Somehow the chain is loose probably cause of the manufacturer rip Walmart failed me and I don’t even use he bike daily and the gear ⚙️ isn’t shifting to 2 to 1
This was the clearest video I've seen on the topic. I love the fact that RJ works with regular bikes that 95% of people ride, not some fancy road bike with the latest parts.
I was able to successfully true the wheels on both of my kids' bikes thanks to your instructions. Your time, talents, and efforts are very much appreciated!
Fun tip ... LISTEN to the spoke sound before getting started. Use pencil, chalk, a screwdriver or whatever to find the bent section. Then pluck the spokes in that area to see if there's one that's obviously different from the others. If you hear "ping, ping, ping, bong," and the bong spoke is on the correct side to fix the bend, start with that one first. I often see this after landing a jump, where one or two spokes will come loose and cause a wobble. Much quicker when you know which one is loose. Only compare sounds on the same side of the bike. The side with the shorter spokes on the drivetrain side will always sound higher pitched.
I just explained this to another cyclist. I have the ring spoke tool. I have it marked so I know which notch to use on my bike. If you take two spokes, on the same side, in one area and squeeze a bit, you can see the movement of the rim. This action also frees up the spokes at their point of contact near the hub. I also do this to see if the spoke is worn at the point of contact. Great video!! :)
after years of thinking this was some kind of black art that only the initiates at the local bike shop could perform,thanks to your video I have trued my mountain bike's back wheel and saved myself £15 and a few days without the bike, Thank you!
Would be easier with a proper bike stand, but the vid did help me out. The joy of being broke, I can cover $20 on tools, but not 3 -5 days without my bike.
@@Yuki-no-hi Won't it also create a wobble on the opposite side becasue the extra tension pulls on the hub which then relays the tension to the spokes on the opposite side? (or does it only affect the roundness, as you say)
@@phillipdrake4371Trust me. There's a method to every madness. Doing individual spokes is impossible if the wheel is $hitty hit. There are specific truing patterns to maintain the roundness and integrity of the wheel... if any left 😅.
Just want to thank you for all your videos. I've only done very basic maintenance on my bikes over the years but I just converted my mountain bike to an ebike and I had to learn a lot of new adjustment techniques. My hub motor wheel wasn't true out of the box, I had to adjust my derailleur because I had to swap my freewheel with the one in the kit, and I converted my V brakes to disc. Your 3 videos on these topics gave me confidence and the end result is a perfectly tuned, safe, and fun to ride ebike. All because you do excellent, in depth, and well explained videos. Thanks RJ. You rock!
Excellent. I was given an old bike that isn't worth spending $100 on a professional tune-up, but is perfect for practicing things like this, and the rear wheel is slightly out of true. Gonna work on it tomorrow. I'm out of shape, and it's great for getting me back into shape, and learning about my own bike maintenance at the same time. Keep the vids coming.
I followed your instructions and got rid of the sticking points in under one minute! I know the wheel is not completely true, but that's okay for now. Thank you so much for your clear instructions!
Nice! These videos help promote bicycling. If we users understand better I think yes, may may save a few bucks here and there but at the same time we come to appreciate the shop mechanic's talents and trust spending with them rather than just selling the machine off to another victim. The goal should be to enjoy cycling, reduce vehicle dependency where we can and improve life generally. Cycling does sooo much on that order. It's all just plain fun.
Thank you so much for the detailed video! I was able to fix my bike with the $7 tool, few minuets of my time And your instructions. I was in a tight schedule yesterday to go with my friends for a 2 hour biking trip. Had I not fix this bent wheel, I wouldn’t have been able to catch up with my friends who bought new bikes. I was a little confused with the direction to tightening and loosening in the beginning, but I went back and watched your video again and realized I was doing it in the wrong direction Thank you so much. You saved me money and frustration
Ive just put a rear wheel motor on me mtb n some spokes were loose when the e-bike kit arrived n the rim had a wobble. A bike tool kit is a good investment along with cool vids like this. My local bike shop charges more than my car repair garage . Ive recently upgraded forks which i cut steerer n put on,upgraded bottom bracket n crank set now youve helped me tru the back wheel saving loads. Thanks :)
Please also note that when you true wheel, you need to release spoke tension from time to time. When i first tried it, it seemed it worked. But the wheel went back to untrue when i rode my bike again because i didn't know that there's something like ''false'' truing if you don't release spoke tension by squeezing them during the operation. I think it's worth to mention. Otherwise, you have to do it again. I have seen many wheel truing tutorials but spoke releasing is not mentioned often.
This is the most useful video I've seen in a while. Always work on your bikes, shops are good for purchases but repairs and maintenance should always be done by the owner
when EVERi want to check on how to do something on a bike ... R.J. my man there you are showing me how its done its like having a a friend on speed dial keep it coming ill keep smashing the like button
I don't have wheel truing stand I simply carnt afford one. What I done in the past took a old pair of mountin bike fores clampped them in the bench vice. Put a zip tie.. cable tie either side of the cut them in length so they just touch the rim of the wheel.samplw pri tie as you rj with the screwdriver as the wheel turns you see where the wobble spot is on the cable ties. Love your content all the best😊
I am new to bicycles and so far you have helped me with every single speedbump I have ran into so far ,your vids have saved me a ton of money and time! Your channel is most invaluable. I appreciate ya more than you know...cheers!
