Went to a bike co-op in Portland and watched a dude true a wheel with zip ties

I have always been a 'buy the right tool' guy. Spent like $40 on a Park Tool truing stand years ago and swore by it. Yesterday I stopped into this community shop in southeast PDX to grab some used tires and this volunteer mechanic had a wheel mounted in the frame using zip ties as feeler gauges. He had the thing spinning dead straight in like 10 minutes. Made me realize I have been overcomplicating this whole thing. Has anyone else had a moment where you saw a hack that made your expensive gear feel silly?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_cole27d ago

Buddy of mine fixed a busted spoke on a trail with a zip tie and a rock.

elliotadams26d ago

Not gonna lie @the_cole, that's either genius or the sketchiest trail repair I've ever heard of. Your buddy's got some serious MacGyver energy.

ray18926d ago

That zip tie trick works fine for getting it close, but it's not the same as a proper stand with dial indicators. Still, it's better than most people think.