Originally Posted by
ScottCommutes
...... However, my tuning won't stay in tune, because I inadvertently leave a subtle twist in the pins themselves. ......My intuition tells me that a bike wheel would be similar.
Everything has its little quirks that separate experienced technicians from those less so. The twist analogy is especially apt because managing spoke twist is one of those subtle skills.
Twist was more of a problem BITD, when we were using 15g DB spokes for race wheels. So it was SOP to tell a client to ride a few hard miles then come back for a touch up.
These days, twist is less of an issue when building new, but still something one needs to learn to feel, especially when truing older wheels. Basically the spoke initially twists before the nipple actually does anything, then you need to relax it back. So every adjustment is akin to 3 steps forward and two back.
When I taught building, this was thd hardest thing, because it's all about touch.