THANK YOU!! Best part of the video: TIGHTEN the spokes towards the side you want to pull the rim LOOSEN the spokes on the side you want to « push away »
Got my rear wheel "true enough" from your advice. It really needs a professional touch, but at least it's usable for the time being. Thanks for the info!!👍👍👍
My wife's beach cruiser had a dry-rotted rear tire. I replaced the tire only to discover it had a very badly bent wheel. I could straighten it out to a certain degree where it could be ridable. Thanks for the bicycle repair video sir. Many thanks from Conyers, Georgia.
@@eknight101 When I was a kid, I used spokes to ruin Baseball Cards that might be valuable today. Lol! We would clothes pin them to the bike frame so they contacted the spokes. It kind of made a motor sound.
Thanks, I kind of had the idea of how this works before, but your tips helped a lot! First attempt ever doing this and I managed to get the wheel straighter than it was before I started. Not perfect but good enough to ride and not be worried about it. Thank you!
I was struggling with a wobbly wheel. Got the bright idea to check UA-cam. Dang it's pretty easy once you have an idea of what to do. This may make me sound dumb but when I "got" how to pull the wheel over - one side of the spokes pull one way and vise versa - once I understood, the rest was relatively easy. Thanks RJ.
My name is Victor ,I really been looking and getting lots of ideas from techs like you,but you have good technic that helped me a lot! So thank you very much keep those ideas coming!
I thought I'd look up how to true my real wheel on my bike. Watched the video and did some tests on the turning one way or the other. If you turn the wrong way, the rim touches the brakes alot closer..so it definitely helped me understand which way to turn and I was going half turns as well. I used some tape to mark the section that needed to be shifted. The wheel originally bounced around while turning, along with hitting the rim. Now, it barely bounces and the rim is alot straighter. Taking it out for a ride tomorrow morning..Thanks again for an amazing video. Very helpful! 🤘🤘
I've been fixing my own bikes since I could ride one. But I never knew the real way to true up a rim. Thank you for posting this video. Great job explaining how to get a rim true. This concept has my ADHD -OCD in hyperdrive ludicrous speed! I'm an architect engineer dropout that is a tile installer. 27yrs "master mechanic". Like I am obsessed with the single swingarm on Ducati motorcycles. Or hubless rims? But even the simplest form of a kid with a stick running down the road with a barrel strap. I'm currently trying to resurrect a sweet set of Mavic rims I didn't have to pay for. I don't mind putting the time in to save em. A little reefer and Family Guy and I will be riding right. Thanks again. Great vid. Just to mention, make sure you have the band of rubber covering the inside of the tube. So you don't puncture your tube with spoke threads when you tighten them. On a similar note, I slice old tubes and cut off the valve stem and make my tubes double lined and basically puncture resistant
* When I say "clockwise" and "counter-clockwise" in the video, the reference point is looking at the nipple from the spoke side of the rim. The side where you are actually turning the wrench. Not from inside of the tire.
Yeah I was very very confused when you're talking about tightening and loosening it. It's always righty tighty lefty Lucy but the video was going in the opposite direction???
I'm just getting back into riding. My Mountain bike has been in storage for some time and needs a tune up to say the least. When pulling it out the rim was caught up on something I didn't see so I wanted to check it out before riding but had no clue if I could possibly adjust the spokes. Thanks for posting. It really helped. Going to check both rims after I get some new tires...cheers.
Watching this having flashbacks as kid doing this after laying the wheel down on tire and jumping on it to get it mostly straight. Then going through all the spokes.
Thank you. Worked great. Since my wheel was rubbing on the brake pad in just one spot, I just let the brake pad stop the wheel in both directions and marked both sides of the area with duct tape.
video helped so much man, my rim had side to side wobble all around rim, you would think it wouldnt be able to go straight again, but after spending some time doing what you said it is almost straight again, cant even notice. thanks man
I kind of knew what to do and your video gave me the confidence to actually do it! My wheel just had one or two wobbles in it like yours and, yeah within half an hour or so it seems a lot better. Thanks! 😀👍
This worked great! My mountain bike had many wobbles that are now gone. I used masking tape on the top of the rim to keep track of the areas I was working on. I did a few in one side then the other to balance things out.
This applies to 2024 for my mtb rims. I will give this a try as my rear has a fairly good wobble. If I don't succeed then off to a bike shop. Great DIY with simple tools.. thanks so much!
I just got a bike given to me from a donation based business that built them for people and gave them away or sold them super cheap. They had to close. I asked what was going on, the guy said I could have a bike. Its Frankensteined together but has quality front shocks, Shamino shifter, a disk front brake (original hangers for caliper are there but not used) Its a very robust steel frame. The handlebars are the wrong ones, but the nice 4 hex mongoose / BMX style (not the single bolt Huffy style), it is geared 7 and micro. The saddle is wide and like new. Anyways I cleaned it up, today I oiled the chain (just have 3 in 1 on hand) and WD40'd the kickstand (kicks nice now and no noise) and some for the wheels and crank, the action is good now. Every part of the bike is quality I can see it, I saw the potential. I am still too heavy to risk it but I am losing weight. I came here to see how I can true up the wheel and then I can dial in the brake calipers. This helped a lot. My wheels are black so I may not want to score them with a screwdriver but I have some chalk laying around too. Thank you !!!
