A DIY spoke head torque wrench.

bluegoatwoods

bluegoatwoods

Active Member
I don't think I have to explain much. The pictures tell the story.

On some tutorial somewhere I read that spokes should be tightened to 30 in/lbs. While planning this wrench I realized that I'd have a hard time building something with the 'push point' exactly one inch from the center of rotation. My parts are a bit big and clumsy for that. But that's no problem; adjustments can be made. 15 lbs @ 2 inches is exactly the same torque as 30 lbs @ 1 inch, right? Okay, so......

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It's just a bit clumsy. It takes some getting used to in order that everything stays in line and the wrench doesn't slip off of the spoke head. But a bit of practice got things in order.

And now my wheels will be torqued perfectly and evenly.
 
Interesting concept. I've never considered torque values for spokes. How do the pros do it? Is there a torque wrench made for the purpose? And, how important is it to get the spokes torqued exactly/equally?

I've always just used an old fork, spin the rim and watch for inconsistancies then tighten or loosen until the wheel spins true. Never thought about torquing them.
Thanks.

Tom
 
I hadn't given the matter much thought either. But truing wheels the same way you mentioned, Tom, I'd occasionally wonder what torque should be applied. But since I didn't have an answer, I'd just tighten them carefully. Hoping to avoid stripping them or breaking the spoke. Usually with success.

I assume that serious bicycle mechanics and wheel builders have torque wrenches. But that's only an assumption. I've never seen one.

And that 30 in/lb value comes from one "Instructables" tutorial on wheel building. I don't know if other masters of the trade agree on that or not. But it's a torque that 'feels' right when you apply it to a spoke. Good and tight, but not too much.
 
With experience, and maybe age, you tend to acquire a 'feel' for what is tight, too loose or too tight. I've been around machines and mechanics most of my life and I know I have a good 'feel' for threaded things. Just guessing but my feeling is that 30 IP is just a little on the high side for machine threads the size of spokes. When I consider that the recommended torque value for a 6mm fasteners is about 50 to 60 inch pounds, 30 just sort of scares me for a little skinny thing like a spoke.

But who am I to say? I'm just going by an assumption. I've never laced a wheel but only taught myself to true one. I could well be way off the mark. And as with most things; if it works for you, it can't be wrong. Right? :)
I still think your torque wrench idea is a good one.

Tom
 
2door said:
With experience, and maybe age, you tend to acquire a 'feel' for what is tight, too loose or too tight. I've been around machines and mechanics most of my life and I know I have a good 'feel' for threaded things. Just guessing but my feeling is that 30 IP is just a little on the high side for machine threads the size of spokes. When I consider that the recommended torque value for a 6mm fasteners is about 50 to 60 inch pounds, 30 just sort of scares me for a little skinny thing like a spoke.

But who am I to say? I'm just going by an assumption. I've never laced a wheel but only taught myself to true one. I could well be way off the mark. And as with most things; if it works for you, it can't be wrong. Right? :)
I still think your torque wrench idea is a good one.

Tom
Click to expand...

I'm hesitant to speak up here since I respect the thinking involved but I honestly never once in my life thought about getting all the spokes the same torque when truing or building wheels.
I was always more like Tom in that you get a "feel" for things over the years. I usually have my eyes closed truing a wheel and go for a melodic sound when spinning and bouncing a screwdriver off the spokes. I was taught to let the wheel set the torque, not a reading on a tool. I use my finger as a gauge and the pointer as a backup and aural indicator.
With most wheels in my experience, the tension will need to be different at any given spot anyway after any significant use since you get hits trying to egg the rim all the time.
Now I'm not a professional bike builder. I'm SURE tons of people know more than I do, but I have built thousands of rims.
I've always been VERY hard on bicycles since I grew up BMXing and just kept getting stronger and heavier. I raced and beat the living crap out of ALL my bikes since I was about 7 or 8, so I DO know what works for me and what lives under heavy abuse.
This is a very cool tool and I salute the thinking behind it, but I would not use it myself.

NO disrespect intended!
 
It's okay, maniac, there's plenty of room for differing opinions. And it didn't feel disrespectful to me.

I can even find myself somewhat in agreement with you. After using this thing a bit I almost find that I can now tell when I've torqued to the value that I'm shooting for without using my 'torque wrench'. I can tell by the feel of it.

Either way, though, I can't help thinking that even torque around the wheel must be desirable. Certainly in theory. I can see how in the real world some slight differences might be good. In the case of a rim that's not perfectly straight maybe. But I'll bet such differences would be small.

And I think I agree with 2Door that 30 in/lbs might be more than necessary. I don't think if feels too, too tight. But I could go with less and feel just fine about it.

I might experiment a bit with 20 in/lbs.
 
There is a tool that measures spoke tension, but it's not a torque wrench. Some of them only measure relative tension (the tension of all the spokes in relation to one another), and some measure the tension laterally (individual spoke tension) as well. It's called a spoke tension meter, and no matter how it measures the tension, it only does so after the spoke is tightened. They also cost about $75. A homemade torque wrench is no doubt cheaper, and also torques each spoke to the correct value without guessing and adjusting. In my opinion, it's a smart idea.
 
If it helps you get the wheel true, then it's a GREAT idea.
I've been telling people for years that wheel building is not some magical esoteric art known only to the chosen few...anyone can do it.
Just grab a wheel and try it!
 
That's absolutely true, maniac. I never thought I would understand wheel building and truing, but when it became a necessity, I got down to it and learned. It was a lot easier to learn than I thought. I've now built, trued and even re-spoked a few rims. I'm preparing to lace a dirtbike drum into a 24" bicycle rim using a 4 cross pattern. That might take a little guessing, but I think I can do it. I'm fairly certain I have it figured out already, and if I get stuck I can always ask for help. But it's true that wheel building is not as hard as people think it is.
 
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