New Zealand – Motorcycle Wheel & Spoke Specialists

How often should you check the spoke tension? Depending on whether you are riding off-road or on the street.

A good rule of thumb is every time you wash your bike, check the spokes. If you’re getting dirty, you will be checking them more often, and less if you’re a street commuter. If you get new tires? Perfect time to check the spokes as well.

Check Alloy Rims, especially Motocross for corrosion underneath the tyre.

Elongated nipple holes caused by loose spokes and cracks where the rim is “Buttwelded”.

Is The Wheel Really Buckled?

Check the tyre is correctly seated on rim. Often when a wheel has been sitting on a flat tyre, that tyre becomes misshapen and may stay that way even when re-inflated..giving the impression of a bent rim.

A “Rim-Tape” incorrectly fitted on the rim may sit under the tyre bead preventing the tyre from seating correctly and giving the impression of a buckled wheel.

The same applies for incorrectly fitted “Rim Locks”.

If unsure, deflate tyre. Use Tyre Soap or Soap and Water around edges of tyre and reinflate checking that tyre “Pops Up” to correct position.

Before refitting a tyre, check that spokes do not protrude through nipple. File off flat if they do.

Rim Truing

Rims are always trued to the register, i.e the part of the rim where the tyre bead sits. Some manufacturers rims are often poorly produced so that whilst the register may be true the outer edges of the rim may not be. This can be noticed when spun. The tyre will be perfectly true, but the edge of the rim may “Wander”. Especially true of Alloy “Flanged Rims”.

Motocross Wheels
Due to the hard treatment these rims receive they often have “Flats” on the rim where they may have contacted a tree root or another hard object. When spun, the “Flat” on the rim itself is very obvious but the tyre bridges the “Flat” and is often reasonably true.

Spokes usually break as a result of becoming loose over a period of time and a few taking the strain.

Keep spokes, especially rears, tensioned up. Check this from time to time.

POKES NIPPLES and RIMS

Spokes come in 7,8,9 & 10 gauge. 7 gauge being the thicker. I carry a large supply of ‘Blank Spokes’ in Stainless Steel. “Butted spokes” (2 diameters) I am able to bend and thread spokes on the premises to requirements.

Nipples come in Nickel Plated Steel, Nickel Plated Brass,stainless and alloy.I use nickel plated brass nipples with stainless spokes to minimise “Galling”

I get many customers bringing in a alloy or steel rim that they may have picked up at a swap meet. What they fail to understand is that rims are usually not interchangeable.The hub diameter/width governs the position of the nipple holes in the rim dimples-nothing looks worse than a wheel with spokes bending as they leave the nipples.

WHEEL OFFSET:

The Wheel Offset is the measurement of the hub in relation to the rim. To obtain this measurement place a straightedge ruler over the brake drum or disc & measure the gap between the ruler and centre of the valve hole.

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