Adam65

I am very tall and pretty heavy. I need very strong, very reliable, 700c wheels for touring.
Is it very hard, horribly time consuming, rocket science to build a wheels ? I need to decide how to get what I need but not spending a fortune.
Perhaps I could build them by myself and than take them to specialist for final adjustments, truing, tensioning etc...

davidad

Get Jobst Brandt's book "The Bicycle Wheel" for good information.
Plan on 36 double butted spokes as a minimum for strength and reliability.

Bill Kapaun

IF you are going to have them properly tensioned after assembly, you can probably buy ready built wheels for less than what you'd pay for the same parts.

bikingshearer 

+1 on Jobst Brandt's book. Go straight to the "how to" section near the end if you don't care about all the theorectical mathy type stuff.

I'm 6'3 and go 275#, and 32 hole wheels are fine for unloaded riding. For loaded touring, I agree with davidad - 36 spokes.

As for building your own wheels: It is not rocket science, but it requires a good deal of patience if you don't do it all the time. Whether it is "very hard" or not depends on how well you do on the patience front and accept the fact that you will almost certainly have to relace a wheel (most likely the rear wheel) on the first set you build. But if you are willing to take your time and do what Brandt (or Sheldon Brown, or any one of a bunch of other guides) tells you, there is no reason you can't do a fine job.

The trickiest part is calculating the proper spoke length. For this, SpokeCalc is your friend (it's a free on-line spreadsheet).

FBinNY 

Like so many things, wheel building is EASY - if you know how. Learning isn't difficult, and IMO the hardest part is improving speed so it's a smooth fluid process, and developing the judgement to choose components that will work well together to get light wheels suited to your weight and needs.

JB's book is fine as a starter, and there are plenty of tutorials, but like with cooking, the goal is to move past the cook book, and develop an understanding of food.

bikemig 

Posts 2 and 3 pretty much nail it. Not hard to build and Brandt's book will walk you through it. But you can buy a good quality prebuilt wheel for around the price of the parts if not less. Velocity is a good source for quality pre-built wheels; so are quality bikes products which can be found in pretty much any bike shop.

If you don't mind some visual blemishes, I'd pick up a pair of the velocity built wheels for $230: Velocity - Dyad Touring Commuter Sport Wheelset 700c - *blemished*

I don't need a pair of touring wheels but these are tempting at that price.

Drew Eckhardt 

About as hard as adjusting a front derailleur.

You can spend a few hours, although it goes well with beer.

Mechanical, but not rocket science.

You can as well as a good professional although it'll take you much longer.

You can do far better than a bad professional.

StephenH

It seems to me that part of the advantage of having a good wheelbuilder is they'll know what to build.

Slapping spokes in a wheel doesn't take long, so you don't eliminate much labor if that's all you do yourself.

frankenmike 

IME the building is easy(spoke calculators do the math for you and Sheldon.com shows you how to lace). The lateral and vertical truing and tensioning can be the trickier part.

GravelMN

Building your own wheels is rewarding but not usually a great cost saving measure, especially if you are going to pay someone to true and tension them for you, which is the most time consuming part of the build.

I do my own truing and tensioning and still don't come in much under the cost of a pre-built wheel. My first hand-built wheelset was built by someone else. When I built my own very similar wheelset a year or so later, I saved about 20% over what my first set cost and not much different than the cost of a similar pre-built. I just get the pride of doing it myself and the peace of mind of knowing they are built right, and that if any problems do arise, I can fix them myself.

It is not particularly hard to build a wheelset, but your first ones may be a bit time consuming. It helps to have a wheel of the same number of spokes and lacing pattern as a reference, as drawings and photos aren't always crystal clear. Take photos and notes as you go along.

davidad

Here's a good set. Shimano 700c Mavic A319/Deore LX T670 Touring Wheel set 36 Spoke - Harris Cyclery bicycle shop - West Newton, Massachusetts

Building a wheel is not an art, it is just a mechanical process. If you are good with your hands you won't have any problems.

Bill Kapaun

Without knowing what rear DO spacing the OP has, one can't recommend a specific wheel set.
A "touring" bike could be "roadish" or "hybridish".

Homebrew01

Easy or hard depends more on you motivation and aptitude than the actual steps involved.
If you "want" to build wheels, it will be much easier than if you think you "should" build wheels.

nfmisso

I build my own wheels because I am really heavy. I use 40H Wheelmaster Tandem hubs (135mm OLD rear, 100mm OLD front) because they are inexpensive, strong and have cartridge bearings. You have to have frame that is compatible with 135mm OLD. Velocity offers a 40H 130mm OLD rear hub. My favorite rims are Velocity's Dyad and Aeroheat - they are the same extrusion, don't know why different names. They are strong, round and flat - which results in a faster less frustrating build.

