lacing 16" Chief wheels

[pisten-bully]

Going to try and show the job of lacing up new rims to my 1946 Chief hubs! First off, why? Well, because the old rims were made in Taiwan and had rusted terribly. We have many, many miiles of dirt roads in Vermont and the accepted method of dust control is to spray calcium chloride on the roads... I'd rather have the dust I think! Here's old next to new:

old&new.jpg

I was extremely fortunate to score a set of NOS rims and Buchanan spokes from a fellow AMCA member, bbeberness had listed these a while back and we finally connected and made the deal. They're Kelsey Hayes in perfect condition.... Thanks Ben!

Kelsey Hayes.jpg

I sent the hubs out for powder coating and when they were finished it was time get going! My guide was a Virtual Indian feature from August 2000, luckily still available online here: http://virtualindian.org/6techwheels.htm

[pisten-bully]

Indian wheels from this era are laced in a cross three pattern:

cross 3.jpg

The first step is to install the inside spokes on the non-brake side:

step 1.jpg

next up are the inside spokes on the brake side:

step 2.jpg

step three is the outside spokes on the non-brake side:

step 3.jpg

and finally the outside spokes on the brake side:

step 4.jpg

[pisten-bully]

initially the spokes are installed loose so the next step is to tighten them, little by little alternating sides while also establishing the correct offset (correct offset is described in the VI article linked above, I used 3/8"):

offset.jpg

now it's time to true them up, laterally and radially. This is where the time is put in! No wheel truing stand so I did it on the Chief, rear wheel because I couldn't stabilize the front wheel firmly enough!

truing.jpg

So that's it! I did not keep track of time spent, but these rims needed lots of tweaking...perhaps sitting around for 78 years had something to do with that!

A few mistakes along the way, such as lacing the first one up with the valve stem on the brake side...duh! But all in all it was easy enough, just very time consuming....and I'm almost finished!

[DEEBS47Chief1991]

Nice job Harry! I never tried lacing wheels before. They look great!

[exeric]

Beautiful job, Harry and excellent documentation, and pictures. I love lacing, and truing wheels and have done all of my bikes. . . Except my first running Knucklehead. I had Puckett's H-D in Orlando do the front wheel, and they charged me $60.00. I was outraged at the price and determined to learn how to do it myself. Now, I'd gladly pay 60 bucks and kiss their spoke wrench to boot. One tip I would make to anyone lacing an offset wheel is to true the C/L of the rim to the centerline of the fork, and frame it's going in. Forks, and frames can be off and factory offsets can be in conflict with a real world chassis.

[PaulCDF]

GREAT Post Harry!!!!

[1939wl]

Excellent post Harry. I have been lacing my own wheels since 1972, and while time consuming, it is so satisfying going down the road, knowing exactly what you are riding on.
Those wheels turned out beautiful for your Indian, really nice work.

[Jim]

Very Nice Harry! I enjoyed reading your "article" and photos. The only wheels I ever laced were on a vintage 1950s? Roadmaster bicycle. They turned out nice and I had a good time doing those and it IS satisfying to do this.... even though it was for an old bicycle. You can always paint your old Taiwan rims for that "vintage" look! PLUS, you can always put snow tires on them for winter driving.

[Skirted]

Awesome job and documentation Harry. Never had to lace a wheel but now feel like I could and would do it. What a find on the KH NOS wheels! Only problem is now you'll be cleaning wheels and scrubbing spokes after every ride!
What tires are you mounting?

[Green Indian]

Great work Harry! Well documented and clearly explained.

[pisten-bully]

Thank-you for all the positive feedback!

Jason, I've switched to Heidenau K34, I like them because they're not "squirrelly" on bridge decks or grooved pavement. They don't wear as well as the Avons however!

IMG_1394.jpeg

[ChiefTwoKicks]

You made lacing an Indian wheel look as easy as tying your shoe laces !! Can you tell us how many hours it took for each wheel ? just a thumbnail guess, eh ?
I would have never thought to mount the assembly in the frame and attempt to true up the wheels. Ingenious, to say the least. special props for that !!
With that kind of confidence, I'd follow this guy anywhere !! You made the hall of fame with that one, Harry !! C2K

[DEEBS47Chief1991]

There is nothing quite like new "sneakers" on a bike. You imagine all the places you can go.

[Joe G]

I did not know it was possible to add spokes once you got the hub in the rim - Thank you Harry!

[pisten-bully]

Can you tell us how many hours it took for each wheel ? just a thumbnail guess, eh ?

Roger...can't rely on my guess here, but maybe 3 hours per wheel start to finish? Took me waaay longer than that however due to one big factor and other small ones. My biggest challenge was finding an uninterrupted time slot to do the truing! This summer we've had an uninterrupted string of visitors ...and for me I really need to concentrate on the job of spoke adjusting...interruptions throw me off track so when I finally get back to the job I have to go a few steps backwards. Family takes precedent so when I hear "when are you going to start the barbecue?" or "can I help you do that Pop?" then everything stops!