70sSanO

You might want to pick up an inexpensive dishing tool. I don’t know what they run these days. A pretty primitive tool, but does the job.

I bought a TS-2 30+ years ago from a Third Hand Catalog. Just found out there is a rebuild kit from this thread. I don’t build much, if any, these days. But I’ll use it to true and have been dinking with OLD on some bikes/hubs so it gets used for that. I do the flip/flop to center.

It is a bit ironic with better rims, disc brakes, and 32mm 80psi tires that absolute precision is even a topic. Not that I don’t obsess with it myself, but compared to old rim brake rims and 125psi 20mm tires, I would think the margin for discernible truing perfection is probably a bit wider these days.

John

BikePower

Thanks John, I have the Bikehand Centering Tool on the way. Do I still need a dishing tool? I mean if the wheel is centered in the stand wont it be equal with a dishing tool gage?

70sSanO

If I am building a wheel, or doing a major re-work like replacing nipples, I like using a dishing tool.

I find the centering on stands, even when my Park was new to be less precise. As you go down the quality food chain of truing stands I would think a dishing tool becomes more valuable.

If I’m just truing a wheel, it is not that important to check the dish separately. I will flip-flop the wheel in the stand.

John

BikePower

Thats unfortunate because the reason I bought this type of stand was so I wouldnt have to flip flop the wheel. If I would have known this I could have bought the cheaper kind.

jzr756

Wow! Talk about extreme accuracy. Simultaneous lateral/radial runout pretty cool. Although seems, Life line Pro's 115.00 truing stand would suit my own purposes just fine.. This topic brings back to mind .an instant dropping off a rim for truing at my local bike shop . I returned, guy handed back the wheel saying, that's the best he could do, rim was defective, but it's good enough to ride on. I asked did you use a truing stand ? said the rim didn't it. charged 30.00. needless, to say I never returned to that dive.I think pretty good justification springing for the cost of your own stand. Suddenly, 115.00 turns out to be a real bargain. for my own. OP's looking for higher quality. I get it.

bboy314

Even with a shop quality park stand, a dish gauge is still useful because trying stands don’t tend to stay perfectly centered over time.

70sSanO

Then don’t flip it or check the dish.

In all honesty, a wheel doesn’t have to be perfectly aligned/centered in a frame. And I imagine a lot of frames are not perfect but the out of tolerance is negligible.

For me, personally, if I’ve spent some time on a wheel, flipping, or checking the dish takes little time.

By the same token, I’ve used a brake pad to do a slight tweak if I already have the bike on the work stand; and I’m too lazy to pull the wheel and set up the truing stand.

John

BikePower

have you ever trued a wheel in a stand with a caliper like the biikehand one and then checked it with a dishing tool and it was off? I mean if you center the stand before truing a wheel, it should have 0 dish. I dont see how it couldnt. Anyway, they are sold out of the dishing gages (bikehand). I understand it doesnt have to be bikehand, heck I could probably make one. Im looking for laser straight wheels, smooth silent riding and optimum braking. What about tension gages? Thanks for your input John.

70sSanO

The BikeHand stand is a clone of my old Park. And I have had my Park stand be off when I checked with a dishing tool. I have adjusted my Park over the years.

To be honest, the first time working on a wheel/wheelset I bought or came with the bike, I’ll use a dishing tool to see how the dish is before I put it in the stand. It is just something I’ll do that fits into a measure twice true once mentality.

But after that I might not, or flip-flop before I start. I’ll sometimes just true; especially if the wheel looked centered on the bike.

But if I pull a wheel and put it in a stand, it is usually because I don’t like something; or I just re-packed the bearings, or replaced a cassette and might as well check it at the same time.

I guess it really comes down to taking an extra step if it will keep me from re-doing something.

John

KCT1986

You may be asking for a little too much of bike wheel. Even with high quality parts, there are limits. It may not be reasonable to expect perfectly straight, round and exactly even tension.

It's a bike wheel, not a part that is spinning at 1,000+ RPM that needs to have virtually no tolerance.

Build it the best you can, within the limits of the components.

BikePower

Well to my surprise this stand can true my 700c wheels with the tires on. Maybe i have the new model because my understanding is that tires needed to be off for that size. Ive got model yx-512NB".

70sSanO

My old Park trues with tires on for lateral work.

Radial would be tough.

John