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I'm looking to get a pair of these properly sorted out - 3 years old and they're true enough now, but the rear has lower spoke tension than it should and there are 3 actual loose spokes. Plus the rear was never dished correctly from new (sat a good 3-4mm offset between the rear stays - definitely the wheel not the frame).
I'd like someone who really knows what they're doing to get these properly sorted to give that "hand built" level of quality to the build, as they're relatively fragile and I'm not light 90+kg).
These wheels use Giants "Dynamic Balanced Lacing" system which means the leading and lagging spokes have different tension and ignoring that can apparently lead to issue and cracked rims so someone who knows this.
Any recommendations? I'm based in the Midlands, so ideally someone somewhere between Coventry and Cambridge type of area would be ideal.
(I can build and true wheels myself with good success so far, but I'd like these sorted by an expert).
Thanks !
Mark
I'd look for a local roadie specialist TBH.
I’d look for a local roadie specialist TBH.
Yes, that's exactly my plan - just looking for advice from here as to who.
Giant have a concept store in Newport Pagnell and another one in Cambridge, I'd have thought the mechanics there would be trained on Giant OE wheels and will certainly have come across them multiple times.
https://www.giant-bicycles.com/au/technology/detail/109
I wouldn't worry about it - whilst the theory does actually make sense, there are millions of other wheels out there which are fine with even static spoke tension. I doubt it will really make much difference in the real world - also to work optimally you would have to know how much torque you put through the wheel on average and then tension accordingly. Of course they don't do this, so I'll bet the tension is uneven more often than not when under load anyway. More I think about it the more I wouldn't bother - it's probably no coincidence that the wheel is a mess, as it must be pretty difficult to build true with uneven spoke tensions.
Unless they have improved recently, I wouldn't go near the giant store in Cambridge.
They are set up to sell town bikes and didn't have a clue about how to replace the frame bearings in my anthem.
I run the slr 0 wheels and had mine trued and a spoke replaced over last few years. No drama any competent wheel builder will sort them.
@hatter - thanks, yes that is the obvious solution I somehow neglected to consider !
Booked into the Giant store at Newport Pagnell.
@plus-one that is good to hear and encouraging, thanks.
@branes I kind of agree. The reason I want the right person to look at them now is that they've been designed around this tensioning approach, and ignoring that and just tensioning as normal could lead to issues. Whether the fancy spoke system is worth it / brings tangible benefits or not I'm not sure - however they've been great wheels, very light, stiff and so far strong. I don't think it's unreasonable to need a bit of attention after 3 years and several thousand miles of heavy old me throwing them around rough Northampton shire lanes, certainly in line with other factory built wheelsets longevity. Having said all of that if I was choosing a new wheelset I would be avoiding any of the fancy, proprietary systems or specific spokes etc to make them as serviceable as possible.
been designed around this tensioning approach
Yeah, well I get your point, and for interest's sake I put some numbers into a model I knocked up that was aimed at figuring out tension change under disk braking. At 200W max pedal force would be 250N according to this paper which when plugged into my model spreadsheet gives a tension change of 70N or so (lots of assumptions here - hub flange diameter and crossing has a big effect, likewise gear, I chose 50/17). That's not very much when spokes are tensioned to 1000N or so. If they just used 24 normally laced spokes it would be 46N. So on that basis I still wouldn't worry about it. (That said for a 34/51 gear, which of course you'll never see on a road bike, at that pedal force it's 140N, so it can ramp up easily..).
Anyway, to your original point, it occurs to me that RLSCC people seem to like the Giant shop in Leamington (to the point that there seems to be a loose relationship between them) so they may be worth a shout.
No expert but I always thought one of the main selling points of carbon rims is that they stay straight? I have e thirteen trsr carbons and they've been straight as a die since I've owned them
RLSCC people seem to like the Giant shop in Leamington
Not just RLSCC people, WLRCC people too. Giant Leamington is an excellent shop.
Lots of love for the Leamington store so I changed and booked in there. A month wait to get a slot in the workshop which I hope is a good sign! That bike is on the turbo now the weather has changed so no issue waiting.
I always thought one of the main selling points of carbon rims is that they stay straight?
Thy certainly seems to be true here - both rims are nice and true despite the rear having a few loose spokes. The incorrect dish has been there from new - a build error I think.
I guess that makes it more important to check for loose spokes every so often as they won’t show up via a wobbly wheel.
This is the second pair I’ve had - no loss of tension on the first and given the dishing issue I suspect a Friday afternoon job so it’ll be nice to get them sorted out properly.