I use Wheelsmith SS14 spokes for most wheels due to cost. I have also used Wheelsmith DH13. Each wheel is about $100- in material, and three to four hours in my labor. This is a hobby, not a business for me.

The Wheelmaster 40H (and 48H) 135mm OLD rear tandem hub is a copy of a Phil Wood hub. It comes apart the same way with a 5mm hex key.

I built my own truing stand: New Trueing Stand - Bicycle Repair Forums which includes a dial indicator because my eyes are good enough to visually tell. My Dyad/Aerohead wheels are ±.003" side to side and ±.005" radially; which is as good as you can get with 45° rotation resolution of the nipples.

FBinNY 

Getting a bit Zen, are we?

Homebrew01

Just tweak the title a little bit:

mconlonx

It is not hard to build decent wheels, not rocket science. Your first set will be time consuming. And since it will be your first, strength and reliability may be on your mind while you are riding -- how confident will you be, miles from nowhere on the first set of wheels you ever built? You'll probably do a better job building your own -- paying better attention to details of getting it right vs. getting it done -- than an average shop mechanic who very infrequently builds wheels, but will your confidence in self-built wheels give you the same peace of mind as a set pro-built by someone with an excellent reputation? What's your time worth vs. what you'd pay to have someone else build them?

I build my own wheels and I build wheels professionally. Before I learned how to do it and got somewhat proficient, were I in your shoes, I'd be saving my pennies to buy a wheelset from Peter White Cycles...

RunForTheHills

I built my first set of wheels about a month ago using "Professional Guide to Wheel Building" by Roger Musson. The first wheel took over three hours and the second one took half as long. I checked the tension with the Park tension gauge after I finished and it all turned out pretty even. I had put too much tension on the second wheel and had to back that out a little. I haven't ridden on the wheels yet as they are for a bike I am building for my wife and I am getting the frame modified right now.

FBinNY 

So, you're putting you wife on a set of untested wheels. What's next, a fast trip down Mulholland drive? Is she well insured and is there another agenda?

RunForTheHills

Thanks for reminding me! I forgot to buy that life insurance policy on her. The agenda was to have an excuse to buy more tools. They seem pretty solid. 36 double butted spokes on Dyad rims with SA hubs. They have drum brakes, so even if they get out of true a little it won't make much difference. The wheels are at the frame builder right now so he can put braze ons on the frame for the brakes and other things. I suppose I can have him inspect the wheels for me. I am going to build another set of wheels for the Colnago next. I decided to go with period correct tubulars for it and I am having trouble finding the rims.

dwmckee

If you just want one set of wheels it probably is not worth it to build yourself if you have to buy all of the tools needed. Do you have a coop nearby where you can use their tools and get assistance if needed. If so, go for it.

Adam65

"If you "want" to build wheels, it will be much easier than if you think you "should" build wheels."............that sentence makes me thinking a lot ! I am at the stage of my life (49 yo) when I realised that for most of it, I was doing things that should be done rather than things that I wanted to do. Like that ZEN, really. Thanks for bringing this point here.

Nfmisso-I will keep your post recorded, and if I decide to build my wheels by myself, I will probably follow re parts you chose. Or will buy them and get somebody to do the job. Thanks !

Jarrett2

I was recently thinking about building wheels, but then I realized that I could have someone (experienced) build them for me at about $10 more than I could buy the parts and have them shipped to me in about 3-4 days. Considering I theoretically only need new wheels every few years, it seemed like a waste for me to invest in the tools and time to learn how to do it from a practical perspective.

That doesn't mean that I might not still do it for fun, but from a practical standpoint, it seemed like there was no good reason for me to do it myself.

GravelMN

That wheelset is very similar to the first ones I built, same hubs and spokes but I used the A719 rims. I just did a quick search on current component costs and at retail the build would cost about $300 with the A719s and $250 with the A319s. It is possible you could find some good deals (Cambria has the 32h LX front hub on sale for $6.99 without skewer Shimano Lx Fh-M580 Non Disc Mtb Hub With No Quick Release (100028633) as an example) to further cut costs, but really you are money and time ahead to just buy the ready made wheels and spend another $15 or so to get them trued and tensioned. Actually, learning to true and tension your own wheels is probably a more important skill than building your own wheels as it is needed more frequently.

Unless you really like the idea of building your own wheels, or have very specific ideas of what you want and it isn't commercially available, I wouldn't take it up with the idea of saving $$$.

davidad

Two friends have bought the Harris wheel sets for tourers and have had good luck. I checked the tension on one set and it was good,