How to Unwobble a Bicycle Rim

Get out and ride

Bicycle rims or wheels are like any other wheel in the fact that they occasionally need to be maintained or repaired. Bicycle rims are no exception. In general, they should provide plenty of service with nothing done to them. However, if you feel a wobble, or one side of your brakes seems to contact the rim first, then you probably need to work on it. What you are going to be doing is "truing" the wheel. This is going to require patience and the right equipment.

Things You'll Need

• Wheel truing stand
• Spoke wrenches

Instructions

1. 

   Anyone that drives anything from cars to bicycles can sense when something isn't quite right. It might take some time to track it down, but you know. It's the same with bicycles. A bicycle wheel can get out of alignment the way you sense this is the wheel wobbles or the brake connects with the rim without using your brakes or they connect unevenly when you apply the brakes. All of these conditions usually mean the wheel needs to be adjusted. Please note, this is a job of fine adjustments, not major ones. For simplicity on a challenging subject, we're going to stick to lateral truing or adjusting to eliminate a side to side wobble.

2. 

   Place the wheel in the groves at the top of the truing stand and adjust it so the wheel turns freely and easily. Rotate it to make sure this is the case. Don't try to adjust the calipers while you get the wheel in, just make sure the wheel will roll freely. Clean the rim braking surface with window cleaner or rubbing alcohol to before you move the calipers.

3. 

   Adjust the calipers up to wheel level and so they are nearly touching the wheel but not actually touching the wheel. Rotate the wheel and listen for a tell tale scrape as the caliper comes in contact with the wheel. Watch for the location that this happens. The side that it happens on is important and will tell you where you adjust.

4. 

   Slowly rock back and forth until you isolate exactly where the point of deviation is. You need to be very sure where that point is, because you will be working on that and the adjacent spokes. If rim touches left side caliper, find closest nipple to center deviation coming from right side. If rim touches right side caliper, find closest nipple to center deviation coming from left side.

5. 

   Left side spokes tend to pull the rim toward the left, right hand side pull to the left. The offsetting spokes are on the other side of the rime. Take the correct spoke wrench-they do come in sizes, and adjust the spoke closest to where the rub is occurring and loosen it a 1/4 to 1/2 turn. Next tighten the adjacent, but opposite side spokes the same corresponding amount. There is an amount of precision in this operation, but there's also some art to it. Carefully adjust the spokes until the rub is gone. This may mean very small turns to tighten or loosen spokes until things are back in balance with the rim.

Tips & Warnings

• Make sure you have the right tools before doing this at all.

• Make sure the wheel is rotating freely before you move the calipers.

• Listen for the rim rubbing and then visually look for that spot.

• Adjustments need to be done to multiple spokes to reestablish balance.

• Have your local bike shop make this fix if you have any doubts in your ability to true the wheel.

• Small adjustments to the spokes are important.

• Make sure you adjust opposite side spokes or you might make the wobble worse.

• Make sure you are satisfied with the results before you pull if off the truing stand.