



When rebuilding a used rim or contemplating it, it's a good idea to check for any out of round or out of true spots that are intrinsic to the rim itself, i.e. acquired via damage. A very good way to do this is take the bare rim and lay it on top of a new, high-quality, preferably machined sidewall rim of the same size. Any radial or lateral deformation should be apparent. To be able to get a true wheel with even spoke tension, you want the bare rim to have zero perceptible radial deformation, either flat spots or ovalisation, and 1-2 mm of lateral imperfection at most. (There are methods and tools for getting rims with any of these issues back into shape or at least making them better, but that's another topic.)



When unlacing a rim you intend to rebuild, be gradual so you avoid bending the material around too much. I do half turn loosening passes until the spokes are slack, then I do the rest all at once or cut if they're not being re-used (which they usually shouldn't be).







share|improve this answer














share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer








edited yesterday

























answered yesterday









Nathan KnutsonNathan Knutson

24.9k12063




24.9k12063













  • Re. unlacing the spokes. After slackening them, I then replace the spokes as I remove them, that way you have a nice guide as to the correct lacing and nipple destination. Very easy to maintain the valve hole to hub logo orientation (if that matters to you). It doesn't need to be one to one, but perhaps in a group of all leading drive-side spokes for instance (rear example).

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday



















  • Re. unlacing the spokes. After slackening them, I then replace the spokes as I remove them, that way you have a nice guide as to the correct lacing and nipple destination. Very easy to maintain the valve hole to hub logo orientation (if that matters to you). It doesn't need to be one to one, but perhaps in a group of all leading drive-side spokes for instance (rear example).

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday

















Re. unlacing the spokes. After slackening them, I then replace the spokes as I remove them, that way you have a nice guide as to the correct lacing and nipple destination. Very easy to maintain the valve hole to hub logo orientation (if that matters to you). It doesn't need to be one to one, but perhaps in a group of all leading drive-side spokes for instance (rear example).

– Lamar Latrell
yesterday





Re. unlacing the spokes. After slackening them, I then replace the spokes as I remove them, that way you have a nice guide as to the correct lacing and nipple destination. Very easy to maintain the valve hole to hub logo orientation (if that matters to you). It doesn't need to be one to one, but perhaps in a group of all leading drive-side spokes for instance (rear example).

– Lamar Latrell
yesterday











6














Buying a new machine-made wheel is probably more economical if you put any price on your time. However, building wheels is in my opinion quite fun, and it also teaches you more about how spoked wheels work. This knowledge can come handy when you want to trim out-of-true wheels later.



You can go cheap on the tools. The only special tool needed is a spoke wrench, which you might already have. You also need a way to attach the wheel axle to something, which could be e.g. your bike turned upside down. Everything else, such as dial indicators and tensiometers are optional - they will improve the end result and make the wheel more durable and long-lasting, but you can make a perfectly functional wheel without them.



So if I were you, I'd give it a try, but just for the experience.






share|improve this answer
























  • I did it for the experience once, and have now done ~5 wheel rebuilds. Its not hard, its just a combination of many requirements followed by iterative truing. +1 for experience.

    – Criggie
    yesterday











  • I would add to this answer the main points that are important to a good build: 1) Even tension, 2) vertical truing, 3) even tension, 4) horizontal truing, and 5) even tension. The two truing parts are obvious, but the even tension is critical to the longevity of the resulting wheel.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago
















6














Buying a new machine-made wheel is probably more economical if you put any price on your time. However, building wheels is in my opinion quite fun, and it also teaches you more about how spoked wheels work. This knowledge can come handy when you want to trim out-of-true wheels later.



You can go cheap on the tools. The only special tool needed is a spoke wrench, which you might already have. You also need a way to attach the wheel axle to something, which could be e.g. your bike turned upside down. Everything else, such as dial indicators and tensiometers are optional - they will improve the end result and make the wheel more durable and long-lasting, but you can make a perfectly functional wheel without them.



So if I were you, I'd give it a try, but just for the experience.






share|improve this answer
























  • I did it for the experience once, and have now done ~5 wheel rebuilds. Its not hard, its just a combination of many requirements followed by iterative truing. +1 for experience.

    – Criggie
    yesterday











  • I would add to this answer the main points that are important to a good build: 1) Even tension, 2) vertical truing, 3) even tension, 4) horizontal truing, and 5) even tension. The two truing parts are obvious, but the even tension is critical to the longevity of the resulting wheel.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago














6












6








6







Buying a new machine-made wheel is probably more economical if you put any price on your time. However, building wheels is in my opinion quite fun, and it also teaches you more about how spoked wheels work. This knowledge can come handy when you want to trim out-of-true wheels later.



