Best recommended UK wheelbuilders

Quoted message said:

I've had a search around for mention of tried and tested wheelbuilders
in the UK, but so far not much luck. Are there very well known
wheelbuilders that people would always promote if asked. So far i've
heard that Paul Hewitt and Simon Northway are well thought of in club
circles. Any others in people's experience that should be considered
for a top quality wheel job?

Back in the day, Condor was the leading UK house for custom wheels. No
idea if wheel guru Monty Young is still vertical but I'd talk with
Condor at least.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

On Fri, 02 Mar 2007 13:51:17 -0600, A Muzi <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I've had a search around for mention of tried and tested wheelbuilders
in the UK, but so far not much luck. Are there very well known
wheelbuilders that people would always promote if asked. So far i've
heard that Paul Hewitt and Simon Northway are well thought of in club
circles. Any others in people's experience that should be considered
for a top quality wheel job?

Back in the day, Condor was the leading UK house for custom wheels. No
idea if wheel guru Monty Young is still vertical but I'd talk with
Condor at least.

I get my wheels built at Condor because they're my LBS, and they're OK
but not the craftsmen that now retired people from my youth were.

Is Pete Matthews still building wheels? He's generally considered to
be the Godfather of UK wheel builders.

Kinky Cowboy*

*Batteries not included
May contain traces of nuts
Your milage may vary

it seems very hit and miss now, as you say alot of the original
masters are getting to that age and there is that many young
apprentices who are willing to learn the art, playstation's got alot
to answer for. I took three wheels to my LBS and was given the usual,
'our wheelbuilder is used by x and y team' speech. He said that i
shouldn't worry as their builder made very strong wheels. The first
wheel lasted 800 miles then failed, so much for that turnip. Turned
out the bike mechanic sent one away and then decided to charge me 40
pounds each and built the wheels himself. After he'd ground away most
of the spoke heads, because he had messed up the spoke length and left
many loose spokes, i came to my senses and they lost a potentially
loyal customer. Does Condor still do one off jobs?
cheers,
Nick.

Quoted message said:

it seems very hit and miss now, as you say alot of the original
masters are getting to that age and there is that many young
apprentices who are willing to learn the art, playstation's got alot
to answer for. I took three wheels to my LBS and was given the usual,
'our wheelbuilder is used by x and y team' speech. He said that i
shouldn't worry as their builder made very strong wheels. The first
wheel lasted 800 miles then failed, so much for that turnip. Turned
out the bike mechanic sent one away and then decided to charge me 40
pounds each and built the wheels himself. After he'd ground away most
of the spoke heads, because he had messed up the spoke length and left
many loose spokes, i came to my senses and they lost a potentially
loyal customer. Does Condor still do one off jobs?
cheers,
Nick.

i had a number of similar experiences here in the san francisco bay
area. ultimately, if you can't identify someone, your money would be
best spent on learning how to do this stuff yourself. it's not that
hard - it just needs practice.

In article
<[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

I've had a search around for mention of tried and tested wheelbuilders
in the UK, but so far not much luck. Are there very well known
wheelbuilders that people would always promote if asked. So far i've
heard that Paul Hewitt and Simon Northway are well thought of in club
circles. Any others in people's experience that should be considered
for a top quality wheel job?

A good wheel builder will guarantee his work. Look for that.

--
Michael Press

Michael Press said:

A good wheel builder will guarantee his work. Look for that.

--
Michael Press

Thanks for the replies. If one of the good things to look for is a
guarantee of work, does anyone have a suggestion for a UK builder that
does offer that protection. I've always thought that wheelbuilders
would be very unwilling to put their reputation at risk by accepting
the fact that wheel longevity is something largely in their hands and
not, as the slippery people at my LBS would contend, more dependant on
component failures.
I understand that Peter white gives a lifetime warranty
to his wheels, that seems unbelievably kind, but obviously fantastic
for the customer. Might be interesting to know howmuch it would be to
send a wheel to the States for him to build, or perhaps it would be
more sensible to get him to source the parts.
Any English wheelbuilders that offer a guarantee seems to be the way
to go, though it's still puzzling that builders who produce excellent
work here in the UK don't seem to get the following that people like
Peter White has done in the States. I guess if they did, then it would
be much easier to find one.
Many thanks for replying,
cheers, Nick.

Quoted message said:

Does Condor still do one off jobs?