Nice video. I used a piece of chalk to test where the wheel is bent. This marks out the wheel to show where the deviation so I can adjust the wheel as needed. Thanks for your video
THANK YOU, RJ! Prolly saved me a decent amount sorting out the front wheel myself-way less complicated that I thought it was gonna be. Much appreciated, man! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Really nicely explained. Especially I like the part when explaining which wires to loose, which to tighten and why - because the wires are pulling the rim towards inside.
Thank you also for your time and patientience to explain all this helpful information. 👍 Im going to fix mine also as there is no mechanic in this area. Cheers budy!!
Great tips. I used them on my training bike. My only mod was using a hard grease pencil vs a screwdriver. I also used it to mark the tire above trouble spots.
Thanks for the video. Your description of which spokes to tighten and loosen made my wheel spin much more true. Is it as good as if I took it to a shop....no....is it better than when I started YES!! Thank you!!!
Hi RJ (and all.) Thanks for the vid. Duly liked. There's one thing folks may want to try in conjuction with this method, which I also use as I don't have a truing stand. It's possible to score the rim (if you're not as skilled as RJ.) If you don't want to score the rim with a tool, apart from using a plastic tool as stated in video, and for a visual help, use a fresh new juicy marker pen instead of a screwdriver, then you can see where the wheel rim rubs as the pen will draw a nice line for ya. Non permanent should rub off as soon as the brake gets used. Wont make such a noise, but hey, just a thought.
I use a black magic marker to denote the warp. If it's a bad warp I take the wheel and rim off of the bike then I take the tire off of the rim. After I loosen the spokes where the warp is I prop the rim on something like a concrete step with the warp facing/touching the step. The I grab both sides of the rim and push down very hard against the warp. The usually gets it pretty straight. Then I put the rim on a home made rim truing jig and I tighten the spokes up. If the rim touches the pads on the left then I tighten the spokes on the right to pull it right. And if the rim touches the pads on the right then I tighten the spokes on the left pulling the rim left. This all takes time and patience. I also makes sure the rim stays round, as round as possible. In the past I have gotten a rim straight with an egg loop in the rim. And I had to redo it all over again.
Glad you showed this. Unfortunately some bike "purists" wont accept wheel truing done on the frame that the wheel belongs to. These "purists" often don't know diddly squat about wrenching either. So then I put it on the truing stand and ask for another $20 even though no more work was needed.
RJ, wheels go out of true when either the spoke nipple loosens or the spokes stretch from being stressed. Spoke nipples never tighten themselves so always true the wheel by retensioning the spokes to pull the direction needed. Do not loosen spokes. Loosening spoke nipples will lead to a weaker overall integrity of the wheel spoke balance. My 2cnts. Thanks.
New one for me yesterday. It's been really crappy, the plows didn't get out until a day or 2 after our heavy, wet snow. The paths are loaded with those damned fat-tire ruts, under-size plow equipment ruts, and boot prints. Long story short, my bike wheel literally elongated on one side (valve side) so that it contacts the frame (EDIT: the little connector piece of frame that some brake systems use, not the side frames) . Took me forever to figure that out. THIS in combination with it also throwing out of true. my approach has been to loosen one side and tighten the other....it's working, but it is a royal pain, especially when you add in trying to true the wheel. you can go through an entire spring/summer/fall and keep a rear wheel true, then ruin it in one week's ice/snow crud.
One guy at the shop almost threw one rim out of the window. It needed many new spokes and was wobbly all the possible ways. It wasn't a round circle anymore, it wobbled like an inch to the left from one part. But damned be the guy, he fixed it after bending it and truing for an hour or something. He showed it to me and said "would ride" I was like "thumbs up". It was the rear rim from a swedish bike from the 40's or 50's.
RJ The Bike Guy Yup. Guy was persistent and kept going at it. Eventually he got it straight, it wasn't perfect but it was round and didn't wobble. Rim and hub were so unique and old so he didn't want to waste the wheel. I said that throw it to the bin, but nah, didn't care. I don't work at the place anymore but we had some shitty cases of rust, stuck parts and wobbly wheels. Everything that was fixable, we fixed.
Ive done that too, you learn how. Its a fun challenge. Getting the "hop" out ...."the "egg" is the most challenging part but doable in many cases. You push or pull both sides of spokes on the opposite end of the wheel (across the hub).
Good job and good advice. I prefer paying someone a few bucks to do it, but with the quarantine BS I might have to do it on my own since everything's closed
1969atam Good question. For minor truing, I don't bother. But if the truing is more extensive, then I do remove the tire to relieve pressure from the wheel.
Hi, I enjoy your videos a lot and find them both 'useful and interesting'. You mention suggesting videos, how about lacing/building a wheel? Thanks for the videos!
Thank you for great video.Been 20 yrs since riding a bike and I couldn't remember which way was tighten and losen on spokes. The bike shop guy wouldn't tell me either...lol!
I also had a bike guy who refused to let me look while he was truing the wheel, which I guess is understandable, it's like asking him for a tutorial, more or less. But refusing to answer which way to tighten or losen the spokes?! Gee.. Change your bike shop, seriously.
I've done this for years. I use the brake shoes to test where the wheel moves. If you over tighten them they will rub and they stay in place not like your screwdriver.
