We’re commonly asked if we can lace and true motorcycle wheels and regularly get referrals from other shops for this particular job. We consider it a bit of an art, and a dying one at that. It’s become increasingly difficult to find shops that either can or will do this work. In this article, we’re going to dissect what makes up a wheel and what’s involved in lacing and truing one. For this article, we’re referencing spoke wheels, so some of this information will not apply to mag or solid wheels.
WHAT MAKES UP A WHEEL?
Although this might earn us some eye rolls, we want to first break down the components of a wheel. We often hear customers use the words “tire”, “rim” and “wheel” interchangeably, and feel it’s important to clarify the distinctions between them. A wheel is made up of more components than you may realize!
TIRE
We’re sure you’re all familiar with the tire. It’s the rubber part of the wheel that makes contact with the ground.
TUBE
Under the tire is the tube. The tube’s job is to seal in the air and prevent it from escaping through any of the numerous holes in the (spoked) rim.
RIM STRAP
Next comes the rim strap. The purpose of a rim strap is to protect the tube from getting punctured by the spokes/nipples that stick up a little underneath the tube.
RIM
The rim is the round metal part where the tire and nipples are mounted. Rims are commonly made of either steel or aluminum.
SPOKES AND NIPPLES
Simply put, the spokes and nipples connect the rim to the hub. Similar to a bolt, spokes are threaded on one side. The threaded side is usually the side of the spoke that goes in the rim. The nipple’s job is similar to a nut and is the part you turn when truing.
HUB
The hub is the center part of the wheel. It holds the other side of the spokes and bearings. This allows the wheel to spin around an axle. The rotors and sprockets are also mounted to the hub.
BEARINGS
Bearings are pressed into the hub and allow the wheel to spin around the axle.
WHAT IS LACING A WHEEL?
Lacing is the process of fitting the nipples and spokes to the assembled wheel and hub. The lacing pattern is the pattern in which the spokes are installed and can vary from basic to elaborate. The most common pattern type is a cross pattern where the spokes cross over one another. There are several different types of cross patterns (two spokes, four spokes, etc.). If the wheel’s spokes do not cross each other at all, it’s called a radial pattern.
WHAT IS TRUING A WHEEL?
Truing is the process of tightening the nipples to set the runout or spinning straightness, of the wheel. Several factors are vital when properly truing a wheel:
1 RADIAL TRUENESS is adjusting the amount of “up and down” movement as well as the roundness of the rim as it spins around an axle.
2 LATERAL TRUENESS is adjusting the side-to-side movement.
3 CENTERING/OFFSET is the orientation of the rim left or right to the hub. This is important to make sure the rim is in the center of the bike.
4 TENSION or how tight the spokes are. All of the spokes should have close to the same amount of tension. If not, the wheel will not stay true. Truing is important to ensure a smooth ride and even tire wear.
OUR WHEEL TRUING PROCESS
When we are tasked with restoring a motorcycle wheel, our process is as follows:
We start by removing the tire, tube, and rim strap. We then measure our offset by holding a straight edge on the hub and taking a measurement of the distance from the rim to said straight edge. This will ensure we can get the same offset when we reassemble the wheel. We then document the lace pattern by noting the inner and outer spoke rotation, as well as how many spokes they cross from the hub to the rim.
We also take pictures which can aid in the reassembly.
Now armed with all of the information needed for reassembly, we can disassemble. Here at the shop, we typically cut the old spokes out for a couple of reasons:
- They’re not getting reused
- They’re seized together and often break when we try to loosen them
- Time
Next, we clean, paint, or polish the hub and wheel. We install new spokes and nipples, opting most often for polished stainless steel. We prefer polished stainless steel spokes over chrome, as chrome will flake off with time. Our go-to business for all things spoke and rim has been Buchanan’s Spoke & Rim, Inc. for many years, and for good reason. They are a great resource for custom-making wheel components that are unavailable elsewhere.
After the wheel is laced, we begin the truing process. We carefully mark four spots with tape, noting 3, 6, 9, and 12 o’clock. We install our truing axle and start with only the 8 spokes needed to fulfill the four marked spots.
We have found this method to not only save us time but also increase accuracy. We’re able to get the wheel extremely close to true using only 8 spokes. Once satisfied, we begin tightening the rest of the nipples a quarter turn at a time. We check the trueness and make fine adjustments once every revolution until all of the nipples are tight.
OH NO! A BROKEN SPOKE!
Both spokes and nipples come in different diameters. Spokes come in several different types, including straight and j-bend. There is usually an inner and outer spoke. This is important to note, especially when considering a repair on a broken spoke. In some cases, it’s as simple as removing the tire and replacing that single spoke.
Unfortunately, others require disassembling the entire wheel followed by lacing/truing. What determines this is the lace pattern and whether or not it is an inner or outer spoke that has broken. Outer spokes can often be replaced without disassembling the wheel, but inner spokes almost always require complete disassembly to repair. This is because outer spokes are installed from the inside out and can be rotated into place. Inner spokes, however, are installed from the outside in and cannot be rotated into place with other spokes obscuring access.
Once the steps are broken down, understanding the components of a wheel and the process of lacing and truing a motorcycle wheel is quite simple. It is more of a matter of patience and time than anything else. If you have any wheel-related questions, feel free to reach out to us and we’ll be happy to help.
Have a project you’re interested in having us work on? Call (740) 747-2299 during normal business hours!
