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Retightening Motocross & Enduro spokes - we show you how it's done!

For a safe start into the new season, controlling the condition of your wheels is essential. Next to checking bearing slack and correct installation of the tires, controlling your spoke tension is one of the most important tasks before hitting the track. Using our guide, you can tighten your spokes yourself and always have the right tension.

Have fun following our instructions!

Some tips before we start

  1. The procedure we show you can be applied to a large variety of offroad wheels. However, we recommend you to always mind your model-specific features. Here, your manual can be a great help, for example when looking for the right amount of spoke tension.
  2. Take the opportunity and check for damage on your wheels. Are there any cracks in the rim that could not have been seen with the tire on? Is the weld of the rim still intact?
  3. Use a spoke wrench to toghten your spokes to prevent wearing your nipples unnecessarily. For professionally checking your spoke tension, we recommend using a torque spoke wrench.
  4. If you do not own a truing stand, just use your bike instead. You can then spin the wheel and check the trueness.
  5. We advise keeping the tire lock on the rim and using it as a point of reference.

You have read this? Then we can now begin tightening your spokes.

Hint: The steps shown can be applied to the front and rear wheels of your bike.

1. Tightening the spokes

Working steps:

  1. Put the spoke wrench onto the first spoke after the tire lock and tighten the spoke.
    Tip:Start with a quarter rotation. If you put too much tension on single spokes, your wheel starts wobbling.
  2. Skip two spokes and repeat the procedure with every third spoke, until you get back to the tire lock.
  3. Put the wrench onto the second spoke after the tire lock and proceed as before, always skipping two spokes.
  4. Now put your wrench onto the third spoke and go around the rim as before. Now you have tightened all your spokes.
  5. Repeat steps 1-4 until you have reached the desired spoke tension for each spoke.
  6. Check the torque of the spokes again and see if the wheel is true. Done!
Some final advice: If some nipples are hard to turn or can't be turned at all, the thread might be dirty or rusty. In this case, it may be necessary to completely disassemble the wheel. For everything exceeding retightening of spokes, we advise consulting a professional mechanic.

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