I doubt that many wheelbuilders would be able to stay in business if they were only component retailers, added to which they would have far less practical knowledge of the products that they sell.
I certainly don't feel guilty about supporting tradesmen in the knowledge that they will provide quality work and advice.
Things can and do go wrong and some of the parts that we're working with are quite hard to find....Better in my opinion to find one's own comfort zone and expand accordingly...Not to assume that just because someone on the internet says that it's not difficult, it truly isn't.
Have a walk along a row of disc-braked Norton Commandos and see how few have managed to centre the front rim as it should be. They're a sod of a job quite frankly and one has to know one's limits.
Done methodically and with spokes of the correct type, wheel building isn't a black art....but if spokes are the wrong length or wrong head angle, or perhaps most commonly, incorrectly pierced rims are supplied then the result can be downright dangerous if the necessary skills aren't available.
Hi Robb the cold beer idea is very good. At the end of the day I have no interest in doing my own wheels All my needs have been met by supporting a small business. We are lucky here in Britain in that we have people who can still do some of the jobs we want. Like Ian Wright making hard to get parts.
