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Just built some ex471 rims onto hope pro4 hubs ,all went really well and best wheel build yet.
Used tension meter on spokes and all is good , then fitted tyre pumped it up and they need a bit more re-tensioning mostly up. So what do you wheelbuilders do ? Re tension with tyre on and inflated or don't inflate. I always check tensions with tyre on and inflated on all my other wheels as they seem to change a little with riding and abuse.
Your views please
Simon
I’ve always tensioned with no tyre and relieved the spokes a few times through the build process. I haven’t actually then gone and rechecked them once tyres etc are mounted. No factory wheels are going to get this treatment - they sell them without tyres and that’s it.
I normally build to the upper end of the tension range to compensate for this but don't bother with any extra work after the tyres are on.
I learned this the hard way with early Stan's rims that had a max of 100kgf. By the time the tyres were in and inflated, the disc side on the rear felt very loose indeed.
It depends, I have contacted various manufacturers, some say they have taken into account the tension drop caused by beading tubeless tyres and do not authorize re tensioning, others say if the tension drop is excessive the wheel can be re tensioned with the tyre mounted.
Some wheels go noticeably out of dish when some tyres are mounted.
Different tyres cause varying amounts of tension drop depending how tight the bead fits on the rim.
If the spoke tension is borderline low on the disc side rear without a tyre fitted, a tubeless tyre can push it to unusably slack on some wheels (depending on the hub flanges/nipple position).
I build them to the correct (un-tyred) tension and then never check them again.
These guys re-tension https://novemberbicycles.com/blogs/blog/pressure-drop (and have a linked Youtube video).
More reading here https://www.wheelfanatyk.com/blog/kgf-v-psi-part-1/
MTB is only 20psi or so, but the rims are wider, so overall force on the rim is probably similar to a road wheel.
I just over-tension them a bit while building and check that the drop isn't too ridiculous when the tyre's mounted.
A few things to think about , that second link Branes is a little more in depth than I can handle . So maybe I'm not de-stressing the wheel enough .
So how does everyone do this ? I just give the spokes a squeeze when I'm up to tension and re check tension
I nearly got flamed on here a few years ago for even suggesting the notion that spoke tensions decreased with tubeless
So how does everyone do this ?
I lay the wheel on its side on the hub end and firmly press the rim, rotate about 1/8th turn and press again until I've gone right round, flip it over and do the other side. Don't be too shy about the pressure and do it maybe half way through tensioning and again at the end.
I nearly got flamed on here a few years ago for even suggesting the notion that spoke tensions decreased with tubeless
That's possibly because tubeless vs tubed isn't the issue - only tubulars don't suffer the issue.
I’ve seen more than one video of people laying the wheel down and standing on the spokes, they said don’t be shy with it either? I’m about to build my first wheels and that was my plan
I lay the wheel on its side on the hub end and firmly press the rim, rotate about 1/8th turn and press again until I’ve gone right round, flip it over and do the other side. Don’t be too shy about the pressure and do it maybe half way through tensioning and again at the end.
That's my preferred method too - Musson mentions it too, though states he prefers the spoke pinch method. He does note"If you use the pushing down technique, then be very careful not to apply so much force that the wheel collapses, this is easily done on lightweight wheels because (spoked) wheels are not designed to handle high forces in this direction"
Laying the wheel down and pressing the around the rim, then flipping and repeating, will release any spoke wind up usually. Wind-up would probably release a bit when inflating a tyre due to the tension reduction too. When a spoke unwinds your wheel will go out of true... so avoid wind up in the first place ideally. (Most people do this by 'feel' and/or a 1/4 turn backwards when you feel windup).
Stress relief is different and is best achieved by pulling opposing spokes.
As ever Wheel Fanatyk has a blog post on this. https://www.wheelfanatyk.com/blog/side-stressing-for-building/
ok that's great I will destress wheel by putting it on side as most have suggested .
Thanks all great info
Simon
Is executive stress release different again?
The more aggressive I go with de-stressing, the more stable my wheels have been in use.
I stood on my spokes on the last build and I'm 90kg. Not a single pop, twang or out of true in over a year.
Thats a stans flow mk3 build and I took the tension to peak prior to tyre install, knowing the tire fitting would bring it down.