I will second this. "Trueness" and maintaining true are dependent on equal tension. Joe Young http://www.youngwheels.com by all accounts is considered the premier wheel builder in this country. His resume reads like the reincarnation of Spence Wolf. Anyways, Joe insists that equal and maximum tension are the two critical factors in wheelbuilding, and wheels that he has built for me over the decades have NEVER gone out of true, and (call me crazy because I cannot quantify why) but they are also very fast. Joe adds some other details to his work - things that score high points for me -
1) Center punch the spoke heads to "set" them in the hub flanges. This technique prevents spoke head "creep" that can effect trueness and tension.
2) On a completed wheel the decals should read from the drive side of the bike, with the hub spindle markings read from the saddle looking foreward, directly through the valve hole. For example, say you have a Campagnolo hub and fiamme rim. With the wheel in a truing stand, spin the wheel so that the valve hole is up (at the 12:00 position). Looking through the valve hole, standing behind the wheel, the Campagnolo script on the hub spindle should be facing you rightside up, also at the 12:00 position, and the rim decal directly beyond, at the 6:00 position. Technically speaking, it doesn't make a difference, but aesthetically it make sense.
3) The issue of locktite is always debated, but Joe does not use it and claims that a properly tensioned spoke will not loosen. I can attest to his theory, as none of his spokes have ever loosened on me.
Carl Derrick Queens NY
>From: Richard M Sachs <richardsachs@juno.com>
>To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
>Subject: Re: [CR]tensionometers
>Date: Fri, 19 Apr 2002 18:20:53 -0400
>
>i'd rather have a wheel built with integrity than a wheel
>that's cosmetically round or true. to have it all would
>simply be icing on the cake.
>vintage era rims were not always precise, 'specially the lighter
>ones. they were kept in check as a component of complete wheels
>by being built with PROPER TENSION. tensionometers are just
>a way to quantify this. they don't replace good judgement
>but they can verify errors when something during the build
>goes awry.
>e-RICHIE
>the wheel thing