You can go cheap on the tools. The only special tool needed is a spoke wrench, which you might already have. You also need a way to attach the wheel axle to something, which could be e.g. your bike turned upside down. Everything else, such as dial indicators and tensiometers are optional - they will improve the end result and make the wheel more durable and long-lasting, but you can make a perfectly functional wheel without them.



So if I were you, I'd give it a try, but just for the experience.






share|improve this answer













Buying a new machine-made wheel is probably more economical if you put any price on your time. However, building wheels is in my opinion quite fun, and it also teaches you more about how spoked wheels work. This knowledge can come handy when you want to trim out-of-true wheels later.



You can go cheap on the tools. The only special tool needed is a spoke wrench, which you might already have. You also need a way to attach the wheel axle to something, which could be e.g. your bike turned upside down. Everything else, such as dial indicators and tensiometers are optional - they will improve the end result and make the wheel more durable and long-lasting, but you can make a perfectly functional wheel without them.



So if I were you, I'd give it a try, but just for the experience.







share|improve this answer












share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer










answered yesterday









jpajpa

90047




90047













  • I did it for the experience once, and have now done ~5 wheel rebuilds. Its not hard, its just a combination of many requirements followed by iterative truing. +1 for experience.

    – Criggie
    yesterday











  • I would add to this answer the main points that are important to a good build: 1) Even tension, 2) vertical truing, 3) even tension, 4) horizontal truing, and 5) even tension. The two truing parts are obvious, but the even tension is critical to the longevity of the resulting wheel.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago



















  • I did it for the experience once, and have now done ~5 wheel rebuilds. Its not hard, its just a combination of many requirements followed by iterative truing. +1 for experience.

    – Criggie
    yesterday











  • I would add to this answer the main points that are important to a good build: 1) Even tension, 2) vertical truing, 3) even tension, 4) horizontal truing, and 5) even tension. The two truing parts are obvious, but the even tension is critical to the longevity of the resulting wheel.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago

















I did it for the experience once, and have now done ~5 wheel rebuilds. Its not hard, its just a combination of many requirements followed by iterative truing. +1 for experience.

– Criggie
yesterday





I did it for the experience once, and have now done ~5 wheel rebuilds. Its not hard, its just a combination of many requirements followed by iterative truing. +1 for experience.

– Criggie
yesterday













I would add to this answer the main points that are important to a good build: 1) Even tension, 2) vertical truing, 3) even tension, 4) horizontal truing, and 5) even tension. The two truing parts are obvious, but the even tension is critical to the longevity of the resulting wheel.

– cmaster
19 hours ago





I would add to this answer the main points that are important to a good build: 1) Even tension, 2) vertical truing, 3) even tension, 4) horizontal truing, and 5) even tension. The two truing parts are obvious, but the even tension is critical to the longevity of the resulting wheel.

– cmaster
19 hours ago











1














Given enough (free of charge) time, good instructions, and some basic tools you can rebuild the wheel by yourself, at rather small cost. If your time is not free, and / or each day bicycle is out of operation costs you (like you have to pay gas for that day, or public transportation) then it is probably more economical to let the LBS rebuild it.



I have not included "just buy a new wheel" option since I suspect it might be an e-bike wheel with included hub motor, and therefore not easily or cheaply sourced as standard wheel.






share|improve this answer
























  • Its a bosch ebike with no hub motors

    – Qwertie
    yesterday
















1














Given enough (free of charge) time, good instructions, and some basic tools you can rebuild the wheel by yourself, at rather small cost. If your time is not free, and / or each day bicycle is out of operation costs you (like you have to pay gas for that day, or public transportation) then it is probably more economical to let the LBS rebuild it.



I have not included "just buy a new wheel" option since I suspect it might be an e-bike wheel with included hub motor, and therefore not easily or cheaply sourced as standard wheel.






share|improve this answer
























  • Its a bosch ebike with no hub motors

    – Qwertie
    yesterday














1












1








1







Given enough (free of charge) time, good instructions, and some basic tools you can rebuild the wheel by yourself, at rather small cost. If your time is not free, and / or each day bicycle is out of operation costs you (like you have to pay gas for that day, or public transportation) then it is probably more economical to let the LBS rebuild it.



