A wheel builder in Tucson made me rethink my whole truing setup

I was at a shop in Tucson last Saturday, watching this older guy true a rear wheel with nothing but a spoke wrench and his thumb as a gauge. He said my dial indicator was making me slow, that I was chasing 0.1mm when the rim just needed to be round enough to stop well. That hit different because I've spent $400 on a stand and gauge set, and he finished in 8 minutes what takes me 25. Now I'm wondering if I should ditch the precise stuff for feel on daily riders, or keep both methods for different jobs. Has anyone else switched to hand truing for most work and kept the dial for carbon hoops only?

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eva_ward881mo ago

That thumb as a gauge line got me good. Sounds like that guy could true a wheel blindfolded while eating a burrito, meanwhile I'm out here adjusting by 0.05mm and praying to the spoke nipple gods. I tried the hand method once and my wheel ended up looking like a taco, so I respect anyone who can pull that off. But honestly, you probably just paid $400 to confirm what your hands already knew, which is a very familiar bike shop tax. Keep the dial for the carbon stuff and maybe use the thumb trick only when you're feeling brave or lazy, your call.

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