Originally Posted by
noglider
FBinNY, do you remember Larry Duffus? I think he was the first person I witnessed building a wheel. He would use his memory and educated guesses for spoke length. Then he'd lace the wheel up to discover that he was right or wrong. Then he'd go from 3x to 4x if the spokes were too long or vice versa if too short. It was a long, iterative process.
Yes, I knew Larry well both as a customer and friend. It's a shame that partner issues drove him away from the business. But his wheel bulding method was typical of old hands who predated the options available today. Until the Wheelsmith HP spoke calculator came on the market, spoke length calculations were a blend of good memories and the ability to guesstimate. Fortunately, back then rims didn't come in a million different depths, and consumers were more willing to listen to the builder than many are today.