Got a tri-bike last fall w/ stock Shimano WH-R500 wheels. They are decent training wheels and I like them.
This spring the front wheel went way out of true.
LBS fixed it, saying “yeah - good wheels. nice how they snap back to true so well.”
A month later, both wheels got a wobble. I tightened some loose spokes, and all was well.
Now training for a HIM…riding much more…
First 65mi ride 2 wks ago, 2 front spokes and 1 rear spoke were like banjo-strings. I tightened them OK.
2nd 65mi ride today, 2 front spokes (forgot to mark them to see if they were the same buggers) would loosen up every 25mi.
Is there a way to tighten them down so they STAY tight? Lock-tite? New rim-tape? New wheels ?
I would bet that the PRIMARY reason your spokes are loosening up on you is because of uneven spoke tension on the same side of each wheel in addition to the absence of spoke prep/nipple cream, etc. (Loctite for spoke nipples).
As your wheel turns, forces push and pull on the spokes of each wheel. If the tension on each spoke is the same on the same side of the wheel, then the spokes respond uniformly to those forces. When spoke tensions are not uniform on each side of the wheel, then as those forces are applied and removed from each spoke, the spokes “try” to equalize those forces and the main way they do this is by loosening themselves.
Trying to “fix” multiple loose spokes simply by tightening them is usually an exercise in futility unless you are an experienced wheel builder.
I’ll second the linseed oil. I’ve been using this for 17 years building wheels and have never had one loosen. I find that over time when a wheel has loc tite or spoke prep on it, it becomes almost impossible to move the nipple without damaging it when you do need to true your wheels.
I’ve been told by my LBS that spokes that are TOO TIGHT will come loose more often. So keep that in mind. Sounds counterintuitive, but he had a good explanation (that I can’t remember).
Pls excuse my ignorance… but when I read linseed “oil”, I think: “lubricant”. But this stuff really works, eh? Does it get sticky somehow? …like beeswax perhaps?
Linseed oil gets sticky. A lot of wheel builders prefer it to spoke prep because it doesn’t “squeak” when you turn the spokes. I always thought it needed to be double boiled linseed oil, but no-one here has mentioned that specifically.
I’ve been told by my LBS that spokes that are TOO TIGHT will come loose more often. So keep that in mind. Sounds counterintuitive, but he had a good explanation (that I can’t remember).
Get a new LBS.
Spokes lose tension because they were not tightened enough when built (assuming they were built without spoke windup, which is what Spoke Prep and the similar stuff is supposed to prevent). If not tight enough, either due to poor build or insufficiently strong rims, they can go slack when you ride over bumps and such, and the nipple can unscrew.
The ideal would be to tighten the spokes to the point where the rim assumes a taco shape; then back off the tension until true. Loctite is used when the rim is too weak to support sufficient spoke tension: the spokes will go slack when riding, but the adhesive will prevent the nipple from turning.
Linseed oil gets sticky. A lot of wheel builders prefer it to spoke prep because it doesn’t “squeak” when you turn the spokes. I always thought it needed to be double boiled linseed oil, but no-one here has mentioned that specifically.
Boiled, or double-boiled, linseed oil dries quicker and may have some additives. I think that applies more to use as a wood finish than it use on spokes. Since I buy my linseed oil from the paint department, it may be boiled. I don’t think it matters.