maxknee

so, i have a bike with vertical dropouts that i love dearly.
i am making it a fixed gear with the white industries eccentric eno hub. i found it on ebay for 75 bucks.

so i am trying to save some serious money on this bike. so how does one build a wheel? i heard all you need is a screwdriver. if thats true, i would like to build one.

another thing: cranks, do i have to take out my shimano 600 cranks? i was just going to get a chain ring to solve that problem of having tall gears, speaking of gears, what is a good setup for mostly city riding/slight hills?

i think thats it. any other suggestions/ideas would be super.

thanks

wunder

53-11.

drac_vamp

one builds a wheel with spokes, hub and rim. i think you might need more than a screw driver. at the very least: something to tighten the nipples and something to true it with...

no real reason to take the cranks off, just put a single ring on with the proper shorter bolts and you should be set. gearing should depend a bit... how slight are the hills? how much to you like to spin? what is the back cog? probably something like 46 x 18 or something. if it still has gears on it, maybe find a comfy one and aim for that.

wunder

All the way.

dolface

if you haven't already, read this https://sheldonbrown.com/fixed.html

go here https://www.sheldonbrown.com/wheelbuild.html to learn how to build a wheel

Eatadonut

Assuming he has the materials to make a wheel out of, then a screwdriver's all he really needs.

A screwdriver.

a screwdriver.

check Sheldon's site (already linked in this thread), that's probably the most straightforward tutorial for it. My first wheelbuild took me 5 hours with a bowl of chicken (I like to eat while I work), my only tool was a flathead screwdriver. Go for it, it's definitely worth it.

mattface 

I like to use a truing stand for building wheels. a fork will do in a pinch, but it's a lot easier to see if everything is straight with a proper truing stand. Maybe you know someone who's got one you can borrow. Also a spoke wrench costs about $3, and will make the whole process easier.

somewhere around 70 gear inches is a good place to start for gearing. I find it pretty quick on the flats, and a good compromise for hills. If I never climbed a hill I might go a bit taller, but not a lot spin is good.

sr20det

save yourself the hassle and get yourself a nipple wrench and a cheap-ass plastic truing stand. you'll pat yourself on the back later.
and also looking down the road, you'd probably don't want to skimp too much on your components.
You have a nice hub, so get equally nice spokes (doubly butted) and rims, velocity deep V's (suggested on behalf of BF) har har.

jitenshako

Now there's a great place to save money.

42x16 is what i ride.

Ill Mitch

I'm running 42-14 right now and it feels pretty good for city riding, slight hills etc.

sr20det

just saying he shouldn't skimp and get himself a craptasic rim and bust it up in a month or two and have to go out and get another rim.
might as well spend money that needs to be spent now so you'll be set and problem free for a while.

colinm

32H? 36? I like to shop. Keeps me busy while I'm at work.

LoveParkRIP

You can borrow my spoke wrench if you want.

I'll be riding tomorrow night. See you at the museum

-Chris

KirbyxKamikaze

my friend (who is teaching me to build wheels) told me its not a bad idea to use a tensionometer too.....first of all, i'll be honest....i don't know what that is, but from what i have gathered it is best to understand the amount of tension per spoke....maybe, i don't really know.

Anyone else use one of these?

maxknee

i dont know if i can make it tonight. my favorite band is playing. so if i show up, and if i dont i'll probably be there on thursday

LóFarkas

Don't start out with just a screwdriver, cuz it will be bloody annoying when you have to stop halfway because some sokes have gone through the nipple and you can't get at the slot. This might be all greek to you, but the gist is, get a spoke wrench in the correct size for your spokes, or a small crescent wrench. Pay attention to tightening the crescent down fully every time if you decide to use one.

A truing stand is not strictly necesary. It can be done just fine by flipping the bike over. May be a bit slower, but still faster than going out in search of somebody who has one, beating him up to release it, dragging it home, returning it etc.

Awetistic

I've built up a few wheels just using the forks as well. If you decide to go that route just make sure you've started with equal turns at each nipple, assuming your rims are new or perfectly round (redundant?). I measure between the blades to the sides of the rim and tape some stiff paper, string, zip tie or whatever to each side of the forks level with the outer edge of the rim and use a mark the center position of the rim's sidewalls. Easy as pie my friend. Oh and for god's sake, get a spoke wrench. It's like 3 bucks, won't round your nipples, won't require you to constantly turn your rim to use the driver, get obstucted by the spoke protruding the nipple. After you ride a bit you'll want to check again for true - you'll be able to use your newly honed skills to do it on the spot without removing the tire.
There's nothing like riding what you build.

bigbikerbrian

tensionometers are expensive.
you dont really need one.

sr20det

instead of tensionometers, just pluck your spokes and listen to the pitch. if you are musically inclined.