Current Projects chat and miscellany

Tension, not torque. Torque = twisting force. (You don't want the spokes to be twisted at all as they will untwist when the wheel is ridden and the tension will drop and the wheel will go out of true.)

On a track wheel (i.e., non-dished) you generally want the spokes to be at between 110-130 kgf, and as even as possible. It depends on what the rim can handle but I generally build to 130. I think MTB wheels are usually built to similar tension even thought the spokes are shorter.

I recommend Roger Musson's e-book on wheelbuilding: http://www.wheelpro.co.uk/wheelbuilding/book.php

I suppose its the nipples which are under torque the same way a bolt would be?

Interesting, thanks for the link, wheel building and frame building are two things I really wanna try. But as frame building requires expensive equipment, suitable space I don't currently have and at least an introduction into how things work, wheel building will work for now.