Who is it for:

Everone who wants to build wheels from scratch. Novice to experienced amateur. I’ll hope and guess that most professionals are beyond what they teach in this DVD. That said, there are some pro tricks at the end of the DVD. Bottom line – they’ll tell you everything you’ll need to build wheels that stands true for years to come.

Price:

About 20 US dollars

Packaging:

Boring. Standard DVD with a really boring picture on the outside.

Languages:

French, English, German, Spanish and Portuguese. Alex Roussel speaks French while Gerd Schraner speaks German. If you choose another language the voiceover takes over, which at least in english is excellent.

Layout:

When you start the DVD you’ll get a short intro video about UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale), and a text telling that the drawings are the property of DT Swiss (!). OK, these guys may be in the pockets of DT Swiss, but that doesn’t matter… DT Swiss makes some of the best hubs and wheels you can get, which means that you are in safe pockets too. After that you’ll see a menu where you can choose to see the entire movie, chapter by chapter, or only the instructional drawings. The chapters are divided into eight (intro, components, understanding, calculations, spoking/truing, tricks for professionals, before riding and repairs).

Pros:

As I’ve already stated, this is everything you’ll ever need to know if you want to build really high quality wheels that stands true for years. Of course, if you want to do stuff like non-standard spoking patterns you’ll have to go elsewhere, such as Sheldon Browns excellent wheel building web site. For us others, this video is excellent. Have your laptop on the right playing the video and your truing stand on the left, and you’re ready to go. They start from scratch and thoroughly show you every step in the building process in a very detailed way. And it is not only about the building process. They also have a walkthrough of different hubs, spokes, nipples and rims, and equipment you’ll need to do the job. And a discussion about the theory behind wheel building – forces that work on the wheel while under strain, types of spoking patterns etc.

Cons:

Practically none. Maybe if you are a restless fast learner you’ll get bored and fall asleep, and therefore don’t catch all the tips and tricks at the end. But that is your problem…

Love it or hate it:

Love it!

Where to buy?

I usually buy my gear at Chain Reaction Cycles or eBay, but I’m often surprised by the speed and the price of local shops. If you want to find the cheapest prices – type “Mastering the Wheel” in the search field below: