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Building new wheels

Mark Regan2022-02-21 16:06:59

Hi

 

I have just got hold of a set of classic hope tandem hubs and I want to get them built up for our tandem.

 

Who do you guys recommend,  I don't mind post the hubs out to someone. 

(I will strip the hins off the current wheels first)

We are based in South Wales

2022-02-21 16:31:37
Suggest you contact Zaynan at Practical Cycles. I've had several wheelsets built by them and they've always been faultless. Google search will find them. 
David Pearce2022-02-21 17:29:09

Hi Mark,

I have all my wheels - inc tandem / road / vintage & track built by Nelsons cycles in Llangynidr, Crickhowell - handy if you are in South Wales

https://www.cyclebasket.com/

We had our origional front hope hub fail (the flange broke away see photo) on our Longstaff so beware, i am not sure i would trust the old hubs. Replaced with a dynamo hub.

Dave

Matthew Bailey2022-02-21 17:39:05

We used Ryan at www.ryanbuildswheels.co.uk 

Built us a great wheelset and really helpful advice 

David Ross2022-02-21 18:18:11

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings but that front hub in particular looks like it is going to be extremely prone to cracking the flanges - I can see the corrosion that typically precedes a failure. Hope hubs are renowned for cracking flanges as Dave Pearce has posted and there is no way I'd trust that front hub and I'd be inspecting the rear hub very closely too. Even then, given its age I'd probably not risk it - at best it's annoying, at worst it's an accident.

When we used those Hope hubs we had a large number of breakages which only stopped when we swapped to Shimano HF-08 tandem hubs. We must have had five or six warranty Hope replacements via Longstaffs - in some cases Longstaffs built the replacement hub into a wheel, or I'd do it. Either way it was only a matter of time before the inevitable happened. Hope no longer manufacture or support those hubs - which is no surprise given the failure rate - it must be 20 years since they stopped making them.


I'd suggest investing in a better hub or wheel set. 

David Ross2022-02-21 18:18:11

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings but that front hub in particular looks like it is going to be extremely prone to cracking the flanges - I can see the corrosion that typically precedes a failure. Hope hubs are renowned for cracking flanges as Dave Pearce has posted and there is no way I'd trust that front hub and I'd be inspecting the rear hub very closely too. Even then, given its age I'd probably not risk it - at best it's annoying, at worst it's an accident.

When we used those Hope hubs we had a large number of breakages which only stopped when we swapped to Shimano HF-08 tandem hubs. We must have had five or six warranty Hope replacements via Longstaffs - in some cases Longstaffs built the replacement hub into a wheel, or I'd do it. Either way it was only a matter of time before the inevitable happened. Hope no longer manufacture or support those hubs - which is no surprise given the failure rate - it must be 20 years since they stopped making them.


I'd suggest investing in a better hub or wheel set. 

Graham Wood2022-02-21 21:09:31

Mark,  Are they 26" wheels?  I have a pair of excellent condition wheels (hardly used since being built with new Shimano HF-08 tandem hubs)  which need a new home . . . . .

 

Graham Wood2022-02-21 21:09:31

Mark,  Are they 26" wheels?  I have a pair of excellent condition wheels (hardly used since being built with new Shimano HF-08 tandem hubs)  which need a new home . . . . .

 

Graham Wood2022-02-21 21:09:31

Mark,  Are they 26" wheels?  I have a pair of excellent condition wheels (hardly used since being built with new Shimano HF-08 tandem hubs)  which need a new home . . . . .

 

Graham Wood2022-02-21 21:09:31

Mark,  Are they 26" wheels?  I have a pair of excellent condition wheels (hardly used since being built with new Shimano HF-08 tandem hubs)  which need a new home . . . . .

 

Graham Wood2022-02-21 21:09:31

Mark,  Are they 26" wheels?  I have a pair of excellent condition wheels (hardly used since being built with new Shimano HF-08 tandem hubs)  which need a new home . . . . .

 

Mark Tipping2022-02-21 21:22:44

Mark

Good luck!  I joined the TC in 1974 to access the 12 gauge spokes that were only available to members, supplied through Bob Tinley when he lived in Stanway Road, Bob was the first tech. Sec. of the club, (now an old acquaintance) and I built my first tandem wheels with those rustless 12g a mere forty eight years ago, laced onto Edco moped hubs with 12mm axles, also from TC through Bob.  There were no manufacturers of tandem hubs in that era, one of the reasons the TC came into being!  Hubs, pawls and spokes on tandems have always caused grief, and probably always will.

David Ross is correct with his comments given he was using Hope tandem hubs with the usual 48 drilling (from his pic of cracked flange) .  Your photo shows your hubs have 36 hole drillings which have vastly more alloy between the spoke holes.  I had similar Hope tandem 36 drilled hubs on a 1990 expedition bike used for cycle camping on roughstuff routes, and they stood up really well even after being transferred onto tandem duty, whereas the 48 hole Hope tandem hubs on my then tandem cracked the flanges away as Davids did

It did however take us 25 years to break the first Sapim strong spoke I built on a rear wheel hub, so I heartily recommend whatever hubs you use that you build with them (as does Chris Juden) - but but we then ripped the flanges off the brake side of an edco/DT 40H rear hub in 2020, so you never really know.

Tandem hubs fail regularly including King, White and Hadley, a multitude of disgruntled tandem riders on the net, esp. U.S. contributors have borne witness to that over the last 30 years. 

While not as dangerous as a wheel collapse the most problematic and common Hope failure is the cassette carrier cracking between the pawl mounts (five times over 20 years on my H hubs).  Hope no longer makes replacements and there are none left in shops.  The ending of spares supply also made big un hubs obsolete and I sold or scrapped them all, even some NOS ones.  My current tandem was built new in 2019 with NOS campy 48h tandem hubs, only 8 speeds but they will see me out, unfortunately they are like rocking horse poo to find now even if you were prepared to run such old stuff.

The shimano hubs are remarkable value for money, but expect no more than a 5 year life if you use them hard, the cones and balls are not of high quality.  They do however have the huge advantage that like Campy the flanges are drop forged in multi ton presses which I was told by professionals in the field alters the molecular structure and thus greatly strengthens the flange alloy which does mot happen with CNC machined "boutique" hubs.

I would follow up Grahams offer asap if I were you.

Happy pedalling, hope to see you at the National Rally and nosey at whatever wheels you decide to go for.

Mark T

 

Mark Regan2022-02-21 22:37:07

Hello all

 

Thank you very much for all of your comments,  we have just got into tandeming, and are really enjoying it.

The wheels I need to build are 700 so 26 would be not good, thanks. 

 

I may strip the wheels apart and have a really close look at the flanges 

 

 

Mark