My old shop lead swore by a torque wrench for spokes, saved me a wheel rebuild last month

Dave told me to stop guessing nipple tension and use a torque wrench on every spoke, and when a customer brought in a 20-year-old touring wheel with cracked rims, that habit kept the new build true and maybe saved my Saturday.

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1 Comment

riverwhite8d ago

Take it from someone who learned the hard way, a torque wrench is great but it's not magic. Spoke nipples can seize or corrode after years of riding, so the torque value on the wrench doesn't mean much if the nipple won't turn smoothly. I always back off the nipple a quarter turn first, then torque it, just to make sure the reading is honest. And don't forget to lube the threads lightly, that matters more than the wrench on old wheels.