coyotecrust

i am looking at two truing stands. the $180 Park tool shop quality one, and the $30 one on performancebike.com....

obviously the park tool one is better. it is a heavy duty shop quality tool. i guess i just sort of answered my own question, but it would be pretty nice to have an at least usable truing stand for thirty bucks.

so does anyone have any experiences with this truing stand?
spin doctor truing stand

or any other suggestions for something good but not $180 ?

and by the way, i'm not just truing up my own wheels, i'm building lotsa wheels. so dont say "just use the brake pads"

sch

"lotsa wheels" suggests going with the Park. Amortize it out and it is not really that much more over several years.
Steve

CHenry

i bought the Minoura truing stand. I think it is about $40 from Nashbar. It isn't "shop" quality as it is meant to be folded and put away when not needed, not permanently mounted to a workbench. It has some plastic parts, but works fine. What is nice is that it folds up compactly when not being used.

If you are getting a stand for commercial use, get a more robust one; if it is for occasional personal use, you don't need to get anything more. I use mine with a Park tensiometer and basic hand spoke wrenches.

genericbikedude

in my experience, the problem with cheap stands is that it is impossible to minutely adjust the height of the bottom pivoting arm when doing the last stages of the vertical true, becsue is it moved up and down by a frictioning hand thingy instead of a spring. I've built good wheels on minoura stands, butthe last bit is kinds crappy. if you are building lots of wheels and you arent poor, get the park.

edit: and since it is so expensive and you probably wont use it every day, share it with people near you!!

Retro Grouch 

Basically all that a trueing stand does is to provide you with a fixed location from which to either measure or eyeball the rim runout. Expensive stands, like the better Parks, have some features that allow you to work a little bit faster but you can build perfectly acceptable wheels on a Minoura stand.

jbrians

My truing stand is an old front fork. I have a hole drilled in my bench that the centre tube drops into. I need to spring it a bit if I'm working on a rear wheel. My feeler gauges are held in position by very strong rare earth magnets. The fork was free.

jz19

I have the Perfomance/Minoura stand. If you have not yet figured it out yet, it is the same stand that is sold under both brand names. It is a good stand for the money and personally I don't true enough wheels to justify investing more in a stands. IMO this is not a bike stand that you will use all the time or a tool that needs to be rock solid. Now, if you would get a kick out of having a really good stand or need one because you true wheels all the time you can get the top Park one that has the indications gauges.

stickydpaul

I have plenty of experience with both of those stands, ecspecially while building wheels. I use the park at work and the performance stand at home, and definitely prefer the park. In fact, I usually bring the wheels into work to do the last of the vertical and horizontal truing. Mind you, theres nothing WRONG with the performance stand, but I've found that the biggest difference between the two is that the park one brings both arms in at the same time with the turn of one adjuster, making sure that everything is dished correctly.

drcrash

I like that amortization idea. What is the going rate for a wheel true? Around here it is $15.00. After a dozen wheels, you're making money.

Old Hammer Boy

I've been real happy with my Ultimate truing stand. It's about $60-80, depending upon where purchased, and if there are any sales going on, etc. It's easy to use, and doesn't require a dishing tool. OHB

1cyclepath

Would the Minoura/Performance stand be ok for building wheels also or would it not matter? I'm trying to learn about wheelbuilding but don't really want to spend the $ for a Park at this time.

bellweatherman

Not only is the Park TS-2 overrated. It's just crap. It's just pure crap. I don't understand why everybody just slobbers all over this stand. It's as if people never really use if accurately or just live with the status-quo without really examining their own product and how it works.

The TS-2 self-centering mechanism just does NOT work as advertised. It is highly variable. Try it. The right adjusting knob that you use to put in different width hubs (100mm, 120mm, 130mm, 135mm) just does not offer any type of accuracy at all. The more you tighten the knob, the more the wheel moves to the left in relation to the calipers. Baboom! No more accurate auto-centering. No amount of calibrating the stand will correct this. So, what are you paying for? A big piece of weight. That's what. Perhaps the autocentering mechanism is better in the Park TS-3. I don't know. Haven't tried that one. I would say that if you have the money and just feel like blowing a lot then try the TS-3, but I'll never go back to the TS-2. Ever.

Squint

I've had a TS2 for a long time now and have had the same experience. Actually, my experience has been worse--the thing seized up on me so it takes a lot of effort to turn the knob to move the arms closer or further apart.

If there's a cheaper stand that is sturdy enough and the feelers are easily adjustable then I would get that instead. The one time I tried a cheap truing stand, it would twist when I spun the wheel so that I couldn't tell if it was the stand twisting or the wheel being out of true.

grolby

For what it's worth, I just built my first wheel using the rear triangle and brake blocks of an old frame. A truing stand would obviously be better, and if I really get into wheelbuilding, I will definitely purchase one. For now, though, I didn't want the expense. Anyway, I just built this wheel yesterday. It's not actually done yet, as I haven't tensioned it up yet, and I need to correct a couple small wobbles in the vertical and lateral planes, but with some patience I got a wheel that is quite round and true. We'll see how it goes finishing it up; I'm going to try borrowing a stand from someone for the last little bit, but I feel pretty confident that I could just use the rear triangle and do a good job. Obviously, someone who builds more wheels will want a stand, but advice to "use the rear triangle" seems pretty good, in my (very limited) experience so far.

free_pizza

i was going to start a similar thread, but i may as well piggy-back on this one.

im gettng a park PCS-1 bike repair stand for christmas, and i am thinking of buying the Park TS5 .