I've never had them refuse to take my money for any workshop work,
whether it's a full build from scratch or just a true up of an old
wheel. Actually, they did refuse to do my frankenwheel that I use on
the rollers, but that's probably to their credit rather than the other
way around; they want to do stuff they can stand by.

Kinky Cowboy*

*Batteries not included
May contain traces of nuts
Your milage may vary

Quoted message said:

I've had a search around for mention of tried and tested wheelbuilders
in the UK, but so far not much luck. Are there very well known
wheelbuilders that people would always promote if asked. So far i've
heard that Paul Hewitt and Simon Northway are well thought of in club
circles. Any others in people's experience that should be considered
for a top quality wheel job?

Think that best known may be Pete Matthews and Harry Rowlands.

I have a set of Rowlands wheels on my best bike and cannot fault them.
Friends have them on bikes and are equally impressed.
I've also no complaints about a wheel Mick Madgett (Diss) built for my
tourer last year, again I have friends who use Madgett's with no complaints.

- Nigel

--
Nigel Cliffe,
Webmaster at http://www.2mm.org.uk/

Quoted message said:

Michael Press said:

A good wheel builder will guarantee his work. Look for that.

Quoted message said:

Thanks for the replies. If one of the good things to look for is a
guarantee of work, does anyone have a suggestion for a UK builder that
does offer that protection. I've always thought that wheelbuilders
would be very unwilling to put their reputation at risk by accepting
the fact that wheel longevity is something largely in their hands and
not, as the slippery people at my LBS would contend, more dependant on
component failures.
I understand that Peter white gives a lifetime warranty
to his wheels, that seems unbelievably kind, but obviously fantastic
for the customer. Might be interesting to know howmuch it would be to
send a wheel to the States for him to build, or perhaps it would be
more sensible to get him to source the parts.
Any English wheelbuilders that offer a guarantee seems to be the way
to go, though it's still puzzling that builders who produce excellent
work here in the UK don't seem to get the following that people like
Peter White has done in the States. I guess if they did, then it would
be much easier to find one.

I don't think England is bereft of good wheelbuilders so much as that
you just haven't met one! Did you ask your club riders? I'm surprised we
haven't seen suggestions here already. When you do meet a recommended
builder, have an open and honest discussion with the person who's going
to build your wheels. If you both know what's expected, s/he can design
the appropriate wheel from the outset.

Regarding 'warranty', that conversation is the start. Once we know
what's needed, we can build for you properly. I believe you wrote that
you had spoke failures at low mileage. That's wrong, either unsuitable
equipment or, more likely, a poor build. It should be redone at
builder's expense. A wheel with a flat spot, splayed out on both sides,
is not a build error. There's seldom a grey area.

Any competent wheelbuilder, for example some of the several diligent
amateurs who hang out here, should be able to guarantee the work. It's
rigor, not magic.

Of course there are arguments, as some chiseler who brings in a wheel
with a dent claiming "JRA". That's a different discussion.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Kinky Cowboy said:

Quoted message said:

Does Condor still do one off jobs?

I've never had them refuse to take my money for any workshop work,
whether it's a full build from scratch or just a true up of an old
wheel. Actually, they did refuse to do my frankenwheel that I use on
the rollers, but that's probably to their credit rather than the other
way around; they want to do stuff they can stand by.

Sounds like a ringing endorsement to me!

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

In the UK, Pete Matthews: http://www.petebikematthews.com/
In the US, Joe Young: http://www.youngwheels.com/
Both outstanding.

"Kinky Cowboy" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Fri, 02 Mar 2007 13:51:17 -0600, A Muzi <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I've had a search around for mention of tried and tested wheelbuilders
in the UK, but so far not much luck. Are there very well known
wheelbuilders that people would always promote if asked. So far i've
heard that Paul Hewitt and Simon Northway are well thought of in club
circles. Any others in people's experience that should be considered
for a top quality wheel job?

Back in the day, Condor was the leading UK house for custom wheels. No
idea if wheel guru Monty Young is still vertical but I'd talk with
Condor at least.

I get my wheels built at Condor because they're my LBS, and they're OK
but not the craftsmen that now retired people from my youth were.

Is Pete Matthews still building wheels? He's generally considered to
be the Godfather of UK wheel builders.

Kinky Cowboy*

*Batteries not included
May contain traces of nuts
Your milage may vary