You guys need to check your spokes, I was dumb and really never did till I put on 2,200 miles on it. The wheel is now bent and all the loose spokes have been tightened all they can. I would have never noticed but someone pointed it out to me on the last ride I went on. What to do now? I guess I have to take it to a shop so they can true it again?

 

Once a week you should take a wrench and tap them all the way around, the tone will tell you the ones to tighten. Just don't' get too carried away, you can pull the wheel going too far. The tone is like a tuning fork tone, it all doesn't have to be exact, but you will know when you come to a dead one.

 

I did that and tightened all the spokes, but its still bent! Also how much do you tighten them from just a dead thump, do you tighten them so that they are the same tone as the majority of others?

What do you guys use to tighten them, a 6 mm wrench, thats what I used.

 

I use a spoke wrench. If a 6mm fits thats OK too. Truing a wheel is some what of an art. If it is way off and you are not famaliar with the process then you should take it to a "GOOD" shop.

 

Truing up a wheel, like Mmatz said, is somewhat of an art. It's not too hard though, so long as you apply a healthy dose of patience. If your wheel is really tweaked, there's only one way to get it straight now.

Take the wheel off of the bike, and remove the tire, tube, and the rubber rim strip. Go to a hardware store and get a nut the same size as your axle nut, and a bunch of washers that will fit over your axle. Clamp the nut in a vise, and using the washers and your stock spacers, thread the axle through your wheel into the nut. You want the wheel to spin freely, and be parallel to your work bench (i.e. you want the wheel on top of the vise).

Next, loosen all of the spoke nipples. Use a tape measure and measure from the edge of the hub to the bottom of the spoke nipple. Make all of the spokes the same length. You could also count the threadson the spoketo the nipple, but if you have a stretched spoke, it will still be longer than the rest. The rim should be "floppy" with all of the spokes loose.

Half ofthe spokes pull from the left side of the hub, and half pull from the right. On the rim, every other spoke pulls from the opposite side. Choose a side of the hub to start with.Find the spokes that pull fromthat side of the hub only (this translates to every other spoke nipple on the rim). Give each of these spoke nipples one complete turn. You might be tempted to turn more when they are really loose, but don't. You'll get confused and make the job harder than it needs to be.One turn only! Then, go to the spokes that pull from the other side of the hub, and do the same thing. Repeat. Once all of the spoke nipples start touching the rim, give them 1/2 turns instead of full turns.

Once the spoke nipplestorque up, tap the spokes with a screw driver. They should all ring like a tuning fork. They may not be the same pitch, but they should ring. A spoke that is loose will make a "thud" instead of a "ring". If when using my method you find a spoke that is way more loose than the rest, replace it.

So far, this has been all science. Now comes the art part. Make an indicator by taking a tall spray can, and taping a Sharpie to the top of its cap. You want the Sharpie the same height as one of the edges of the rim. Place theindicator next to the rim and spin the wheel. You're checking to see if the rim is true up and down to the hub. If the rim gets closer to the Sharpie in one spot, note that spot. Go to the OPPOSITE side of the wheel. Pick 4 to 6consecutive spokes (these spokes will pull from both sides of the hub),and give them each an 1/8turn. Spin the wheel and check again. Repeat until the gap between the Sharpie and the rim is the same all the way around.

Finally, you need to check if the rim is true left to right. Reclamp the wheel in the vise so that it is perpendicular to the work bench (I.E. just like it is mounted on the bike). Place your indicator next the side of the rim and spin the wheel. If the rim gets closer or farther away from the indicator compared to the rest of the rim, note these spots. Wherever the rim gets closer or farther away,find 3 or 4of the spokes that pull from the opposite side of the hub. For example, ifthe rim bends towards the Sharpie, choose the spokes that will pull the bend away. Give each one an 1/8 turn. Spin the wheel and check again. Repeat until the gap between the Sharpie and the rim is the same all the way around.

You're now good to go. Yes, some shops use computerized equipment to do this, but that just makes the job faster, not better. Some shops also can get the wheel true to minute tolerances, but as soon as you go off-road, all that is for naught anyway. If you can true the wheel so that visibly it doesn't wobble in any direction, that's good enough for a dual-sport bike.

A couple of notes. When making your final truing adjustments, NEVER TIGHTEN JUST 1 SPOKE. This is a sure way of making itthe problemworse, not better. Always tighten 3 or more, and never loosen a spoke. If your wobble is large, you can turn the spoke nipples more than an 1/8 turn, but make sure each nipple you turnis turned the same amount. If your rim only wobbled because of a couple of loose spokes, truing it back up won'tbe hard at all. By making each spoke the same length and tightening them the same amount, it should be very close to true already. On the other hand, if your rim is indeed bent, no amount of dicking around with the spokes will true it up! Take your time. Walk away for a while if you have to. This whole process will take2 to3 hours, so don't rush it.

Good luck!

 

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Excellent write-up, Mustang!

The only thing I would add is make sure your rim is not bent before spending mucho time with the spokes.

 

How can we make sure that the rim is not bent rather then being out of true, I'm a noob so anything that is obvious I can not see, lol.

 

Sounds like a lot of work, I wonder how much the shop would charge?

 

Here is a link to a guy that everyone at ADV swears up and down on.

http://www.woodyswheelworks.com/index.shtml