Originally Posted by
SquidPuppet
I'm very fortunate to have an LBS with a spoke machine. A classic old Phil Wood unit. If I bring in blanks they'll cut and roll them to my specs for $5.00 a "set". First time I went their I asked. "What is a 'set'?" They told me, "Both wheels". I asked, "But is that for 28, 32, 36 spokes? What count?". They said, "Doesn't matter, enough for both of your wheels."
Then I watched him do the job and I understood. Zip, bang, slam, bam, done. The machine fascinated me and he was cool enough to break it down a little. Opening it up so I could see the dies and how it worked. Pretty slick tool.
Yes, that would make sense. Most of the time spent with a Phil spoke machine is in the setup. Once it's set for a particular length, you just keep cranking them out. For one "set", you would have a maximum of 3 lengths unless you're doing something whackdoodle, like crow's foot lacing.