What makes a wheel out of true?
06-02-11, 07:02 PM
#1
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 39
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
What makes a wheel out of true?
What makes a wheel out of true? Does it depend on riding styles, aggresiveness, equipment, type of impact etc etc?
does keeping your tire inflated to the recommended PSI value help keep the wheel true for a longer period of time?
does keeping your tire inflated to the recommended PSI value help keep the wheel true for a longer period of time?
Last edited by stillcovalent; 06-02-11 at 08:08 PM. Reason: added details
06-02-11, 07:25 PM
#2
On a Mission from God
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Thibodaux, LA
Posts: 2,010
Bikes: '10 Surly LHT, Rat-rod Klunker, '82 Peugeot PH12 Centennial
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 5 Times
in
3 Posts
Any time you hit a pothole, curb, or obstacle, it causes the wheel to flex, the spokes stretch and compress. When the spoke stretches beyond its elasticity limit, or the spoke nipple comes a few turns loose (or is yanked a few threads) or a spoke breaks, these will cause the wheel to be out of true.
06-02-11, 07:49 PM
#3
Bike addict, dreamer
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Queens, New York
Posts: 5,165
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
Or if a wheel is improperly built: either wasn't stressed properly (to let the spokes and nipples "set") or simply the spoke tension is uneven. Such a wheel will go slowly (or quickly) out of true even under normal use.
06-02-11, 07:52 PM
#4
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Miami, FL
Posts: 637
Bikes: Raleigh Record Ace, Windsor The Hour
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
as far as I know... Hitting the spoke with the mallet while playing bike polo and bunny hoppin lol
06-02-11, 07:58 PM
#5
Bike addict, dreamer
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Queens, New York
Posts: 5,165
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
I also heard that having an SUV ride into your wheel might cause it to go somewhat untrue.
06-02-11, 08:02 PM
#6
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Miami, FL
Posts: 637
Bikes: Raleigh Record Ace, Windsor The Hour
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
06-02-11, 08:03 PM
#7
Pokemon Master
06-02-11, 08:17 PM
#9
Pokemon Master
06-02-11, 10:47 PM
#10
Dept. store bike bandit
Join Date: May 2011
Posts: 329
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
Riding over a land mine has also been known to cause a wheel to go out of true, among other things.
Besides that, there's the more mundane bumps and such.
.
.
.
Besides that, there's the more mundane bumps and such.
.
.
.
06-03-11, 08:03 AM
#11
Mad bike riding scientist
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 27,362
Bikes: Some silver ones, a red one, a black and orange one, and a few titanium ones
Mentioned: 152 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6219 Post(s)
Liked 4,218 Times
in
2,365 Posts
Since the tension on each spoke is very, very high and the tension is balanced between all the spokes of the wheel, even a small movement of one spoke nipple can case the rim to move. The direction depends on the spoke and it's relationship to the other spokes around it.
Another part of the relationship is due to the nature of the fastener. Since the spoke is a very thin diameter bolt that is very long, it can flex and bend with use. When new, the spokes are bending to conform to all of the stresses that the wheel has to take during normal use. The spoke bends to conform around the hub and to settle into equilibrium with the other spokes of the wheel. These can cause a change in tension on the spoke nipple. If the changes are uneven...and they almost always are uneven..., the spokes with end up with uneven tension and the wheel won't be true anymore.
Another mechanisms is spoke twist. If the spokes had a little twist to them when they were tensioned during the build, riding...with it's constant loading and unloading of the spoke...will relieve the twist. Some spokes might end up tighter and others looser and the wheel will be untrue.
Tire pressure probably has the least effect on whether or not a wheel remains true. Riding style and impacts have more effect but probably not as much as you think. The build and attention to early maintenance of the wheel has the most effect on whether or not a wheel stays true long term.
__________________
Stuart Black
Plan Epsilon Around Lake Michigan in the era of Covid
Old School…When It Wasn’t Ancient bikepacking
Gold Fever Three days of dirt in Colorado
Pokin' around the Poconos A cold ride around Lake Erie
Dinosaurs in Colorado A mountain bike guide to the Purgatory Canyon dinosaur trackway
Solo Without Pie. The search for pie in the Midwest.
Picking the Scablands. Washington and Oregon, 2005. Pie and spiders on the Columbia River!
Stuart Black
Plan Epsilon Around Lake Michigan in the era of Covid
Old School…When It Wasn’t Ancient bikepacking
Gold Fever Three days of dirt in Colorado
Pokin' around the Poconos A cold ride around Lake Erie
Dinosaurs in Colorado A mountain bike guide to the Purgatory Canyon dinosaur trackway
Solo Without Pie. The search for pie in the Midwest.
Picking the Scablands. Washington and Oregon, 2005. Pie and spiders on the Columbia River!
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
fatdad
Road Cycling
56
09-03-10 05:52 PM
