Drumy Brakey Wheelie Buildy (Hopper pt 6)

Here's a few shots of the 406 drum braked wheels being built up. They are a simple 2x cross lacing using plain short length spokes from SJS cycles.

To start with you need rim, screwdriver, spoke key, hub, 36 spokes & nipples and a glass of Aldis finest hungarian red. The nosey ginger bugger is optional. The front Hub is a Sturmey Archer 70mm X-FD, which is a lovely free running piece of kit and the way the drum brake plate seals around the edges is much more effective looking than the design on the old Steelite I'm using for the rear wheel.

Wheel building is actually pretty easy once you've finally gotten started. Here's one side started off with the first 9 spokes. Starting with the key spoke next to the valve hole and remembering to use the rim holes which are offset closest to the side of the hub you are lacing from.

The next 9 for that side go in the opposite direction, remembering to cross underneath the spoke that's already there.

From now on the photos of a wheel build get a bit hard to read, but when you are doing it it all makes sense. This is the other side of the wheel with that side's first 9 spokes laced in.

 And the next 9 spokes laced in, crossing underneath the last 9.

That's it!, now you just need to go steadily around the whole wheel tightening up each nipple until each spoke is nice and tight and singing from the same hymn sheet as the other spokes around it. Its not the truest wheel ever (due to being a slightly abused second hand bmx rim), but being a drum brake means it doesn't matter much. The rim I used for the back wheel was much straighter than this one and came into true with alot less hassle (shot of that below)

These wheels have had a test in one of the Triumph Twentys I mentioned in the last part and after a couple of little niggles with the cable pinch bolts they turn out to have some solid stopping power. Being used to V-brakes its a strange feeling to stop just as quickly but in a more gradual and quiet manner,  and considering they are supposed to be poor performing when brand new due to the need to 'bed-in' then I can only expect the front hub to get even better.