Thanks. Small steps and patience. I can get trued a bike shop for about $15-20 but down time can be up to 3 days. Its patience to adjust bike cables,brakes, shifters. tks
if you have a nicer wheels that you don’t want marked up, i recommend using the fine adjustment knob to tighten the brakes so that you can just spin the wheel and where it rubs against the brakes is where you need to adjust the spokes
I just stick a small piece of masking tape on the tire, at the start, and at the finish, of the problem area. As you correct the truing and the area moves, move the tape.
@@kareemalmond I just use small pieces of masking tape, and put them on the tire adjacent to the wheel. It's only on there for the few minutes of the truing session and doesn't leave anything on the tire.
Is it better to use a specific size spoke wrench for instance for a racer bicycle wheel or will a multiple size spoke wrench with many sizes be sufficient, please help I don't want to make a mistake as it's my first attempt to true a bicycle wheel on my racer bicycl, many thanks, great video.
thank you...it took me less that five minutes to true my front tire post watching the video, the only thing different I flipped the bike and rested on the saddle and handlebar so get good control on spinning the wheel since I don't have bike stand...WOW save trip to bike shop and$ 30
Was I inside the tire turning the wrench? No. *When I say "clockwise" and "counter-clockwise" in the video, the reference point is looking at the nipple from the spoke side of the rim. The side where you are actually turning the wrench. Not from inside of the tire.
Doesn't matter what it is that I need to do on my bike or try and understand how it works and how it needs to be fixed RJ is always "THE GUY" that has a video to sort it 👍👍👍👍 thanks RJ 😎
For more bike repair videos hit the subscribe button 🛑 and click the notification bell ► bit.ly/SubRJTheBikeGuy
Great video
Somehow the chain is loose probably cause of the manufacturer rip Walmart failed me and I don’t even use he bike daily and the gear ⚙️ isn’t shifting to 2 to 1
@@TB-zn2xt p9n
@@TB-zn2xta
Instead of a screw driver use a pieces of chalk or soap stone. It will mark the wheel leaving a visual reference.
Brilliant
Just a wash away marker would do
Very good idea. Thank you.
I expect this comment. (y)
Good idea tho
This was the clearest video I've seen on the topic. I love the fact that RJ works with regular bikes that 95% of people ride, not some fancy road bike with the latest parts.
I was able to successfully true the wheels on both of my kids' bikes thanks to your instructions. Your time, talents, and efforts are very much appreciated!
Fun tip ... LISTEN to the spoke sound before getting started. Use pencil, chalk, a screwdriver or whatever to find the bent section. Then pluck the spokes in that area to see if there's one that's obviously different from the others. If you hear "ping, ping, ping, bong," and the bong spoke is on the correct side to fix the bend, start with that one first. I often see this after landing a jump, where one or two spokes will come loose and cause a wobble. Much quicker when you know which one is loose.
Only compare sounds on the same side of the bike. The side with the shorter spokes on the drivetrain side will always sound higher pitched.
That can help finding a loose or broken spoke.
N
I just explained this to another cyclist. I have the ring spoke tool. I have it marked so I know which notch to use on my bike. If you take two spokes, on the same side, in one area and squeeze a bit, you can see the movement of the rim. This action also frees up the spokes at their point of contact near the hub. I also do this to see if the spoke is worn at the point of contact. Great video!! :)
I bought a new bicycle and saved 100% on car insurance. Love your vids, keep'em coming.
Just need helmet insurance :) ...
I love this comment!
David Branscome 👍😆🤣😁👍
Roger Pack for what
after years of thinking this was some kind of black art that only the initiates at the local bike shop could perform,thanks to your video I have trued my mountain bike's back wheel and saved myself £15 and a few days without the bike, Thank you!
Would be easier with a proper bike stand, but the vid did help me out. The joy of being broke, I can cover $20 on tools, but not 3 -5 days without my bike.
15 sounds cheap..at my lbs its like 40 at least..and them wonder why DIY xD
@@Yuki-no-hi Won't it also create a wobble on the opposite side becasue the extra tension pulls on the hub which then relays the tension to the spokes on the opposite side? (or does it only affect the roundness, as you say)
@@Yuki-no-hiI would try adjusting all the spokes then if possible if there is a Will there’s a way
@@phillipdrake4371Trust me. There's a method to every madness. Doing individual spokes is impossible if the wheel is $hitty hit. There are specific truing patterns to maintain the roundness and integrity of the wheel... if any left 😅.
This is probably one of the clearest and best diy on UA-cam... f
Just want to thank you for all your videos. I've only done very basic maintenance on my bikes over the years but I just converted my mountain bike to an ebike and I had to learn a lot of new adjustment techniques. My hub motor wheel wasn't true out of the box, I had to adjust my derailleur because I had to swap my freewheel with the one in the kit, and I converted my V brakes to disc. Your 3 videos on these topics gave me confidence and the end result is a perfectly tuned, safe, and fun to ride ebike. All because you do excellent, in depth, and well explained videos. Thanks RJ. You rock!
"just a little bit..."
"I'll do this real quick..."
Nothing sounds more American than this..
Very helpful vid btw, as usual. Thank you..
Excellent. I was given an old bike that isn't worth spending $100 on a professional tune-up, but is perfect for practicing things like this, and the rear wheel is slightly out of true. Gonna work on it tomorrow. I'm out of shape, and it's great for getting me back into shape, and learning about my own bike maintenance at the same time. Keep the vids coming.
