Im not much of a party animal so didnt have anything planned for the last day of the year. What better task than try polishing a set of Campy high flange hubs before building a new set of wheels? Im sure you folks know this already but I was amazed at the difference after a few minutes at a buffing wheel. Now Im going to have to polish all the other parts when I assemble this bike. A word of warning if youve never used a buffer: they can be dangerous. Many knife makers see the buffing wheel as the most dangerous tool in the shop since it can grab the part being worked on and launch it at great velocity. I have heard of a knife maker that had a knife he was buffing buried in his thigh when it caught on the wheel. A Campy hub probably wont stick in your leg but it wont be well served for bouncing across a concrete floor either. I laced the wheels tonight and only had to re-do the front twice because I wasnt paying attention to what I was doing. If youve never built a wheel, I highly recommend it. Between Sheldon Browns web page on wheel building, The Art of Wheelbuilding by Gerd Schraner, and The Bicycle Wheel by Jobst Brandt, there is plenty of direction available. I find wheelbuilding one of the most satisfying bicycle maintenance tasks I have ever done. To take all those parts, put them together and make something as dynamic as a wheel it s as close to creating life as Ill ever get. The first set of wheels I made a number of years ago were trued on the bike using the brake calipers as reference. The second set a few months ago for my fixed gear used the brake in the front and popsicle sticks rubber banded across the seat stays for the rear. A truing stand is handy, but its certainly not necessary. Thank you to the CR list for the idea to polish my parts, for educating me in aspects of bikes that I was never aware of, and for helping me enjoy cycling again after a many-year lay off.
Happy 2007,
Guy Taylor
Anaheim, CA