Asymmetrical front wheel build

[Pvt.Wheel]

Hi, I'm a beginner at wheel building and I have just acquired a Bontrager Race Lite Rim that I want to build a wheel with. I didn't realize that the drill holes in the rim were asymmetrical until I got it. I understand that asymmetrical spoke holes are meant to make the wheels stronger in the case of asymmetrical hubs with cassettes and/or disc brakes but is it possible/safe to use this rim on a front wheel with a symmetrical front hub with no disc brakes? I hope this question isn't too stupid but I would appreciate some feedback! Thanks!

 

[andrew_s]

A rim with asymmetric holes is intended for an asymmetric hub - i.e. a rear hub or a front disc hub.
Normally you would lace it so that the holes were offset to the side away from the cassette or front disc. Doing so means that the spoke tension is more even between the two sides of the wheel than it would be with a symmetric rim, giving a stronger wheel.

If you build a symmetric hub with a rim with offset holes, the spokes on the side towards which the holes are offset will be under a higher tension and possibly need to be slightly shorter than the spokes on the other side.

It's not ideal, but will be perfectly usable.
After all, people have been riding around on wheels with rear hubs with symmetric rims for many years, and the spoke tensions differences there are considerably more.

 

[Ian H]

It's not ideal, but will be perfectly usable.

Agreed. And almost no-one will notice unless you point it out to them.

 

[Big John]

Agreed. And almost no-one will notice unless you point it out to them.

And even when you point it out they still won't see anything. When I did a wheel building course years ago I thought all rims had offset spoke holes because we didn't know any different. It was a long time before I came across a symmetrical one.

When you've built this wheel, and probably made a few mistakes on the way, you need to make a few more. You'll get better each time. Don't rush it. In the end you'll be making wheels for the hell of it.

 

[Pvt.Wheel]

Thanks a lot for the advice guys! That's good news! With this information I think I'll go ahead and build the wheel with this rim. I'm glad I asked because I was beginning to think I'd need a new one. Really appreciate it!