I would go with this advice. Maybe the only reason I've never had this problem is that I never built with a tensionmeter. Worked for me... in all but one case.

Could it be that the dishing tool isn't accurate? Have you measured the dish, or lack thereof, by simply using a truing stand to measure the distance and then flipping the wheel to verify it's the same on both sides?

If the dishing tool isn't bent, it really can't be inaccurate. It sets to the depth from the locknut seating surface to the braking surface on one side of the wheel and when you turn over the wheel, compares it to the other side of the wheel. When the setting for one side "works" for the other side, you have it dished correctly. It really can't go much wrong, especially on a new rim that is pretty darn true laterally.

Road Fan

I think you are exactly correct but I also think flipping the wheel on a truing stand will be an excellent test to see if the dishing tool measurements were done consistently.

^ Didn't the OP say he flipped the wheel to check?

Yes, she flipped the wheel all the time in the stand...:)

I'll get back to you all on what I find out when I do the spreadsheet. I do think there's something to be found out here...

Ditto on dbg's answer.

Every wheel I've built with a tension meter has some variance around the mean, and my procedure is to "layer tension" (checking radial, lateral true and dish, and stressing) until the mean spoke tension corresponds to spec, and the variance in spoke tension is low enough.

Oops, sorry about that. I need to use gender neutral references until I know. My church even uses gender neutrality for God, but that made singing the altered Messiah at Christmas really weird. :D

Don't worry about it. :) I'd rather be called a he than have everyone running around typing s/he and his/hers all over the place. "He" is a pretty safe assumption on BF.

Oh, don't read my other posts on BF then :D

Actually, to restate my earlier comment, I have never encountered a wheel with within-side uniformity of spoke tension. Since I've started measuring spoke tension, every wheel I've built or bought has some variance in the tension of spokes on a side.

So, if the difference in average tension between the two sides, at 1, far exceeds the average absolute value of the difference between an individual spoke's tension and the the average of all spokes' tensions for that spoke's side, then you are describing a wheel with a level of uniformity of spoke tension that I had not thought possible.

Note, I am not addressing the question of possible causes of differences in spoke tension between sides, which is the thrust of your question, so I am taking you on a tangent. I am just saying the terms in which you describe your problem are very surprising to me, and make me not sure that I understand the problem fully.

What will the spreadsheet tell you that you don't already know?

EVERY spoke on one side is 14. EVERY spoke on the other side is 13.

**********????

Bob

Just for the record, I have never built or trued a wheel, but I have question. Is tension a function of much thread is used on the spoke?

Is it possible to loosen the tension on "high" side and make up the tension on the "low" side. I know this would move the dishing, but it might fix the "error of less than a millimeter"

It would be interesting to know, in theory, how much dish there should be for that small difference in tension.

Yes, if all of the spokes are identical in diameter, material, and threading.

Yes, but if the spokes are all identical and if the axle locknuts and spacers (if any) are properly installed there is no reason to have a measurable difference in the average tension on either side of a FRONT wheel. And throwing the dish off to even the side to side tension doesn't make a better wheel.

I work in software and hardware testing and benchmarking. Sometimes, you're not seeing what you're seeing. You separate data acquisition from analysis so you can do a good job on both. If this was an easy problem to solve, the thread would be over.

There may not even be a problem. We need more data, and they need to be reliable data.

..

What is the spoke diameter?

2.0-1.8.-2.0

OK, Let me said this one more time... I don't know my wheel from a hole in the ground. But...

I checked park tools web site on the tension meter and the conversion table does not have conversion listed next to the reading 13 or 14 for 1.8mm spokes. Does that mean the spokes are too loose and might be the reason for the "unbalanced" sides?

http://www.parktool.com/repair/howtos/TM_1table.pdf

Kevin

Well, that's interesting.

I'm not entirely sure the tensiometer was Parks brand, but let's assume it was.

I looked it up and told her it should be between 105 and 115 for the front wheel, and she looked at the "13" on the tool and said that it was right. As a matter of fact, she told me the number range on the tool and said that because it was double butted it should be at the higher end of the range. But according to that chart, it should be up around 23. But, like I said, this was my first wheel, so I kind of just went with the flow while the class was going on. So if she said it was good, I'm assuming it was... and I don't remember the tool being blue.

Maybe I'm misremembering the numbers and the wheel read 23 and 24?

Like I said, I don't have my tensiometer yet, so I can't do anything more to solve this problem until it comes. I'm now going off my memory, which is getting fuzzier by the day.

Surely that's the case, or it wasn't a TM-1. If it was indeed a Park TM-1, with the spokes 1.8mm in diameter in the middle section and the readings on the gauge 13 and 14, the tension would be so low it would be very obvious the wheel is undertensioned.

Cool, I understand the memory part. I also read this on Park's site. I don't know what they mean by "nearly equal".

"Each wheel has two averages, one for the left side spokes and one for the right side spokes. If the spoke hole flanges of the hub are centered between the locknuts of the hub, it is possible for the left and right sides to have nearly equal average tension."


Kev

I just found a photo of the park tools guage and it wasn't the brand I was using. I can't find any tensiometer charts for other brands.

To be honest, I'm not real confident about the teacher, but the tension seems to be similar if not more than my other wheels.

Now I'm just dying* to get the tensiometer. I got the truing stand so it should be here soon.

I'm guessing you got the wheelsmith tensiometer. It will have its own chart.

http://images.channeladvisor.com/Sel.../26/TL2504.jpg