Minoura

Workman Pro Truing Stand with Centering Gauge

This is a really good truing stand in the sub-100-dollar price range. The centering mechanism is near perfect once adjusted with the centering gauge, which is something I recommend doing any time you change the stand spacing. The feelers have metal tips and the wings are controlled by a common adjuster screw and let you perform really precise truing. The one thing that takes getting used to is some lack of rigidity that becomes noticeable when you get down to fine sub-half-millimeter adjustments. Working in that range requires you to let the wheel spin freely several times over the spot you are trying to fix because the force of your fingers on the wheel causes some lateral movement and the feelers scratch where there isn't a problem. The movement does not persist, however, when you let go of the wheel and let it spin at least half a turn. Patience is key. I gave this a 5 because I don't think you could find a better stand in this price range. It's perfect for the home mechanic and wheel building enthusiast. Obviously if you run a shop that puts out several wheels a week, you're better off with Park Tool's TS-2, but you probably already know that.

I fully agree with aisakov's review. One word of caution, when using the centering gauge, be sure it's positioned between the feelers before you tighten it in place. If you tighten it and then rotate it to where the feelers are you'll get an incorrect centering indication.

A really good stand for the price. Excellent value. It's easy to use and stores away nicely when folded. One thing I dislike is the wings. The wings are plastic with metal tips (the metal tips are removable if you don't want to scratch your rims). I find it hard to set the wings equidistant from each other with the centering tool (provided) - once you tighten one side, the other side opens up a bit; however, I found a remedy for this - set the wings as close as possible to the centering tool, put your wheel on and true one side, then flip the wheel (so your right side becomes your left) and true the other side. This is similar to the Feedback Sports stand that does one side at a time and takes a bit longer, but gives you a good true.

This stand is a world away from the old-school way of using an old fork as a stand. I've put wheels together that way before, but with the stand I really felt in control of the end result for the first time. The ability to quickly check for hops and run out let me put tension in the wheels gradually and bring them into true and to tension all at the same time. Highly recommended.