Wheel trueing ???

[racerdave]

I read and looked at many threads and videos. If this has been answered I did not see it. It would seem to me that on a properly laced and trued wheel, all spoke nipples would have a equal amount of threads exposed, if they are exposed. Is that correct

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

Pretty close. When I used to do Honda/Triumph/Harley wheels, all the spoke threads came just below the nipple heads, almost even with the bottom of the screwdriver slot. Maybe one or none of the threads exposed at the nipple tail. That was factory/dealership/shop experience of the '70s, and believe that should still be the desired outcome...

 

[maynard911]

Only in a perfect world.
In real life things are not so precise. I have laced quite a few wheels over the years and have always found variance. Much less so if you are assembling high dollar aftermarket parts. When assembling stock hubs with Chinese spokes and rims you are really only concerned that the offset, if any, is correct and that they spin true.

 

[racerdave]

For what it is worth, I am doing 2 oem front hubs to 2 Mikes XS 19x2.15 shouldered aluminum wheels with Mikes SS spokes and nipples.

 

[Paulrxs650]

Hi

I have done a few of them and as recently as last month. There is some variation and one or two did need to be dusted with a file.

Other than that, I am happy with the way they have turned out and they now reside on my Cafe Racer.

If you are lacing them now, pop some pics up so we can check them out. Sometimes its as easy as having the spokes in the wrong pattern.

 

[racerdave]

Pretty sure the pattern is correct.

 

[Paulrxs650]

Heres an old 18" OEM for comparison

 

[Paulrxs650]

looking at the angle of those spokes leaving the rim on yours, they may need to go over another hole in the rim??
That would cause them to poke through more than needed.
When I did mine up, I popped the inners in then twisted the hub in the opposite rotation to the rim and with a bit of jiggling the settle to the OEM postion you see above

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

looking at the angle of those spokes leaving the rim on yours, they may need to go over another hole in the rim??

Yeah, or the next over hole in the hub.

Is it camera artifact, or does that outer emerging at 1:00 o'clock look bent?

 

[racerdave]

Are 18's the same? As the wheels are laced, the spokes as they leave the hub, they cover the original rub marks on the hub face. Where the spokes make a X just at the hub outer diameter I have six spokes to count over between them. See 5 twins post # 10 in this thread:
http://www.xs650.com/forum/showthread.php?p=276609#post276609

 

[Paulrxs650]

18s are the same pattern and it looks like your pattern is right too. It's the angles that don't look right. What does the spoke ends look like on the rim, can you post a pic of them?

 

[Paulrxs650]

18s are the same pattern and it looks like your pattern is right too. It's the angles that don't look right. What does the spoke ends look like on the rim, can you post a pic of them?

 

[racerdave]

Spoke ends? Do you mean the nipple heads in the rim dimples?

 

[Paulrxs650]

Yes, that's what I meant just to get an idea of the protrusion out of those dimple into the rim.

 

[Brian902]

I agree with maynard911, too often we forget to measure the offset.

That's the number 1 accurate measure you need to know so the new rim is in the correct position after re-spoking.

A mechanic with 60 years of experience told me he often would go up to his showroom and measure a brand new motorcycle to get the exact offset.

I've had to do what most of us do, use the spoke threads as a guide.

Stringing the wheels after to check for alignment would show if the tires are offset from each other.

 

[racerdave]

Offset may be important, but it had nothing to do with the original question.

 

[5twins]

Your pattern appears to be correct. That 18" PaulR showed has a slightly different pattern. There are 10 spokes between an inner and outer next to each other that cross on the same flange. Never saw that pattern before but I guess there are many. The 650 19" front and 18" rear have the 6 spoke spacing on the rim like you've done. 16" rears are different, having only 2 spokes between on the rim.

With aftermarket spokes, it's not unusual to have some threads showing at the nipple. In a perfect world, the amount showing would be the same all around. On used 30+ year old rims, maybe not.

If you want to check the offset, the rim is centered over the hub. You can do a bunch of math and measuring or just bolt the disc back on, lay a straight edge across it, and measure down to the outermost high edge of the rim. The offset should be 29 or 30mm.

 

[racerdave]

Well, my foot taste's terrible. I was thinking of offset, as the front and rear wheel aligned.

 

[racerdave]

18s are the same pattern and it looks like your pattern is right too. It's the angles that don't look right. What does the spoke ends look like on the rim, can you post a pic of them?

I'm thinking you want to see how the nipple heads sit into the dimples? They look ok to me. Hard to get a really good side shot:

 

[Brian902]

Well, my foot taste's terrible. I was thinking of offset, as the front and rear wheel aligned.

No problem RacerDave it's always stressful when something is not going to plan.

You have a good picture from Paul, so strip her down and start over.

I re-started my last BSA front rim 3 times before getting it right.

Hope you washed your foot.