I have not included "just buy a new wheel" option since I suspect it might be an e-bike wheel with included hub motor, and therefore not easily or cheaply sourced as standard wheel.






share|improve this answer













Given enough (free of charge) time, good instructions, and some basic tools you can rebuild the wheel by yourself, at rather small cost. If your time is not free, and / or each day bicycle is out of operation costs you (like you have to pay gas for that day, or public transportation) then it is probably more economical to let the LBS rebuild it.



I have not included "just buy a new wheel" option since I suspect it might be an e-bike wheel with included hub motor, and therefore not easily or cheaply sourced as standard wheel.







share|improve this answer












share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer










answered yesterday









Davorin RuševljanDavorin Ruševljan

1,558916




1,558916













  • Its a bosch ebike with no hub motors

    – Qwertie
    yesterday



















  • Its a bosch ebike with no hub motors

    – Qwertie
    yesterday

















Its a bosch ebike with no hub motors

– Qwertie
yesterday





Its a bosch ebike with no hub motors

– Qwertie
yesterday











-2














No.



Even with free labor, and even if you already have the tools, a custom wheel will rarely be cheaper than factory made.



Building wheels is primarily for making unique wheels, or the satisfaction of making them / enjoyment of the craft, but virtually never for cost reasons.



Also, re-using a rim is a bad idea. If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too.






share|improve this answer



















  • 1





    Disagree on the rim part -- you're free to re-use a good rim but agree that it will not be economical.The part that you don't want to re-use is spokes.

    – Batman
    yesterday











  • The wheel has only done 5000km but apparently some dirt got in to the bearings combined with the extra force from being an ebike caused it to wear out fast. Although I don't think the rim was particularly good anyway so this seems like it might be the right answer.

    – Qwertie
    yesterday






  • 2





    Downvoted for "If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too"

    – ojs
    yesterday











  • Any extra speed and mass that and e-bike will subject the hub to shouldn't wear it out that fast. Was a cheap wheel? In that case I would have thought the extra tension on the spokes from drive torque would have been more of a potential issue...

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday











  • In my experience, there's no point to swap either rim or spokes: I have rebuilt wheels with old rims and/or spokes, and they worked fine. You need a new rim if it's brake surfaces are worn out, or when it's deformed, otherwise the old rim is good. And a full set of old spokes can be reused just fine as long as you make sure that they come out with near perfect even tension, the used spokes just make it harder to get to that point of even tension. I would never throw a wheel away just because I need a new hub.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago
















-2














No.



Even with free labor, and even if you already have the tools, a custom wheel will rarely be cheaper than factory made.



Building wheels is primarily for making unique wheels, or the satisfaction of making them / enjoyment of the craft, but virtually never for cost reasons.



Also, re-using a rim is a bad idea. If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too.






share|improve this answer



















  • 1





    Disagree on the rim part -- you're free to re-use a good rim but agree that it will not be economical.The part that you don't want to re-use is spokes.

    – Batman
    yesterday











  • The wheel has only done 5000km but apparently some dirt got in to the bearings combined with the extra force from being an ebike caused it to wear out fast. Although I don't think the rim was particularly good anyway so this seems like it might be the right answer.

    – Qwertie
    yesterday






  • 2





    Downvoted for "If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too"

    – ojs
    yesterday











  • Any extra speed and mass that and e-bike will subject the hub to shouldn't wear it out that fast. Was a cheap wheel? In that case I would have thought the extra tension on the spokes from drive torque would have been more of a potential issue...

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday











  • In my experience, there's no point to swap either rim or spokes: I have rebuilt wheels with old rims and/or spokes, and they worked fine. You need a new rim if it's brake surfaces are worn out, or when it's deformed, otherwise the old rim is good. And a full set of old spokes can be reused just fine as long as you make sure that they come out with near perfect even tension, the used spokes just make it harder to get to that point of even tension. I would never throw a wheel away just because I need a new hub.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago














-2












-2








-2







No.



Even with free labor, and even if you already have the tools, a custom wheel will rarely be cheaper than factory made.



Building wheels is primarily for making unique wheels, or the satisfaction of making them / enjoyment of the craft, but virtually never for cost reasons.



Also, re-using a rim is a bad idea. If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too.






share|improve this answer













No.



Even with free labor, and even if you already have the tools, a custom wheel will rarely be cheaper than factory made.



Building wheels is primarily for making unique wheels, or the satisfaction of making them / enjoyment of the craft, but virtually never for cost reasons.



Also, re-using a rim is a bad idea. If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too.







share|improve this answer












share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer










answered yesterday









whatsisnamewhatsisname

7,7052034




7,7052034








  • 1





    Disagree on the rim part -- you're free to re-use a good rim but agree that it will not be economical.The part that you don't want to re-use is spokes.