Is it worth the $30, and is it fairly accurate? Im not looking to build any wheels, but may give it a shot sometime in the future. Could i build wheels using this?

HillRider

Ever try oiling the adjusting bolt?

That's the problem. Cheaper stands aren't rigid enough and their feeler aren't stable enough for accurate truing. The lack of centering repeatability on the Park TS2 is well known so most owners still use a dishing tool. However, the tool is very solid and strong so, despite that shortcoming, it is widely used.

I have the low-tech truing stand that came with my Ultimate Repair stand. It's adequate for the limited touch-ups I do and for building low-demand wheels for use on indoor trainers but if I did a lot of wheelbuilding or serious repairs, I'd get the Park.

shaq-d

the ultimate cheap truing stand is essentially a heavy steel base and a strong steely/aluminum post, and then sliding adjusters. i think it's damn good.

i also think any truing stand will do you fine. the point is to have something wher eyou can sit down on a table and chill out while you're building, as opposed to sitting bending over a bike. and u'll get that with any old truing stand.

sd

sd

wrench

The Spin doctor, Minoura and other cheap stands all work, snd will allow you to build a good wheel. Have a look at a review of the Spin doctor here- https://www.mtbr.com/reviews/Tools/product_23448.shtml
All stands have faults, including the TS-3 from Park. It's all a compromise between cost and rigidity and ease of use. I use the TS-2 and it's solid, quick and easy to use day in day out. I don't need the dial gauges of more fancy kit. The auto-centering has limitations I always use a dishing tool anyway. It's overkill for the occasional builder. Having tried most, I would still go for the Minoura T-817 folding stand for starters.

kc1

> Not only is the Park TS-2 overrated. The TS-2 self-centering mechanism just does NOT work as
> advertised. It is highly variable. Try it.....No amount of calibrating the stand will correct this.
This is a known problem.
Thats why your supoosed to realign the calipers occasionally.

This is why park and several other mfgrs make an alignment guage.

> Perhaps the autocentering mechanism is better in the Park TS-3. I don't know.
It is.
The vertical and horizontal wheel alignments are separate processes.

> I would say that if you have the money and just feel like blowing a lot then try the TS-3,...
The TS-3 is a nice improvement.
The extra analog gauges are overkill and 2x the price...how many can true to 0.0001"?!?!?!

Its more stable, easier to check space btwn rim/feeler, you won't go blind when building/truing
(e.g. ts-2 chrome glare next to white patch), easier to work on just hop or lateral truing.

FYI, its not that much if you buying it w/o the analog guages or if you upgrade.

> ...but I'll never go back to the TS-2. Ever.
Too bad, if you only knew how to correctly align it and use like most of the bike shops then
it would be a no brainer to use.
Its hardly perfect or easy to use...there is a learning curve.

But its a decent bang done quickly which is what many shops are all about in repairs.
High volume and minimal hassle...esp when you backlogged w/ many customers who wanted
the wheel yesterday or for a race.

kc

kc1

> Not only is the Park TS-2 overrated. The TS-2 self-centering mechanism just does NOT work as
> advertised. It is highly variable. Try it.....No amount of calibrating the stand will correct this.
This is a known problem.
Thats why your supoosed to realign the calipers occasionally.
https://www.parktool.com/repair/readi...ons.asp?id=135

This is why park and several other mfgrs make an alignment guage.
https://www.parktool.com/products/det...&item=1554%2D1

> Perhaps the autocentering mechanism is better in the Park TS-3. I don't know.
It is.
The vertical and horizontal wheel alignments are separate processes.

> I would say that if you have the money and just feel like blowing a lot then try the TS-3,...
The TS-3 is a nice improvement.
The extra analog gauges are overkill and 2x the price...how many can true to 0.0001"?!?!?!

Its more stable, easier to check space btwn rim/feeler, you won't go blind when building/truing
(e.g. ts-2 chrome glare next to white patch), easier to work on just hop or lateral truing.

FYI, its only a few bucks if you buy it w/o the analog guages or if you upgrade from another.

> ...but I'll never go back to the TS-2. Ever.
Too bad, if you only knew how to correctly align it and use like most of the bike shops then
it would be a no brainer to use.
Its hardly perfect or easy to use...there is a learning curve.

But its a decent bang done quickly which is what many shops are all about in repairs.
High volume and minimal hassle...esp when you backlogged w/ many customers who wanted
the wheel yesterday or for a race.

kc