Frustrated with Front Wheel Hop; can’t find a shop willing to touch it
 

So, I’ve loosened and re-tightened the spokes on the front wheel 3 times now. I thought I had the wheel laterally “true”; I was pretty happy with the result. However, the radial hop was still there. I have a noticeable low spot and high spot on the rim. This issue has been there since I got the bike. At first, I thought it was in my head. It was only recently that I learned how to check for trueness. I just can’t seem to get that rim radially true. And, I can feel the hop as I’m riding on road. That’s how I noticed the problem in the first place.

So, I called several shops and they won’t work on the wheel. The first question they ask, “what kind of bike is it?” I say “Apollo”. They quickly figure out that’s its Chinese and the conversation ends there. “I don’t work on Chinese bikes!”

Ok...so, am I now left with a bike that’s not viable to ride?

Manny’s parts warranty has expired so I can’t even ship the guy the wheel and hope and wait for a replacement.

A new wheel for this bike is $200. Is that my only option here, because if it is...then this bike is going to sit for a while like a paper weight in the garage.

Anyone have any suggestions for me? i would greatly appreciate it. I got the lemon of the bunch I suppose...lucky me.

That's just crazy. Some people can be so narrow minded. It shouldn't matter where the bike came from it they are just going to true the wheel. Have you tried just bringing in the wheel to a shop? It's a wheel, they aren't working on the engine. There's got to be someone that will do it.

The chinese rim can be hard to true, they are far cry from a oem DID rim that are equiped on my kawasakis.
Two days ago, i went to change my tyres for my chinese motorcycle, they are not very eager or happy to work on chinese rims. But they did the job anyway, because they know since i was 10 years old..... and oh boy they had hard time to true them, but they able to to do it.

I would do what Jerry said take the wheel out of the motorcycle, go to a shop and if they ask question about it. "It's a backup wheel for my CRF230"

Seeing how the commercial war with China is going and i can see that some uber patriots won't even dare to touch a chinese made wheel xD (But the iphone is the exception to the rule)

That's exactly what I would do. :tup:

If I get the lateral true, but I still have a radial hop, is it ok to ride on dirt? Or, will I risk bending the wheel by riding it like that?

If you can fell the hop, then it's pointless to continue using it. Can you?? Sure, it will get worst eventually and you may run into problems.
The easy solution is to take the whell, go to a shop and lie to the technician. Unless it's really busted up, they can fix it with the right tools.

Other option is to start from scratch and loosen every spoke fully and begin from there. I had to do that with my Hawks front wheel. Its tedious and can take a few hours, but it is doable. It is a good skill to learn. I used to make money on the side doing it for people.

Otherwise, do as suggested above and take just the rim in and say its for a Honda if they ask.

I don't get the mentality of turning a bike away. Work is work.

I wonder if you can just buy the same size rim and replace it yourself for the same money a shop will charge. I see used rims for $100. A set sometimes on eBay.

Indeed paying 200 for a chinese wheel, unless the hub is busted is pointless. On Amazon you can find DID rims for 100 usd...

I just don’t get it. I’ve watched a dozen videos and I’m doing everything suggested on the videos. I just can’t get that hip to come down.

I can’t find a 17” x 2.50 wheel. All I find is 17” x 1.40.

Dan...the one guy’s tone on the phone was like it was “beneath” him to touch the bike.

I tried loosening them all and started from the beginning so to speak. I’m wondering if a major problem is that the tire is still mounted? I don’t currently have spoons to remove the tire, but maybe that is the next step. Would that be part of the problem the rim won’t budge?

What about a 18” ?

You changed the rims on the apollo??

True and Dish are 2 different things. When a bicycle wheel rubs the brake it’s out of true. When it stops being round it’s out of dish. Sounds like yours is out of dish or you have something up with your tire causing the skip.

My front wheel is out of true about a 1/4 inch at one area and it doesn’t skip. It’s just not efficient as it could be.