How'd it go?
In shape now?
are you ripped now bro its been 8 years fam
@@hotdoghokagecovid got him
We need to know bro, did you fix your bike ?
I followed your instructions and got rid of the sticking points in under one minute! I know the wheel is not completely true, but that's okay for now. Thank you so much for your clear instructions!
Nice! These videos help promote bicycling. If we users understand better I think yes, may may save a few bucks here and there but at the same time we come to appreciate the shop mechanic's talents and trust spending with them rather than just selling the machine off to another victim. The goal should be to enjoy cycling, reduce vehicle dependency where we can and improve life generally. Cycling does sooo much on that order. It's all just plain fun.
Thank you so much for the detailed video! I was able to fix my bike with the $7 tool, few minuets of my time And your instructions. I was in a tight schedule yesterday to go with my friends for a 2 hour biking trip. Had I not fix this bent wheel, I wouldn’t have been able to catch up with my friends who bought new bikes. I was a little confused with the direction to tightening and loosening in the beginning, but I went back and watched your video again and realized I was doing it in the wrong direction Thank you so much. You saved me money and frustration
Ive just put a rear wheel motor on me mtb n some spokes were loose when the e-bike kit arrived n the rim had a wobble. A bike tool kit is a good investment along with cool vids like this. My local bike shop charges more than my car repair garage . Ive recently upgraded forks which i cut steerer n put on,upgraded bottom bracket n crank set now youve helped me tru the back wheel saving loads. Thanks :)
Please also note that when you true wheel, you need to release spoke tension from time to time. When i first tried it, it seemed it worked. But the wheel went back to untrue when i rode my bike again because i didn't know that there's something like ''false'' truing if you don't release spoke tension by squeezing them during the operation. I think it's worth to mention. Otherwise, you have to do it again. I have seen many wheel truing tutorials but spoke releasing is not mentioned often.
This is the most useful video I've seen in a while. Always work on your bikes, shops are good for purchases but repairs and maintenance should always be done by the owner
"shops are good for purchases" no shit, how else would buy something?
when EVERi want to check on how to do something on a bike ... R.J. my man there you are showing me how its done its like having a a friend on speed dial keep it coming ill keep smashing the like button
I don't have wheel truing stand I simply carnt afford one. What I done in the past took a old pair of mountin bike fores clampped them in the bench vice. Put a zip tie.. cable tie either side of the cut them in length so they just touch the rim of the wheel.samplw pri tie as you rj with the screwdriver as the wheel turns you see where the wobble spot is on the cable ties. Love your content all the best😊
Thank you. This video helped me true my wheel. It only took me around 10-15 minutes and got me 99% of where I wanted it to be.
I am new to bicycles and so far you have helped me with every single speedbump I have ran into so far ,your vids have saved me a ton of money and time! Your channel is most invaluable. I appreciate ya more than you know...cheers!
You're a great spokesperson.
Good one! LOOOL
haha, i laughed out loud :D
StopLossLOL yes
Sounds like a comment I would do, nice.
Lol I was gonna post that he's a great man, but this is way better.
THANK YOU!!
Best part of the video:
TIGHTEN the spokes towards the side you want to pull the rim
LOOSEN the spokes on the side you want to « push away »
Got my rear wheel "true enough" from your advice. It really needs a professional touch, but at least it's usable for the time being. Thanks for the info!!👍👍👍
My wife's beach cruiser had a dry-rotted rear tire. I replaced the tire only to discover it had a very badly bent wheel. I could straighten it out to a certain degree where it could be ridable. Thanks for the bicycle repair video sir. Many thanks from Conyers, Georgia.
I truly learned something, Never knew that about spokes.
Me too! I use to think that spokes were just for appearance.
Haha, "truly"...I see what you did there.
@@eknight101 When I was a kid, I used spokes to ruin Baseball Cards that might be valuable today. Lol! We would clothes pin them to the bike frame so they contacted the spokes. It kind of made a motor sound.
@@kevinmontgomery1383 I think we all did that as kids, sounds like a dirt bike going really fast and it’s surprisingly loud
thanks for the awesome video. just finished a hub rebuild and trued my rim. saved a bunch of cash too!
Thanks, I kind of had the idea of how this works before, but your tips helped a lot! First attempt ever doing this and I managed to get the wheel straighter than it was before I started. Not perfect but good enough to ride and not be worried about it. Thank you!
Watched this many times from many people but this guy explained it so down to earth it mightve actually sunk in!! Time to find out! *puts kettle on..*
I was struggling with a wobbly wheel. Got the bright idea to check UA-cam. Dang it's pretty easy once you have an idea of what to do. This may make me sound dumb but when I "got" how to pull the wheel over - one side of the spokes pull one way and vise versa - once I understood, the rest was relatively easy. Thanks RJ.
My name is Victor ,I really been looking and getting lots of ideas from techs like you,but you have good technic that helped me a lot! So thank you very much keep those ideas coming!
