Bicycle Mechanics - raw or boiled linseed oil for spoke prep?

is it better to use raw or boiled linseed oil for spoke prep when building wheels?

Another 5 pages of posts coming..... :D We just did a big thread on this a few weeks back.

Between the two you want to use the boiled oil. It will harden to stickiness and exposure to air overnight on the surface and harden fully through along the nipple after a month or so. The raw oil takes literally months to get sticky when in free contact with air let alone harden. Inside a spoke nipple it would take years to harden.

Another 5 pages of posts coming..... :D We just did a big thread on this a few weeks back.

Ever notice that the less critical the choice, the more postings the subject gets and the more acrimonious the discussion? :p

I agree, if the OP wants to use linseed oil, used the "boiled" variety.

And the less likely it is that anyone will alter their minds as well....

Sort of reminiscent of the historical religious debate that created huge rifts in the medieval or renaissence church culture over the issue of how many angels could dance on the head of a pin..... :D

Ever notice that the less critical the choice, the more postings the subject gets and the more acrimonious the discussion?

Yeah. It's not just the Internet, either, though it gives us a medium for jackholery.

Sheldon recommends "grease or oil". I used grease on my first pair of wheels and they've wandered out of true. On the other hand, they were my first wheels and weren't spectacularly done, so it may not have been the grease's fault.

I've used WD-40 since, sprayed into a bag of nippes. It's slippery, low-viscosity, and largely evaporates, leaving just that peculiar residue. It's enough to eliminate wind-up and doesn't seem to be a problem over time.

Boiled linseed oil, on the other hand, will harden and make truing more difficult, won't it? Like, once you turn a nipple, isn't it both unlubed (and unlubable) and unlocked?

(This is an actual question. I'm trying to get better at building wheels. I'm not just trying to start an Internet fight.)

You have to boil it to start the oxidation process going that turns the oil into a plastic-like substance.

You have to boil it to start the oxidation process going that turns the oil into a plastic-like substance.
"Boiled" linseed oil is an obsolete term as the setting (actually a combination of oxidation and polymerization) is now triggered by metal salt "dryers" added to raw linseed oil. In the past, raw oil was literally boiled to do the same thing.

I love how often we have this discussion.

Hey, what do you guys think about WD-40 as a lubricant for my breaks?

Another 5 pages of posts coming.

Ummmm, no there isnt.

I use tri-flow or whatever spoke lub I have lying around. Been doing it that way for 2,000 plus wheel builds.

I've never used either linseed oil on spoke nipples, just oil or grease. Not sure why a thread locker would be necessary if you are using good butted spokes.

Not sure why a thread locker would be necessary if you are using good butted spokes.

Word.

I remember back in the day nothing was ever used except for some type of oil based lube if you felt it was needed. We did 'crimp' the nipples but it was never enough that it prevented easy turning.

Then (insert evil lightening strike here).....Wheelsmith came out with 'spoke prep' and every person who never built a wheel thought they needed it because 'loosening spokes' was now and issue when it never previously was.


Jim
2,000 plus wheel builds and counting

Another 5 pages of posts coming.

Ummmm, no there isnt.

Give it time. We're already well on the way.

Give it time. We're already well on the way.

Once it hits the second page its done.....have fun while you can!!!!!!