Unbuilding a wheel safely

[FluffyChicken]

Chop em be done with it..unless there really nice spokes from a wheel that's obviously done very little...forged hubs or steel hubs can deal with it....delicate dainty flowery little CNC hubs don't like being upset....imagine busting a spoke or two whilst riding on one...

and in the first line the mention of Ti Glide, fragile delicate crackertonic flowery hubs.
They are known to go ping.

 

[Once A Hero]

Never given the process a moments thought before just merrily work my way around fully undoing each spoke as I go!

 

[novocaine]

I've had to cut a few, but I've always attempted to delace first leaving only a few to snip if needed.

 

[dyna-ti]

Then get your drill with a large flat head...

Unlikely to work as the top of the spoke protrudes through the end of the nipple. There is a tool that you can use, bu66ered if i can remember what its called(but I'll take a google now, see if i can find an example)

Found it. Called a two pin security bit, also a snake eye bit.

Now I've not used this, but i saw one a few months ago and thought it might do for such an application. I think you may have to file it a bit thinner, but I dont know, as said never actually used one.

Here hopes are a bit fragile, rear tend to be better.

Not having a go at you honest

One of the problems I think caused early hope hubs to crack were A. the flanges were a bit narrow/thin, with less metal between the spokeholes. And B Coupled with what i think was the real issue - constant tightening cause to much strain to be placed over 3 or 4 spokes concentrating strain in one area.
So due to more offroad adventures, better plusher forks with more travel, people went on more rocky adventured causing wheels to go out of true more often and as a result were getting trued up more, which as we know usually involves tightening the spokes. This constant tightening and then any resultant knock or further truing caused cracks to form or split flanges entirely.

 

[FluffyChicken]

The normal flat heads tend to be fine to catch once you've done that initial release with a spoke key, on the chance you are unlucky and longer than needed spokes are in there.
Though I have just built up a wheel for someone that does go to the end, but that was reusing some nice spokes to save some pennies and they just work out.

 

[Ippikin]

and in the first line the mention of Ti Glide, fragile delicate crackertonic flowery hubs.
They are known to go ping.

Hope hubs are CNC machined and are not as strong as forged hubs. Having said unless the spokes are something special I would grind working round the wheel.

 

[dyna-ti]

Hope hubs are CNC machined and are not as strong as forged hubs. Having said unless the spokes are something special I would grind working round the wheel.

Hope hub blanks are forged then cnc machined. Like I think most hubs are.
I cannot say for sure about ti glide and the earlier ti centered ones, but all one piece are based on forged blanks.

 

[Ippikin]

Hope hub blanks are forged then cnc machined. Like I think most hubs are.
I cannot say for sure about ti glide and the earlier ti centered ones, but all one piece are based on forged blanks.

I do think you are correct in that I was thinking about the old Ti centered hubs with alloy anodised end pieces. I remember that there were failures of these hubs, probably down to being built too tight, which is the basis of this thread as dismantling a wheel unevenly does place great stress on the hub flanges.

 

[ishaw]

My hub is ti centred but a later one, I'll grab a pic and post. It looks like there is much less of the flange join on the ti than I remember on a previous set, less to crack as many did. I've also got a blue earlier set that haven't cracked.

Did hope revise the design and make them more robust?

 

[FluffyChicken]

Yes, they called them the Mono's in 2001 ;-)


The later 'wavey' ones are of a bit stronger. Design did evolve but the front still cracked. There are many examples of cracked one, but like I mentioned rear one are more robust.

For the effort of using a spoke key to slacken it of or even less effort of using a drill. Snipping just seems pointless unless you have to. You also don't get to keep the spokes for other uses, given it is a decent Hope hub I would be assuming that standard DB spokes are used. They're always good to keep.
Even the rim will like you for it as it doesn't start to bend as the tension suddenly drops. (if you are also keeping it).

Also you need to have snips strong enough to go through 1.8/2.0mm of steel.

Just get on with it, unwind and clean up, doesn't take long.

All this talk on hubs that are not Ti-Glides seems pointless ;-)