Re: [CR]What wire for tying and soldering?

(Example: Bike Shops:R.E.W. Reynolds)

Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2007 16:12:17 -0400
To: "Classic Rendezvous" <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
From: "John Betmanis" <johnb@oxford.net>
Subject: Re: [CR]What wire for tying and soldering?
In-Reply-To: <954702dd0709141058h2c426358ya9f49a849b2bdc58@mail.gmail.com>


At 10:58 AM 14/09/2007 -0700, Doug Van Cleve wrote:
>Howdy folks.
>
>I want to try tying and soldering some wheels and have found that at
>least one authority likes "beekeeper's wire" (which DT also sells for
>this purpose) but everyone else I have read about like tinned copper
>"buss" wire. I am preparing to order my supplies and am torn on which
>wire to get. Opinions?

There has been a lot of discussion on this in the past, if you'll search the archives. I believe beekeeper's wire is the traditionally correct stuff, but I don't know if it's tinned of bare steel. Bare steel wire is more difficult to solder, best done with acid flux, which you wouldn't want left behind inside the joint. Tinned copper solders easily, the solder flowing into the windings long before it actually sticks to the spokes. To solder stainless steel spokes you'd need a special, highly corrosive stainless steel flux. However, it is claimed (by Jobst Brandt) that tying and soldering does not increase wheel stiffness, just prevents broken spokes from getting away and causing damage. If that's the case, then it doesn't really matter if the solder has bonded to the spokes themselves and it's quickest and easiest to use tinned copper wire and be done with it.

John Betmanis
Woodstock, Ontario
Canada