Pro tip: a customer's comment about spoke tension changed how I work

Had a guy come in yesterday with a wheel that kept going out of true. He mentioned he used to build wheels for a shop in Denver and said 'you gotta listen more than you look.' I always focused on the truing stand readings. So I tried his way, closed my eyes and plucked each spoke on a wobbly wheel. Heard one that was way off pitch. Fixed that spoke alone and the wheel came out dead straight. Anyone else use sound over sight for truing?

2 comments

2 Comments

ryanf662d agoMost Upvoted

@grace_perry44 nailed it with that thud vs ding trick. I'd add that plucking every spoke in a pattern from the valve stem helps me catch the ones that are a half-step off before they cause a wobble.

grace_perry442d ago

Yeah the pitch trick is legit for sure. Had an old timer show me that years ago with a wheel that had a loose spoke you could barely see. Plucked it and it went 'thud' instead of 'ding'. After I snugged it up, the whole rim straightened out without even touching the other spokes. Works great for finding those spokes that are way off tension. Just remember to pluck near the rim, not the hub, so you get a clean tone.