A bicycle’s wheel is composed of a rim, spokes and center hub. These components can become damaged due to natural breakage, riding on rough terrain or a fall. When a component of the wheel becomes damaged, it compromises the integrity of the wheel and should be repaired or replaced at the earliest possible opportunity to prevent a potentially serious accident.
Part Replacement
Step 1
Squeeze the brake lever for the wheel you will be working on and disengage the brake line. Remove the wheel from the bike by loosening the bottom bracket drop out bolt with a wrench or by turning the hub lever counterclockwise.
Step 2
Press down on the valve stem with your thumb and deflate the inner tube. Remove the tire and inner tube from the wheel using a set of tire levers. Peel off the tape inside of the rim to reveal the spoke nipples.
Step 3
Insert a flathead screwdriver into the nipple of the damaged or broken spokes you need to replace. Turn the screwdriver counterclockwise and remove the spoke from the wheel. If you need to replace the rim or hub with a new part, remove the remaining spokes.
Step 4
Place the replacement parts flat on your work station with the wheel hub at the center of the rim. Insert any spokes you will be replacing into their appropriate holes. If you are replacing all of the spokes, it does not matter if you insert the head of the spoke into the top or bottom of the flange. If you are only replacing a few spokes, follow the up and down pattern already on the hub.
Step 5
Place a drop of linseed oil in a spoke nipple. Insert the spoke into the appropriate hole on the rim and loosely tighten the nipple on it. If you are replacing all of the spokes, insert the first spoke into the rim hole that is closest to the valve stem hole and offset above it. This is called the “key” spoke. Replace any other spokes that need to be changed, following your chosen lacing pattern.
Wheel Truing
Step 1
Place the wheel in a truing stand and set the indicators so they are barely touching the wheel. Spin the wheel slowly and study the places where it is imbalanced vertically and laterally in its rotation. Note the positions where there are slight bends in the rim.
Step 2
Find an area that needs to be moved laterally. Loosen the spokes that are pulling on the rim in half-turn increments with your spoke wrench. For example, if there is an area being pulled to the left, loosen the spokes that connect to the right hub flange in that area. Each time you loosen a spoke by a half-turn, check the position of the rim again in the truing stand.
Step 3
Find an area of the rim that is vertically off-center. If a spot is flat, loosen an even number of spokes that connect to the area. Once again, do not loosen more than one half-turn on each spoke at a time. If the area is high, tighten an even number of spokes.
Step 4
Alternate between lateral and vertical adjustments to slowly bring the wheel into true. Simulate the stresses of riding periodically during the truing process by gently squeezing parallel spokes on the wheel toward each other. Disperse the tension on the spokes as evenly as possible. Continually check the truing indicators until the wheel is perfectly round.
Tips and Warnings
- Spokes on the left and right side of the back wheel are not the same length. Spokes on the derailleur side are shorter.
- Relieve and add spoke tension on the wheel evenly if you plan to reuse the rim later. Failure to do so may deform it.
Things You'll Need
- Wrench
- Tire levers
- Flathead screwdriver
- Linseed oil
- Spoke wrench
- Truing stand
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