Truing a wheel at home – Aluleth Popups

A wheel that rubs the brake on each turn is annoying, and a little out of true is easy to fix at home with a spoke key and some patience. Northfield Cycles is a fictional workshop for this demo.

1. What you need

A spoke key that fits your spoke nipples, a cable tie or a pencil, and ten quiet minutes. Turn the bike upside down or put it in a stand.

2. Find the wobble

Hold a cable tie on the frame so its end almost touches the rim. Spin the wheel slowly and mark with tape where the rim touches it. That is the part to pull back.

3. Small turns

Spokes pull the rim toward the side of the hub they come from. To move the rim away from the tie, tighten the spoke on the other side by a quarter turn and loosen its two neighbours by an eighth. Spin, check, repeat.

4. Even tension

Squeeze pairs of spokes all around the wheel: they should feel about the same. A spoke much looser than the others will let the wheel go out of true again soon.

5. Settle the wheel

Press firmly on the rim all around, on both sides, to settle the spokes. Check once more. If a wheel needs more than a few turns, or a spoke breaks, bring it to the workshop.