I thought I'd look up how to true my real wheel on my bike. Watched the video and did some tests on the turning one way or the other. If you turn the wrong way, the rim touches the brakes alot closer..so it definitely helped me understand which way to turn and I was going half turns as well. I used some tape to mark the section that needed to be shifted. The wheel originally bounced around while turning, along with hitting the rim. Now, it barely bounces and the rim is alot straighter. Taking it out for a ride tomorrow morning..Thanks again for an amazing video. Very helpful! 🤘🤘
I've been fixing my own bikes since I could ride one. But I never knew the real way to true up a rim. Thank you for posting this video. Great job explaining how to get a rim true. This concept has my ADHD -OCD in hyperdrive ludicrous speed! I'm an architect engineer dropout that is a tile installer. 27yrs "master mechanic".
Like I am obsessed with the single swingarm on Ducati motorcycles. Or hubless rims? But even the simplest form of a kid with a stick running down the road with a barrel strap. I'm currently trying to resurrect a sweet set of Mavic rims I didn't have to pay for. I don't mind putting the time in to save em.
A little reefer and Family Guy and I will be riding right. Thanks again. Great vid. Just to mention, make sure you have the band of rubber covering the inside of the tube. So you don't puncture your tube with spoke threads when you tighten them. On a similar note, I slice old tubes and cut off the valve stem and make my tubes double lined and basically puncture resistant
How does it feel to have a covid variant named after you?
* When I say "clockwise" and "counter-clockwise" in the video, the reference point is looking at the nipple from the spoke side of the rim. The side where you are actually turning the wrench. Not from inside of the tire.
Yeah I was very very confused when you're talking about tightening and loosening it. It's always righty tighty lefty Lucy but the video was going in the opposite direction???
Ahhh the good old lefty-tightie rightly-loosie. I'm sure there's some fantastic history for how this got backwards on bikes.
Nipple
@@TheHarpsist other way round :) ... like Viem D said
Thanks. I was as confused as my students (I teach math) about clockwise and counterclockwise. They don't use clocks with dials!
I always check out tones of videos but you are the only guy on UA-cam I understand and learn from. Cheers RJ
Every time I need to do a job, there you are with a great how to. Thanks, RJ!
I'm just getting back into riding. My Mountain bike has been in storage for some time and needs a tune up to say the least. When pulling it out the rim was caught up on something I didn't see so I wanted to check it out before riding but had no clue if I could possibly adjust the spokes. Thanks for posting. It really helped. Going to check both rims after I get some new tires...cheers.
This was great. I fix up older bikes and having this simple repair helps a lot. Thanks!
Good stuff, thanks. That's my job for tomorrow sorted, only a very small wobble, but I hate any squeak, or noise, or wobble.
Judging by the way my bike mechanic smiles 🤑he loves me every time I try this.🥴 Thanks, I’ll get it true by myself one day.♾🔜
This was the easiest simple truing I could find and do. Bought the red wrench and almost done. Thanks a lot for the vid!
Watching this having flashbacks as kid doing this after laying the wheel down on tire and jumping on it to get it mostly straight. Then going through all the spokes.
what
bahahaha
Thank you. Worked great. Since my wheel was rubbing on the brake pad in just one spot, I just let the brake pad stop the wheel in both directions and marked both sides of the area with duct tape.
video helped so much man, my rim had side to side wobble all around rim, you would think it wouldnt be able to go straight again, but after spending some time doing what you said it is almost straight again, cant even notice. thanks man
This is the only one of these that’s actually easy to understand. I tried fixing my buckles and just made me worse. This will help thank you
Thank you for helping me straighten my rim. And thank you for your effort to help people
I kind of knew what to do and your video gave me the confidence to actually do it! My wheel just had one or two wobbles in it like yours and, yeah within half an hour or so it seems a lot better. Thanks! 😀👍
This worked great! My mountain bike had many wobbles that are now gone. I used masking tape on the top of the rim to keep track of the areas I was working on. I did a few in one side then the other to balance things out.
This applies to 2024 for my mtb rims. I will give this a try as my rear has a fairly good wobble. If I don't succeed then off to a bike shop. Great DIY with simple tools.. thanks so much!
Your simple but effective method of explaining helped me to understand what needs to be done. Thanks a lot !
I just got a bike given to me from a donation based business that built them for people and gave them away or sold them super cheap. They had to close. I asked what was going on, the guy said I could have a bike. Its Frankensteined together but has quality front shocks, Shamino shifter, a disk front brake (original hangers for caliper are there but not used) Its a very robust steel frame. The handlebars are the wrong ones, but the nice 4 hex mongoose / BMX style (not the single bolt Huffy style), it is geared 7 and micro. The saddle is wide and like new. Anyways I cleaned it up, today I oiled the chain (just have 3 in 1 on hand) and WD40'd the kickstand (kicks nice now and no noise) and some for the wheels and crank, the action is good now. Every part of the bike is quality I can see it, I saw the potential. I am still too heavy to risk it but I am losing weight. I came here to see how I can true up the wheel and then I can dial in the brake calipers. This helped a lot. My wheels are black so I may not want to score them with a screwdriver but I have some chalk laying around too. Thank you !!!
Thank you RJ for the easy-to-follow and detailed instructions that you shared. Truly appreciated!
Nice video. I used a piece of chalk to test where the wheel is bent. This marks out the wheel to show where the deviation so I can adjust the wheel as needed.
Thanks for your video
RJ The Bike Guy, saving my pennies again. Thanks a lot for posting!
Massive help my tyre was rubbing the frame and after watching this the rim is nearly fully straight again! 👍🏼
THANK YOU, RJ! Prolly saved me a decent amount sorting out the front wheel myself-way less complicated that I thought it was gonna be. Much appreciated, man! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Really nicely explained. Especially I like the part when explaining which wires to loose, which to tighten and why - because the wires are pulling the rim towards inside.
