Andy Bohlmann here...again,
Story time!
I used tied and soldered wheels back in the late '70's-early '80's for: 1. National Team type riders who needed hard core crit wheels. 28 or 32 hole low or high flange Campagnolo (only) hubs, Mavic GP4 or SSC rims, ( I also liked Yellow Fiamme's or Ergals {sp?}..at 290gr), D/T only 14/15g spokes, brass nips, and a Clement 250 gr, 220gr silk tire or a Vittoria 240gr CX. Corked spoke holes. 2. Same riders going to S. America or Europe but 32 or 36 hole sm flange only, same build, but no Ergals. Heavier tire. 3. TT wheels with 24 or 28 hole high flange, those gold light Mavics 280 gr rims, Ergals,or Nisi's at 290gr with Clement really light silks at 180-220 grams. Those were beauties! 4. Track, cross or even 6-day wheels were special.
But then again, it really depended on what was available. Back then anything Shimano was crap. I don't know about that these days.
Have I told you about the blind Cuban wheel builder I met at a Mexcian 12-day International stage race back in '79? He taught me alot about wheels, cigars, and things better left unsaid... PS, and he couldn't even read a book about wheelbuilding! "Be the wheel" he told me!
Andy Bohlmann Colorado Springs, CO
http://www.tourofcolorado.com
http://www.sandcreeksports.com
>I can't not throw in my dos pesos on these.
>
> There are other water based cleaners that are as good or better at
> disolving bike gunk than Simple Green that are also much less agressive
> on surfaces. I don't know if SG is acidic or alkaline--the latter seems
> more likely, but I think that has something to do with why it interacts
> with anodizing--any experts who can add something here?
>
> Try PK200. It's a somewhat obscure "environmental" (marketing anyway)
> cleaner that is fairly oderless and very gentle. It won't damage metal
> finishes or paint and it cleans many things better than SG. Great stuff.
>
> Oh yeah--we talked about this a few times this year--ammonia works
> wonders at loosening stuck posts and stems. A small dribble around the
> orofice, let it soak overnight. It still will require patience and lubes
> but it will come loose.
>
> Tying and soldering: I had always heard about it as something that made
> wheels stronger, or stiffer but I never had any personal experience with
> it. Then I got this wood rim obsession (about 25 years ago) and built
> various pairs of wheels and for a while I rode wood rims pretty much
> exclusively. I learned that they are very sensitive to humidity. When it
> gets damp they swell up and the spokes get REALLY tight. When it gets
> dry, they shrink and the spokes get really loose. You have tension the
> spokes on the soft side or they'll get so tight sometimes that eventually
> the rim can de-laminate. Even with the spokes so loose that the wheel
> feels spongy, the rims, due to the incredible resilience of wood, are
> very strong. They'll never flat like aluminum rims would in similar
> circumstances. So I learned to keep the spokes kind of loose. The ride
> and wheel strength are fine but the noise is obnoxious. Tying and
> soldering eliminates this and does stiffen the wheel over what it would
> feel like without. It could be (I wasn't around then) that it originally
> started when most rims were wood and carried over into aluminum rims.
>
> cheers,
> Bob Schenker