Wheelbuilding / Wheel Building / Wheel build help

1980 is likley to 120mm spacing

On low-end (5-speed) stuff. My dad's Holdsworth was built 126mm for 6-speed in the late 60s

the bike has 5 speed though which is probably lowish end.

Bought some 26" DT 420SL (Specialized OEM) rims 2 years ago planning to build some light MTB wheels for a friend I'd recently built an MTB for which didn't get ridden as much as expected. Change of plan, decided to use them to build polo wheels.

Got a nice Hadley SS-freehub 32h 135mm hub last week.

Calculated spoke lengths and they matched the lengths I have on the shelf for my own wheels. Started lacing up one side only to realise the rims I thought were 32h are actually 28h. Same seller still lists 420SL on eBay, but not all the listings specify spoke count. Too late now anyway.

So now I need to find different light-ish 26" 32h rims that aren't £50 each, and I need to find some 28h disc hubs to make some use of the DT rims.

Gah.

any views on these rims?

http://aforce.bellebikes.com/

Considering these for my long overdue Isen build.

any views on these rims?

@danstuff has had his for a year, since he hasn't mentioned them again they are either fine or they exploded in flames and he hideth his shame :)

Yes, you will be able to recycle those spokes. Rim bed depth between the two rims is negligible.
I once re-rimmed a pair of broken Mavic Ellipses, and after narrowing choice to DT RR585, Kinlin XR300, or Velocity Deep V and measuring each, I went with the Kinlin because it was the lightest.

Trying to make a decision on a new build for road/gravel:

32 external, 25 internal
30 external, 23 internal

Similar depth, the wider will work out £100 more, give or take. I was planning 28c up to 40c tyres. Gut reaction from previous wheels is that it's not worth the additional cost as I'm not planning proper off road.

32/25 is too wide and not worth it. 30/23 is borderline with 28mm tires

Trying to make a decision

1.Anything properly gravel capable will be a bit meh on the road
2.Your meh road bike will be more fun on tarmac with the 40s
3.Given that you'll be on 40s all the time, you might as well get the wider rims

It's a Reilly Gradient and is already fun on the road with both 28 and 32's..wider it is.

Is anyone aware of any 650b disc rims / wheelsets aimed at road riding and female riders in particular. I can't find any narrow 650b wheels that are designed to be used with road tyres on small frames. Canyon obviously kit their small women's bikes out with 650b wheels but you can't buy those wheels anywhere as they are OEM.

Is BLB the only shop that imports Velocity?

If you can live with the braking surface the Kinlin XR31t are available in 650b.

Hmm, yeah they'd be good. Not sure if she can live with the brake track aesthetic though

Recommendation for a good wheel repair in SE London? Broken spoke and slightly warped rear wheel as a result. My Ambrosio Excellight rims have done ~7,000 miles, but almost exclusively in the dry and I can't really see any appreciable signs of wear, so probably not an excuse for replacement yet.

I recently built up a set for a petite female rider but think they were 650c rather than 650b. They were Kinlin. https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/rims-tape/kinlin-mx3t-650-571-rim-black-32-hole/
The frame was custom made to measure.

I'm in the Sydenham / Penge / Crystal Palace area if that is close enough for you. Happy to take a look. Should be able to replace the spoke unless it's straight pull or bladed in which case I might need to order in. If the rim isn't concaved then it should be good for a while longer.

It's the paucity of tyre choice that meant we stayed clear of 650c.

Why would anyone pick such a size these days? 11mm bigger than MB wheels and 13mm smaller than 650B, such a small difference vs a huge selection of tires for the alternatives.

Why would anyone pick such a size these days?

Because there are still some frames and wheels which would be your first choice for road race or Tri/TT. Try finding aero wheels in 559 or 584.

Like Arup used?

Ah aero. Maybe Velocity Aileron or Kinlin XR240 ?

Maybe Velocity Aileron or Kinlin XR240 ?

lol
I admit that they are out of fashion, but there are still used and NOS Hed Jet6, Zipp 404FC, Hed3 and Enve SES for decent aeros in 650C, plus Gp4000S and Vittoria Corsa to fit.

lol

shirley, but my examples in 559 were pretty close to what Arup used in 571