ridden pretty hard on the same 2x drive/radial non-drive rear for the past 4 years without needing a true. they seem to be extremely stout. bladed spokes, nice rims, superbe hubs. i'm 130 lbs and 6' tall, and consider myself to be pretty lucky to have never had a wheel problem ever.

A good friend of mine has a quote:

"If you don't have time to do it right, you must have time to do it over."

Don't settle. And really, if the guy is stand up, he'll feel better having corrected an error, than letting you live with it and give the cash back.

i kind of feel like a dumbass for my complaining, so just a quick update for anyone who cares.
the LBS did use the correct spokes, but the NDS is still radial. it is actually starting to grow on me. the wheel builder thinks this will be the best lacing for these wheels, so now just the test for durability. also he put the bike together for me at no charge because it took him so long to build the wheels.

Wow! The bike shops screws up with your wheel build, taking 5 months to build a wheelset not to your order then claiming that they did YOU a favor. And yet, you accept their obvious blunder with a cordial thank you. Come on! I don't mean to be rude or anything, but please get a backbone! Step up to the plate! You deserve better! Go back to that shop, have them do it right, or get your money back. It's that simple.

If the shop really wanted to do you a favor then they would have
1) Told you it was going to take 5 months to get to your wheelset
2) and recommended a different set of spokes and spoking pattern BEFORE surprising you 5 months later after de fact! That is what any competent bike shop would do. What bike shop was this???

i agree. you're coming off as a push over.

Damn you're skinny.

i am a push over (or call me a pansy,nancy, etc.), but a push over that wanted to ride my new frame.

not to defend the shop, but I couldn't have ridden the wheels without a frame, so finishing them up the day after i got the frame isn't that big of a deal. other than the length of time, the only thing the shop did wrong was lace the non-drive side radial. the front wheel was laced correctly (2X), as was the rear drive side (3X), and the spokes i wanted were used.

so unless there is something inherently wrong with a non-drive side laced radial, the bike shop is forgiven for this event in my mind, but still on a thin rope for any future business.

that was my thought too.

Why are you doing asymmetrical lacing with a fixed hub? AFAIK, that's associated with rear wheels with dish (8,9,10 speed, etc.)

A word about semi-radial lacing.

And another from a "track" shop.

thanks.