Spoke key.

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Milzy

Legendary Member
What’s a good value spoke key?
Do you tighten where the gap gets bigger between your pad? Righty righty, lefty loosey.
 

richardfm

Guru
Location
Cardiff
I use one of these
https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/tools/spokey-pro-red-for-euro-us-spokes/

Spokes have a normal right hand thread, so to tighten a spoke you are turning the ripple anticlockwise as you look at the nipple/spoke towards the time.

This image illustrates it
https://bikebooboos.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Spoke-tighten.png
 
What’s a good value spoke key?
Do you tighten where the gap gets bigger between your pad? Righty righty, lefty loosey.

You tighten the nearest spoke on other side to where the pad starts to touch the rim. That pulls the rim away from the touching brake block.

Tighten the nipple anti-clockwise when looking along the spoke from the axle. And only small turns of the spoke key at a time.

Adjusting an out of true rim with the wheel still on the bike is OK if in a hurry, but not really accurate if out of true at more than one point. It is rare on an old wheel when a rim is out of true only at one point.

You will probably make mistakes the first time.
 

figbat

Former slippery scientist
You should also ‘blend’ the spokes either side of the one in question, and loosen the spokes on the opposite side. It’s as much art as it is science. Twanging the spokes can give you a sense of tension and any differences.

For on-the-trail emergencies I have a valve cap on one wheel that fits spoke nipples (the other valve cap does valve cores).
 

a.twiddler

Veteran
You should also ‘blend’ the spokes either side of the one in question, and loosen the spokes on the opposite side. It’s as much art as it is science. Twanging the spokes can give you a sense of tension and any differences.

For on-the-trail emergencies I have a valve cap on one wheel that fits spoke nipples (the other valve cap does valve cores).

Worth having Schrader valves for the convenient caps?
 
OP
OP
Milzy

Milzy

Legendary Member
I know you say it’s rare on one spot but it’s a Hunt four season and it’s massive in one place. Prob from dropping off the kerb thinking they’re bombproof.
 

PeteXXX

Cake or ice cream? The choice is endless ...
Location
Hamtun
My Crank Brothers multitool has a spoke key.
 
I know you say it’s rare on one spot but it’s a Hunt four season and it’s massive in one place. Prob from dropping off the kerb thinking they’re bombproof.

If it is massive in one place then it's likely to need tweaking on several spokes and could be tricky.

If it's out of true radially, with a flat spot, after dropping from a kerb it will be even trickier.

Good luck.
 
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