    – Batman
    yesterday











  • The wheel has only done 5000km but apparently some dirt got in to the bearings combined with the extra force from being an ebike caused it to wear out fast. Although I don't think the rim was particularly good anyway so this seems like it might be the right answer.

    – Qwertie
    yesterday






  • 2





    Downvoted for "If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too"

    – ojs
    yesterday











  • Any extra speed and mass that and e-bike will subject the hub to shouldn't wear it out that fast. Was a cheap wheel? In that case I would have thought the extra tension on the spokes from drive torque would have been more of a potential issue...

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday











  • In my experience, there's no point to swap either rim or spokes: I have rebuilt wheels with old rims and/or spokes, and they worked fine. You need a new rim if it's brake surfaces are worn out, or when it's deformed, otherwise the old rim is good. And a full set of old spokes can be reused just fine as long as you make sure that they come out with near perfect even tension, the used spokes just make it harder to get to that point of even tension. I would never throw a wheel away just because I need a new hub.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago














  • 1





    Disagree on the rim part -- you're free to re-use a good rim but agree that it will not be economical.The part that you don't want to re-use is spokes.

    – Batman
    yesterday











  • The wheel has only done 5000km but apparently some dirt got in to the bearings combined with the extra force from being an ebike caused it to wear out fast. Although I don't think the rim was particularly good anyway so this seems like it might be the right answer.

    – Qwertie
    yesterday






  • 2





    Downvoted for "If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too"

    – ojs
    yesterday











  • Any extra speed and mass that and e-bike will subject the hub to shouldn't wear it out that fast. Was a cheap wheel? In that case I would have thought the extra tension on the spokes from drive torque would have been more of a potential issue...

    – Lamar Latrell
    yesterday











  • In my experience, there's no point to swap either rim or spokes: I have rebuilt wheels with old rims and/or spokes, and they worked fine. You need a new rim if it's brake surfaces are worn out, or when it's deformed, otherwise the old rim is good. And a full set of old spokes can be reused just fine as long as you make sure that they come out with near perfect even tension, the used spokes just make it harder to get to that point of even tension. I would never throw a wheel away just because I need a new hub.

    – cmaster
    19 hours ago








1




1





Disagree on the rim part -- you're free to re-use a good rim but agree that it will not be economical.The part that you don't want to re-use is spokes.

– Batman
yesterday





Disagree on the rim part -- you're free to re-use a good rim but agree that it will not be economical.The part that you don't want to re-use is spokes.

– Batman
yesterday













The wheel has only done 5000km but apparently some dirt got in to the bearings combined with the extra force from being an ebike caused it to wear out fast. Although I don't think the rim was particularly good anyway so this seems like it might be the right answer.

– Qwertie
yesterday





The wheel has only done 5000km but apparently some dirt got in to the bearings combined with the extra force from being an ebike caused it to wear out fast. Although I don't think the rim was particularly good anyway so this seems like it might be the right answer.

– Qwertie
yesterday




2




2





Downvoted for "If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too"

– ojs
yesterday





Downvoted for "If the hub is toast, the rest of the wheel is too"

– ojs
yesterday













Any extra speed and mass that and e-bike will subject the hub to shouldn't wear it out that fast. Was a cheap wheel? In that case I would have thought the extra tension on the spokes from drive torque would have been more of a potential issue...

– Lamar Latrell
yesterday





Any extra speed and mass that and e-bike will subject the hub to shouldn't wear it out that fast. Was a cheap wheel? In that case I would have thought the extra tension on the spokes from drive torque would have been more of a potential issue...

– Lamar Latrell
yesterday













In my experience, there's no point to swap either rim or spokes: I have rebuilt wheels with old rims and/or spokes, and they worked fine. You need a new rim if it's brake surfaces are worn out, or when it's deformed, otherwise the old rim is good. And a full set of old spokes can be reused just fine as long as you make sure that they come out with near perfect even tension, the used spokes just make it harder to get to that point of even tension. I would never throw a wheel away just because I need a new hub.

– cmaster
19 hours ago





In my experience, there's no point to swap either rim or spokes: I have rebuilt wheels with old rims and/or spokes, and they worked fine. You need a new rim if it's brake surfaces are worn out, or when it's deformed, otherwise the old rim is good. And a full set of old spokes can be reused just fine as long as you make sure that they come out with near perfect even tension, the used spokes just make it harder to get to that point of even tension. I would never throw a wheel away just because I need a new hub.

– cmaster
19 hours ago


















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