Joel got his new ratchet hub today... first impressions are very good. It looks and feels chunky, solid and well made. Converting from right to left hand drive was pretty straight forward - didn't need any tools as everything just pulled apart with a bare pair of hands and no brute force. Weight was a bit hefty though, 568g on the Pijin scales.
Let's just see how well it holds up after Joel has chucked it down a few 10 sets..
The Snowflake pattern.
I've never understood why anybody would have come it with such a pattern. To be honest, I think the guy who invented it bought spokes that were way too long for his hub/rim combination, and improvised by twisting the spokes around themselves in order to take up the excess slack! :P
It's something I've only ever seen on obscure wheel building websites... until now.
Matt came in one week and decided to have a go. I squirmed as he twisted the spokes round as he laced the wheel up. Surely spokes are supposed to be straight and not twisted?
Anyways, I can report that Matt has been running this wheel for months now with no problems. He reports that it feels really stiff and doesn't go out of true as much as previous wheels.
So if you ever buy spokes that are too long and can't be bothered to swap them for the right length, have bucket loads of patience and expert knowledge of building wheels, just remember you can always try the snow flake pattern.
Just don't ever ask me to build one as the answer will be a straight "no"!
Joel got his new ratchet hub today... first impressions are very good. It looks and feels chunky, solid and well made. Converting from right to left hand drive was pretty straight forward - didn't need any tools as everything just pulled apart with a bare pair of hands and no brute force. Weight was a bit hefty though, 568g on the Pijin scales.
