Source for wheels/hoops

[GearheadJim]

I have a '41 Schwinn I'm working on, the rims were pretty rusty but appeared straight. I had the rims blasted and powdercoated then took the rear to the LBS to have it laced to a 3 speed hub. After a month the LBS calls me and tells me they can't get the rim to true up, asked me if the rim was used. I'm more than a little surprised they now asked me if the rim is used: when I took the rim in I told them it was from a '41 Schwinn; even though it's freshly powdercoated you can plainly see where the metal had been pitted over much of the rim; and it's steel, do they even make steel rims anymore?

So now I'm wondering if I happened across an LBS that has a wheel tech with little to no experience and he's flubbed the job. I'm going to the LBS tonight to see what's going on and am looking for some input:

Would you expect the wheel tech would start by confirming the rim is not bent before he even began lacing?

Is there a simple procedure for checking for a bent rim (place the rim on a flat surface)?

Any other advice?

Build is now stuck

 

[ifitsfreeitsforme]

Re: Bent Rim?

Maybe they're only used to lacing up high end wheels, and they might be trying to get it true to within an impossible tolerance (.015? .030?), and for your purposes that would be overkill. For a cruiser, a rim within .060 should be fine, but to them, that might be unacceptable. Maybe?

 

[scrumblero]

Re: Bent Rim?

ya, lay the bare hoop on a flat surface and you can tell if its chipped out or not. even so, I have got some real doozies to come back into true , so a slight tweak in not death for a hoop.. :roll:

 

[GearheadJim]

Re: Bent Rim?

Just came back from the LBS, it's not a tolerance issue, the hoop looks way out of round at this stage. The head technician who worked on the wheel was not there but another guy had said that when they started tensioning the spokes the hoop started tweaking, they thought maybe the hoop was just not strong enough. It's certainly possible this hoop is just spent (too rusty to start, hit one too many holes since 1941). Is it also possible that these guys just are used to working on old stuff and the process they use for new, high-end wheels just doesn't work on old steel wheels?

 

[deorman]

Re: Bent Rim?

The amount of tension required to hold a damaged steel rim in place can be uneven, and pretty high, enough to dimple the spoke holes. Many modern bike mechanics don't have experience trying to fix them, or any incentive to learn.
Could just be thin from rust and blasting. :|

 

[ozzmonaut]

Re: Bent Rim?

I had an old set of prewar wheels that looked perfectly straight. I rode on them and noticed no problem. Then I took it all apart to paint. At this point the hoops went crazy. I mean severly warped. I painted and did what I had to do. Upon reassembly the front came back into true. However the rear never did. It's a shame, I could have been a little less demanding in the outcome of my project and the wheels would still be useful.I think sometimes it may be a lost cause with the really old stuff.

 

[GearheadJim]

So, if the hoops are shot and I need new hoops can anyone recommend good sources for hoops or even full wheel sets?