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Bought a new bike and rode it for a week. Unfortunately the spokes loosend until it was unrideable. No idea how this came about but it looks like I need someone to rebuilt the wheel.

Does anyone know of a good wheel builder in East London or London in general? I need a wheel rebuilt and I thought I might just go with the best guy for the job!

edit: this is a Dutchie Dapper 3-Speed I bought four months old from someone who couldn't handle the size of the bike.

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    I agree this is probably off-topic here - try a London-specific forum like LFGSS. The atmosphere can be a little robust sometimes, but I can't think of a better place to find East-London wheelbuilders.
    – Useless
    Commented Apr 24, 2015 at 12:09

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The wheel that finally worked for me is a Mavic A719 with Sapim Strong spokes and a spoke freeze as well as the thickest Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyre they could fit on the wheel. It was built by Mamachari Bikes in Dalston, London. I've been having no problems with it since a few months now.

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  • Thank you for the closure on your question. Just clarifying, you bought a new wheel for your used bike, and that's what worked for you.
    – Criggie ♦
    Commented Feb 6, 2016 at 23:27
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    I had a custom wheel built by Mamachari Bikes Dalston with said components. The components and especially using Spoke freeze was key here I think. The guy who built the wheel also said that alternatively I could have gone for a Rigida Sputnik wheel.
    – Nico
    Commented Feb 7, 2016 at 9:17
  • See also the question that prompted Nico to look for a wheelbuilder: bicycles.stackexchange.com/questions/35338/…
    – Móż
    Commented Feb 7, 2016 at 10:23
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If it happened in a week, you should take the bike back to the shop you bought the bike from and get them to give you a new wheel (or at least fix the one you have) for free [generally, they should have you take the bike in for a service after ~30 days / 50 miles, whichever comes first, for free]. Any competent bike shop should be able to replace a few broken spokes or adjust a wheel.

Good wheel builders are rare and expensive, and you also have to make sure the quality of wheel is worth being rebuilt if you're going to pay for their services (if its a cheap wheel or there has been damage, they may not be willing to reuse parts or will charge more than just getting a new wheel). Going to a good wheel builder is for people who need/want exacting properties of their wheel -- strength for touring, extra heavy people, etc. in many cases.

That being said, I don't know any in London (and I'm not sure its within SE's format to ask that question).

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  • It's a dutchie and I bought it four months used. The thing with Dutchie's is that they're not assembled when you buy them and I've heard stories about the wheels not being trued or coming with loose spokes. Since I'm not the original buyer of the bike I don't think I have any way to "take it back to the store" as Dutchie's aren't sold in stores:/ The people at the bike shop said the wheel itself is good but it needs to be rebuilt, trueing it won't do the job. They quoted me for 35 and said they'd call if it exceeds that. I've lost trust in bike shops though and would rather do it myself
    – Nico
    Commented Apr 24, 2015 at 7:51
  • or give it to an expert
    – Nico
    Commented Apr 24, 2015 at 8:02
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    £35 for a rebuild seems a fair quote. Considering the time involved.
    – Carel
    Commented Apr 24, 2015 at 19:58

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