Remember when we used to true wheels by feel instead of with a dial indicator?

I was messing with an old 3 cross wheel the other day, a 36 spoke from the 80s, and I realized how much I rely on my Park Tool truing stand now (and that little dial). Years ago I worked in a shop in Denver where the old timer, Mike, would just spin the wheel and grab the spokes, no tools at all. He could fix a hop in maybe 3 minutes, just by listening and touching. I tried his method again last week on a customer's rusty commuter bike, and you know what? It actually worked for getting it rideable fast. Has anyone else gone back to an old school trick like that and found it still holds up?

2 comments

2 Comments

gray_roberts22h ago

Man I had that exact same thing happen last summer with an old Sturmey Archer hub wheel. Grabbed the spokes and just let my hands do the work and it was dead smooth in like 5 minutes. The dial indicator is nice for perfectionists but sometimes the old ways just get it done faster.

the_kevin10h ago

Funny how trusting your hands beats fancy tools every time (just like cooking without a recipe).