Bicycle Tutor

Been learning how to true a wheel by watching the vids and some good old fashioned trial and error, I've got the dish of the wheel good and also got the buckle removal pretty much spot on, ie side to side.

The trouble I have is actually getting the wheel to spin in a perfect circle on it's axis, say if the wheel is in the frame and being spun, using the brake blocks as a visual guide I can sometimes see like a slight ovalisation of the wheel.

Thing is I'm not good enough to work out how to get rid of it, I'm assuming the tension is out on the opposing spokes (180 degrees) If I try and tension these spokes I start to ruin the true of the wheel.

Would like to ask the wheel builders amongst us, how do you do it?

this will give basics, other problems could be cause such as rim fatigue, nipple run out, bad rim and the like.
but assuming all is good and axle not loose or bent try this linkhttp://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/wheel-and-rim-truing

it is a round robin this - 1st get the bumps out, then axial (side to side), then radial, then axial, then radial, then stress relief, then axial, then radial, then stress relief, then axial, then radial, then stress relief, until you are happy with it. I try to get mine within a .010" range both axially and radially.

In my past two experiences it seemed like a non stop process over and over, BUT not being in a hurry after I would release the tension then true it up to rather close configuration, I STOPPED for a break! Mostly the next day I would go back to it. Most all "well written" books, articles, and other media will tell you if you start to get frustrated to stop where you are (make sure you notate it and mark the spot. Then conquer with a fresh mind and senses . It took me I think two weeks to completely build a set of wheels from scratch, pros can probably do it in 3hrs per wheel. So truing (tuning) a wheel is not really a rapid process.

cheers guys.

Maybe I'm trying to run before I can walk, guess like anything practice makes perfect, I'll keep at it, I guess the thing is to not get frustrated with yourself, just to have a break and come back to it.

I really enjoyed doing it though, I spent all afternoon sat out in the garden yesterday, was a lovely sunny day and that's rare for the UK lol, it was good to relax, get in the tinkering frame of mind and get the tools out, with all those little tweaks and subtle changes it certainly gets the brain working, there's no denying that it's very therapeutic.

Plus on the cheaper rims (I mostly use...) there's the joint (opposite the valve hole) that just is not round. Too bad, cannot do too much about that...
Good luck, and as others wrote: patience is the main thing (plus taking a break), but it seems as if you figured that out anyways...

Hi pete! If I understand your description correctly, the technical term for that is "hop" and, yes, it is the biggest frustration any wheel builder faces. Some rims, regardless of the mfr or the quality level, just seem to come with it built in.
Hop will begin to show its ugly face when you are at the point of bringing up the tension. As soon as you notice it is the time to start correcting it. You are right in the thought that it is the spokes 180 degrees over. It seems counter-intuative but, we build wheels from the inside out (hub is fixed) and turn nipples the wrong way according to what our right-hand-threaded-conditioned brains tell us. Yes?
Once you notice hop in a hoop, you are going to have to add that parameter to your sequence; opposite side and cuss and think backwards. To pull an outward hop in, tighten 4 spokes opposite of it by small increments (1/4 turn on the nipple).
The cool thing is that once you overcome a hop, 99% of the time you can go right back to your regular routine of truing.

As Bill noted, it is a mix of Art and Science not unlike learning to play a guitar.
I went rollin' down the road in a new Cadillac. I had a fine fox in the front, I had three more in the back. They were sportin' short dresses, wearing spike-heeled shoes, smokin' Lucky Strikes and wearing nylons, too. We're bad. We're nationwide!