What is a trailing spoke actually following?

That’s exactly the kind of question that kept bugging me when I first started building wheels. Honestly, I revisited online notes back and forth until it all became a practice. Ahh yeah, there was another irony attached to it as well.

Everyone seemed to know about it - or at least they acted so - but few actually really knew how to explain even the most common terms. Trailing and leading spokes, heads-in or heads-out, triplet lacing, wheel offset etc. And the list just went on.

Imagine the confusion the jargon of every trade represents to a new comer. It’s these little terms that can trip you up more than the actual building sometimes. Until you know their meaning at least.

That inspired me to start making notes, illustrations, and eventually incorporating them into the App SpokeCalc itself. First as pop-up based tooltips or explanatory visuals such as technical drawings, but now also as a standalone glossary page that every novice builder can revisit. All with the purpose of learning the vocabulary quick.

Now when something like nipple seat diameter pops up, you’re just a search query away from a clear answer, backed up with a visual or a short tip while being categorized in groups like tensioning, measurements, lacing etc. It’s about making that next build smoother, smarter, and maybe a bit more fun.

Enjoy scrolling through the list.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I hope you’ve enjoyed this growing list of wheel building terms—maybe it refreshed your knowledge, or even introduced a few new concepts along the way.

The glossary will keep expanding over time, so if there’s a term you’d like to see added, feel free to reach out and let me know.

About author

Aljaž Trenta

Author and founder
"As a cycling enthusiast, bike mechanic and self-taught web designer, combining several of my passions and skills to build SpokeCalc was a great fun for me."