Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - WHEEL QUESTION ~ Snippin' The Spokes Offa Hubs?

Hey! I have set of Suntour tubulars that at this point I'd like to make into clinchers.

How would I go about removing the spokes & rims?

Is there a downside to doing so?

there's no inherent problem with reusing hubs, assuming that the flanges are still in good shape. either clip (probably want to detension before you clip a spoke) or just unscrew the spokes and take them out.

lace 'em back up in the same pattern that they're built in right now. maybe mark the spoke directions on the flanges.

make sure you take the cog off first.
/just sayin.

if you just clip tensioned spokes one by one, you'll warp your rim. loosen them first, then clip them (or just unscrew them all the way with the spoke tool).

Dremel tool. Quick way. Or a chainsaw.

I think I might have a pro do it...

I'll probably screw them up...

Sounds like a shame to 'break up' such a lovely wheelset. Were you not able to obtain a decent offer?

Make me an offer I can't refuse...

Make sure you take the freewheel/cogset off the hub before you start clipping spokes off.
Enjoy

Why would you have to take the cog off first?

because it becomes slightly impossible to remove it once there's no rim to get leverage on. and because if the cog's big enough it gets equally impossible to relace the wheel, since the cog is blocking all the spoke holes.
so you end up with a beautiful useless ornament.

good point. i made the mistake once of breaking down a wheelset and bringing the hubs (with cog and lockring still on) to the bikeshop for a rebuild with new rims.

they looked pissed off as they had to temporarily lace them up to a junk rim to get enough leverage to remove the cog.

if you just clip tensioned spokes one by one, you'll warp your rim. loosen them first, then clip them (or just unscrew them all the way with the spoke tool).

doesn't matter if he's not going to re-use the rims.
(and i'm not sure if it matters anyway, the rim is only going to be under uneven tension for minute or so.
i am not however, any kind of exepert at wheel building).

i've seen rims buckle from clipping without relieving tesion.

Im a moederate wheel builder with maybe 20-25 under my belt. I have never heard you the untensioning thing. thanks for the info on that. As well I had another question a little off topic. who here figures out there spoke length and then goes in to a shop to cut them as aposed to bringing in the hub and rim and having them do it. The reason I ask is i have had some experiance with Portland local bike shops and cutting just flat out wrong spoke lengths. I haven't built any wheels since i realized that the spokes i purchased were mess up and i wasn't drunk, but next time i am going to try a little math and do it that way. You comments are eagerly awaited.

doesn't matter if he's not going to re-use the rims.
(and i'm not sure if it matters anyway, the rim is only going to be under uneven tension for minute or so.
i am not however, any kind of exepert at wheel building).

trust my recent first-hand experience on this one, they'll warp :)

trust my recent first-hand experience on this one, they'll warp :)
i'm happy to trust your experience, it's nuggets of wisdom like that that make this place worthwhile.
(well, that and the bickering ;) oh yeah, and the ebay/cl thread, and the pics thread!
aww shucks, this whole PLACE is great! *group hug*).

Oh I thought you didn't want the rim. In that case. Don't dremel.

Im a moederate wheel builder with maybe 20-25 under my belt. I have never heard you the untensioning thing. thanks for the info on that. As well I had another question a little off topic. who here figures out there spoke length and then goes in to a shop to cut them as aposed to bringing in the hub and rim and having them do it. The reason I ask is i have had some experiance with Portland local bike shops and cutting just flat out wrong spoke lengths. I haven't built any wheels since i realized that the spokes i purchased were mess up and i wasn't drunk, but next time i am going to try a little math and do it that way. You comments are eagerly awaited.

i often use dan halem's spoke calculator (http://www.geocities.com/d_halem/wheel/wheel.html) because of the database of hubs and rims. if you're lucky, both your rims and hubs will be in the database, and the calculator does the rest. there are other sites with even more comprehensive databases of effective rim diameters (ERD) and hub measurements, but i can't think of them right this second. otherwise, with a few rudimentary tools, you can take your own measurements and plug them into a simple spoke length calculator. i have a free one on my palm pilot i often use to double-check measurements i got elsewhere.

regarding detensioning the spokes before clipping, i've also read that a tensioned spoke when clipped may shoot out of the rim, like an arrow from a bow, with enough force to cause serious injury. never seen it happen, but seems reasonable. also, even if you are not planning to reuse the rim, the hub takes the same forces that the buckled rim is taking, and i prefer not to do that to a component that i want to put trust into, especially not high-flanged track hubs.

because it becomes slightly impossible to remove it once there's no rim to get leverage on. and because if the cog's big enough it gets equally impossible to relace the wheel, since the cog is blocking all the spoke holes.
so you end up with a beautiful useless ornament.


oh so very true
at the shop i work at, one guy came in one day to lace up a new wheel w/ his old hub. he forgot to take the cog off first. we all had a good hour of laughing at him trying to get enough leverage w/ only a quarter of the spokes (all in one section of the wheel) remaining.
he eventually just gave up and bought a new hub and cog

... i've also read that a tensioned spoke when clipped may shoot out of the rim, like an arrow from a bow, with enough force to cause serious injury. never seen it happen, ....

ha!

Jobst Brandt, "The Bicycle Wheel," somewhere around page 110.

Though I think it might be "serious _eye_ injury." So watch out for projectile spokes everyone! DUCK!

Before you go completely dismantling your spokes, you might be interested in this (replacing the rim without replacing spokes): http://www.bikewebsite.com/replacerim.htm

Has anyone ever replaced the rim w/ out replacing the spokes?????

Yes, you can replace the rim without replacing the spokes. This is faster than starting from scratch because you don't have to lace the spokes.

BUT - this is only possible if you are replacing it with a new rim that is the same as the old rim. The effective rim diameter has to be the same, or within a millimeter or two, or else your spokes will be too long or too short.

If, by chance, your new clincher rim does have the same erd as the old tubular rim, then all you need to do is line it up against the old rim, valve hole to valve hole, tape it in place, de-tension the old spokes, and transfer them one by one to the new spoke holes in the new rim. Use new spoke nipples on the new rim.

This is faster than starting from scratch because you don't have to lace the spokes. But it's unlikely that the erd will be the same.

Has anyone ever replaced the rim w/ out replacing the spokes?????

Yes, and I have also converted 27" wheels to 700c by using the same hub and spokes by adding a cross. For instance a 27" 3X to a 700c 4X.
Enjoy

Does anyone have any spoke recomendations for a fix? I'm about to build up some AeroHeads to a set of Nashbar hubs. Also a good source for getting them. I've never bought spokes before.