79 DT250 Rim work with with 74 hub?

[Motoman]

Can any body advise if a 1979 DT250 rim can be spoked on to a 1974 DT250 hub? I bought a 79 wheel thinking I could use the rim. The spokes look slightly bigger than the 74 spokes I have, but the heads (where they go through the rim) look the same size. If not useable, is anyone interested in the wheel? Is spoking up the wheel myself an easy thing to do seeing as how I have the correct spokes for the hub?

[Nathan S]

Yes, the rim will work with the earlier hub.

I am yet to find a Yamaha drum brake rim that I can't match up with any other Yamaha drum brake hub (ignoring the 32-spoke Z-spoked wheels, of course).

A lot of the "You need exactly the right rim for the hub" talk is paranoia from people who have never tried... Not all of it is paranoia, mind you!

[Motoman]

Thanks for that. I guess as long as I can get the rim true and tighten the spokes evenly it's not rocket science to do the job?

[Nathan S]

Yeah - the basic process of lacing in the spokes is simple - you just need to get your head around the placement and direction of the spokes.
Even easier if you've got another wheel to copy.

The true-ing proccess is a bit harder, but still not rocket science. The easiest mistake is to spend time making the wheel run straight, but forgetting to keep it round.
I don't have a proper jig, so I do the tensioning of the spokes/truing is done on the bike. I actually reckon it makes for a better job because you automatically compensate for any issues with bent/worn/mismatched parts.