Never thought this was something I could do myself. GREAT video, you're the man!
Thank you also for your time and patientience to explain all this helpful information. 👍 Im going to fix mine also as there is no mechanic in this area. Cheers budy!!
Great tips. I used them on my training bike. My only mod was using a hard grease pencil vs a screwdriver. I also used it to mark the tire above trouble spots.
Thanks for the video. Your description of which spokes to tighten and loosen made my wheel spin much more true. Is it as good as if I took it to a shop....no....is it better than when I started YES!! Thank you!!!
In a shop, they have professional truing stands, and tools, and experience.
Hi RJ (and all.) Thanks for the vid. Duly liked. There's one thing folks may want to try in conjuction with this method, which I also use as I don't have a truing stand. It's possible to score the rim (if you're not as skilled as RJ.) If you don't want to score the rim with a tool, apart from using a plastic tool as stated in video, and for a visual help, use a fresh new juicy marker pen instead of a screwdriver, then you can see where the wheel rim rubs as the pen will draw a nice line for ya. Non permanent should rub off as soon as the brake gets used. Wont make such a noise, but hey, just a thought.
dry erase would work perfect, tap the brakes to start over
I use a black magic marker to denote the warp. If it's a bad warp I take the wheel and rim off of the bike then I take the tire off of the rim. After I loosen the spokes where the warp is I prop the rim on something like a concrete step with the warp facing/touching the step. The I grab both sides of the rim and push down very hard against the warp. The usually gets it pretty straight. Then I put the rim on a home made rim truing jig and I tighten the spokes up. If the rim touches the pads on the left then I tighten the spokes on the right to pull it right. And if the rim touches the pads on the right then I tighten the spokes on the left pulling the rim left. This all takes time and patience. I also makes sure the rim stays round, as round as possible. In the past I have gotten a rim straight with an egg loop in the rim. And I had to redo it all over again.
really well done, well explained video explaining the 'why' behind the adjustments
Glad you showed this. Unfortunately some bike "purists" wont accept wheel truing done on the frame that the wheel belongs to. These "purists" often don't know diddly squat about wrenching either. So then I put it on the truing stand and ask for another $20 even though no more work was needed.
I have a Park Tool TS-2 shop grade truing stand. Not everyone does.
This helped me so much. I can do this myself now and save money.
Thanks RJ this is very simple and helpful video. Watched it and right after, I retrued my wheel. thanks!
Thanks a lot! I have a front wheel that is slightly out of true in one spot. I am going to try this!
After 3 six packs of beer,,, I finally fiqured out how to True the back rim,,, next the front one,,,,,, Thank You Buddy!!!!
Cable tie fastened to frame tube is good gauge to see where to true the rim.
RJ, wheels go out of true when either the spoke nipple loosens or the spokes stretch from being stressed. Spoke nipples never tighten themselves so always true the wheel by retensioning the spokes to pull the direction needed. Do not loosen spokes. Loosening spoke nipples will lead to a weaker overall integrity of the wheel spoke balance. My 2cnts. Thanks.
Thanks, best tutorial on how to do this without a truing stand I've found...my wheel is much better now!
New one for me yesterday. It's been really crappy, the plows didn't get out until a day or 2 after our heavy, wet snow. The paths are loaded with those damned fat-tire ruts, under-size plow equipment ruts, and boot prints. Long story short, my bike wheel literally elongated on one side (valve side) so that it contacts the frame (EDIT: the little connector piece of frame that some brake systems use, not the side frames) . Took me forever to figure that out. THIS in combination with it also throwing out of true.
my approach has been to loosen one side and tighten the other....it's working, but it is a royal pain, especially when you add in trying to true the wheel.
you can go through an entire spring/summer/fall and keep a rear wheel true, then ruin it in one week's ice/snow crud.
One guy at the shop almost threw one rim out of the window. It needed many new spokes and was wobbly all the possible ways. It wasn't a round circle anymore, it wobbled like an inch to the left from one part. But damned be the guy, he fixed it after bending it and truing for an hour or something. He showed it to me and said "would ride" I was like "thumbs up". It was the rear rim from a swedish bike from the 40's or 50's.
lol 2/10 believable story, a wheel like that would be egged and dangerous to ride
BamFang Not really. Old steel rims could be fixed like this.
RJ The Bike Guy Yup. Guy was persistent and kept going at it. Eventually he got it straight, it wasn't perfect but it was round and didn't wobble. Rim and hub were so unique and old so he didn't want to waste the wheel. I said that throw it to the bin, but nah, didn't care. I don't work at the place anymore but we had some shitty cases of rust, stuck parts and wobbly wheels. Everything that was fixable, we fixed.
a number of times my wheels have been run over by a car, and it was fixed again... just with patience, time, skill, technique and practice.
Ive done that too, you learn how. Its a fun challenge. Getting the "hop" out ...."the "egg" is the most challenging part but doable in many cases. You push or pull both sides of spokes on the opposite end of the wheel (across the hub).
Good job and good advice. I prefer paying someone a few bucks to do it, but with the quarantine BS I might have to do it on my own since everything's closed
It's best to deflate the tube and remove the tyre and tube when working on spokes?
