Cycle Repairing and Adjusting
With a Chapter on building a Bicycle from a Set of Parts

i6 CYCLE REPAIRING each one up about half a turn or so, then test, correct if out of truth much, and go round again until the wheel is true, and the spokes have the required and equal tension. File off any protruding spoke ends, and the wheel is finished. The secret of successful wheel-building is : spokes all of one dead length, tension on spokes must be obtained gradually, and equality of spoke tension. If the tension is put on too rapidly at one particular place in the rim, it will be pulled out of shape to such an extent that it will be difficult to get the rim true again in the round. Fitting New Spoke.—This is a simple job if the wheel has not been made out of truth by the absence of the spoke’s support. Get the length for the new spoke by the old one if still in the rim, or if missing, by one of the others. See that the spoke is of equal gauge and fits the nipple. In the absence of a knowledge of the make of nipples and spoke-screwing with which the wheel is made, it is as well to fit a new nipple, which is known to suit the thread of the new spoke fitted. Tighten up the spoke to an equal tension to the remainder, and test for truth as already explained. Replacing a broken spoke on the clutch side of a rear wheel without removing the clutch is only a makeshift job, unless the hub flange is provided with slots as well as holes. The job is done by enlarging the hole sufficiently to push the head of the spoke through, or by screwing a small nut or washer on the end after putting through the hole. Washers used in wheel building are of various patterns, one of the best being that known as the “ flanged washer.”