1969atam Good question. For minor truing, I don't bother. But if the truing is more extensive, then I do remove the tire to relieve pressure from the wheel.
Was thinking that
Thanks RJ! I've learned a ton about bike maintenance watching your videos! Ever grateful!
Thanks for the great explanation! My wheel's not perfect, but it is so much better than it was!
This is easier to understand then several I seen so far.
Just what I needed to know to fix my granddaughters bike. Thanks.
Hi, I enjoy your videos a lot and find them both 'useful and interesting'.
You mention suggesting videos, how about lacing/building a wheel?
Thanks for the videos!
Thank you for great video.Been 20 yrs since riding a bike and I couldn't remember which way was tighten and losen on spokes. The bike shop guy wouldn't tell me either...lol!
Bike shop guy wouldn't tell you? Find a new bike shop guy.
He wanted you to pay him to do it. It's all about the $$$$$.
I also had a bike guy who refused to let me look while he was truing the wheel, which I guess is understandable, it's like asking him for a tutorial, more or less. But refusing to answer which way to tighten or losen the spokes?! Gee.. Change your bike shop, seriously.
Thank you so much for posting this! It was the right combination of words and visual for me to finally understand how to true my wheel!
I've done this for years. I use the brake shoes to test where the wheel moves. If you over tighten them they will rub and they stay in place not like your screwdriver.
what if i have no brakes on the rear wheel
Maybe you should get some. You need to stop
jack002tuber stopping with a brake is sketchy, last time I did that I snapped the brake cable and almost died so I can't say I entirely trust brakes.
Disc brakes are becoming more common, and so wouldn't help.
I guess you have never heard of pedal brakes? Hmmm
Thanks. Small steps and patience. I can get trued a bike shop for about $15-20 but down time can be up to 3 days. Its patience to adjust bike cables,brakes, shifters. tks
Worked perfectly, even using a small shifter. Thank you :)
if you have a nicer wheels that you don’t want marked up, i recommend using the fine adjustment knob to tighten the brakes so that you can just spin the wheel and where it rubs against the brakes is where you need to adjust the spokes
I just stick a small piece of masking tape on the tire, at the start, and at the finish, of the problem area. As you correct the truing and the area moves, move the tape.
@@reecenewton3097 sounds like a lot of work, also idk what kind of tape u use but doesn’t that sometimes leave sticky residue on the braking surface
@@kareemalmond I just use small pieces of masking tape, and put them on the tire adjacent to the wheel. It's only on there for the few minutes of the truing session and doesn't leave anything on the tire.
thank you so much. this video is such a clear visual. exactly what i needed. you're a life saver!
Your video was very educational, I've been wanting to tighten the spokes on my bike but I wasn't sure how, very helpful thank you. 👍🚴♂️
What happens if you say Meh and just leave it ?
Your bike may not ride smoothly as it could. The rim can rub the brakes. Your bike may wobble dangerously at higher speeds.
Yikes, not optional then.
KENKENNIFF Ken you know that's a possibility too...lol
Bikes don't really wobble from wobbly wheels imo. The wheel Will simply contact the ground at different places. Up/down is of course noticable...
wobble wobble...wobble
Hi. As i have MS, I can no longer ride, but ur videos r great! Thanks
First time doing it worked like a charm, thank you.
You fixed my bike without me really knowing entirely how I fixed my bike lol thank you thank you thank you 🙏
4:12 You can buy a single spoke tool that fits 8 sizes of spoke nuts. A circular device. Good price.
Yeah, but they tend to be lower quality and more likely to round off the spoke nipple.
Is it better to use a specific size spoke wrench for instance for a racer bicycle wheel or will a multiple size spoke wrench with many sizes be sufficient, please help I don't want to make a mistake as it's my first attempt to true a bicycle wheel on my racer bicycl, many thanks, great video.
A zip tie would work as a guide for truing.
Really? how to do that, Second question your profile pic is kim so you maybe pinoy?
Average Joe Yeah I am. You just wrap the ziptie on the forks and that's it.
Sixx Salamat sir :) I will try it
Sixx that's exactly what I do! It works better than a screwdriver and it dosent hurt the rim like a screwdriver might
Love that pinoy engineering! Thanks for the tip!
thank you...it took me less that five minutes to true my front tire post watching the video, the only thing different I flipped the bike and rested on the saddle and handlebar so get good control on spinning the wheel since I don't have bike stand...WOW save trip to bike shop and$ 30
Great video: except tightening on spokes is counter clockwise and loosening is clockwise
And that is exactly what I say at 5:10 in the video.
Yes, except at 5:30 you say, "to loosen it, imma turn this clockwise", and yet you turn it counterclockwise.
Was I inside the tire turning the wrench? No. *When I say "clockwise" and "counter-clockwise" in the video, the reference point is looking at the nipple from the spoke side of the rim. The side where you are actually turning the wrench. Not from inside of the tire.
Even then it would still be backwards and contrary to what you were saying though. Even if you were "inside the tire"
You guys are confused. It's righty-tighty, lefty-loosey unless it's got left-hand threads. End of discussion.
Doesn't matter what it is that I need to do on my bike or try and understand how it works and how it needs to be fixed RJ is always "THE GUY" that has a video to sort it 👍👍👍👍 thanks RJ 😎
could you replace the screwdriver with a pencil
Yes.