You're a freakin' monster masher Air. Do yourself a favor and have the rear wheel rebuilt w/ a fixed/free hub and convert the Nishiki into a fixie (remember, you were the only one on a roadie when we all went to Coney Island and you rode back w/ the rear wheel rubbing against the stays ;)). Re-true the mtb and folder wheels and save your money for the Surly w/ touring wheels.

Becky, glad you got your bike back and hope it lasts like the LBS says it will.

Air...
stay a roadie, but get the rims bulit correctly and it will last.. but just dont run over everything that u see...

I really do try to miss stuff!

So I'm replacing the spokes on my mtb so I can ride tomorrow and I think the other lbs gave me the wrong nipples/gauge. Ahh, good night...

We've had ONE LBS for most of the last 25 years. Others come, others go. The Univega mixte I gave to PIF came from one that also sold CHAINSAWS and SMALL ENGINES.

Walnuts are BIG! How did you run over a walnut?

I don't - I hit 'em off-center and shoot them out into traffic. Lots o' fun. :D

I may be jinxing myself, but I've ridden over 6,000 miles and have A) never broken a spoke, and B) never knocked a wheel out of true. All my wheels are customs, maybe that's the reason? I've got a 24/28 set (highest mileage), and two 32/32 sets. Absolutely NO issues at all. Ever. And I weigh 225-230lbs.

Went back to lbs #2 to have them check the spokes I bought since they weren't really threading into the nipples. They recut them, I come back, put on two new ones, I'm truing the wheel and 'bam!' another one breaks. Everyone sing along, "Let's start at the very beginning..."

It broke while you were truing* the wheel??? I didn't even know that was possible.

Sounds like something's wrong with THEIR spoke cutter, too. :(

It broke while you were truing* the wheel??? I didn't even know that was possible.

Apparently I'm gifted. Wouldn't doubt if a few of them were close anyway - they are 15 years old.

All I can say is:

http://www.bigwheelrally.com/store/images/abw-bw-og-400.jpg

Ha - I'm not too far!

So, no loaner, he doesn't want to give me another since the other guy is basically going to rebuild it from scratch.

I dropped off my mtb tire at a different shop to be trued - he broke a spoke and said the wheel is done but didn't have any replacements.

All in all a good day. i

But, as to the issue at hand...

I have my bike back!!! :D :D :D All feels right with the world again. It is built strong, true, and tensioned with the Rhino Lyte rim and stainless steel spokes. Bike shop says it should be at least a couple of years, or maybe forever, before I have any problems with it. I'm going to take it out for a spin this evening *crossing fingers*

Thanks everyone for the support and information. I'm glad to have this done with no bridges burned.

I think I'd pay very close attention to them during the next few rides.
Maybe doing the 2 finger "tension test" between adjacent spokes. Also the "spin the wheel test", observing how close the rim "wobbles" to the brake pad.

Did they offer to recheck the tension at a later date to possibly "nip in the bud" any future problems? I think re-checking the tension after a few 100 miles may be a good idea. The wheels may "settle in" a bit after some use. Repeat if the tension has changed to any noticeable degree.

PS- Did you have the fronts tensioned? They don't take the abuse a rear does, but since you did have trouble with the STOCK rear wheels....

I've checked them after the 2 short rides I've been on since I got it back, and so far, so good. However, I learned something interesting yesterday. My brother (super-cyclist guy) used to go to this shop when he lived here, because he knows the owner. Well, he said his wheels from them always popped spokes, too.

I've also discovered a guy in the next town over who JUST does repairs and wheel building - another shop recommended him to me. So I think that after about 100 miles, like you said, I'll have him re-tension it if necessary, rather than taking it back to my LBS. I'll have him have a look at the front wheel, too.

Funny you mentioned that!

Going back to the mtb for a minute, they didn't charge me because it couldn't be trued but I asked the guy that builds wheels to do it . I replaced the spoke that was broken, brought it into tension and rode it hard tonight. Jumped curbs, etc... Nothing popped, not a smidge more out of true after 21 miles and plenty of hopping, curbing, and bumping.

I may do the same thing with the road bike, bring it once to the lbs that will rebuild it for that first retension and if it happens again bring it to lbs#2. If they can tension a 16 year old wheel with broken spokes to a close true and have it hold after what I took vengeance on it tonight I think they'll do a great job on the road wheel too.

Meanwhile, I'm out the road bike for another week or so. Sigh...

Becky, keep an eye on your mileage - it will probably detension after 80-100 miles or so.

Well, it went about 700 miles today without a single problem... in the back seat of my car ;) Thanks Air, will do.

So, went to Times-Up tonight, picked up a wheel and spent three hours truing and tensioning it. Missing a locknut so I'll pick that up tomorrow, hopefully it'll work as a backup wheel. First time I slam detensioned it a spoke shot into the ceiling, but I think it's better now :D

Hi Becky, Glad you got your bike back. Here is a good place to start if you are interested in looking after your own wheels. Think of the independence! Sheldons page is here.
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/wheelbuild.html

Good luck this weekend!

This illustrates the value of finding a good local mechanic who knows how to build wheels for Clydes or loaded tourers. Look around. Talk to other riders.

Another option if you have the money would be to have your wheels built by someone who is a specialist, and who guarantees his/her work, such as Peter White (http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/wheels.asp). I think Harris Cyclery (http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/wheels.html) also guarantees their custom wheel builds.

Air...
stay a roadie, but get the rims bulit correctly and it will last.. but just dont run over everything that u see...

I find the little holes in the road where there should be a cover (then forget).

I bumped over a small piece on a board (NO NAILS!) the other day.

Terrorists in pickups, I tell you!

On the unfunny side, last year in a Boise neighborhood once again someone was stringing the road and knocking cyclists off, cars hitting it etc. Hasn't resurfaced on the news so either they stopped, got caught or split. It's all shootings and rapes and layoffs now. Can't even dig the Broncos as that's about drug into a hole by the broadcasters now.

But my bike is back! More pics soon!

Becky, I'm looking for my picture with my Schwinn Centennial Cruiser or my old 1986 Pontiac 6000 sedan for the Clyde thread! I have one after winning a Millennium Ball karaoke contest, but I have better legs and less brains in the other two :p Oh, well, not much for a suit.

Well, three weeks and 10 pounds later I got the wheel back. I'll be going on a 70 mile ride today with a friend of mine up to Nyack...but I don't really trust it. There feels like a lot of play on the non drive side. They gave me some bs thing that because I rode it after the spoke broke the rim is now bent [which wouldn't have happened if they tensioned it when they said they were] - but I don't think 1/4 mile would have done that.

The shop has treated me well on everything else except the wheels, if I do get a Surly at some point I may buy the bike minus the wheels and get those someplace else.

Wow all this talk of broken spokes and spoke counts and such made me go take a look at mine.

My Trek 7.7 FX has Bontrager Select wheels, which I believe is their lowest grade wheel. They have only a few miles on them (the bike is literally brand new at this point) and seem fine right now. But the front wheel only has 20 spokes and the rear only has 24, and by all accounts posted in this thread and a number of others that discuss wheels and spokes, that's too few. I hope they hold up for a good long while.

Air, good luck on your ride.

Okra, if you're concerned, check them after every ride by checking the spokes themselves, and spinning the wheel and watching it next to the brake pads. It should stay the same distance from the pads all the way around. Mine went out of true before the spokes started breaking.

So far, no more problems on my wheel (only about 70 miles since I got it back). I'm going to bring it in soon - probably next week - to have the tension checked.

Thanks. Did almost 60 miles but by the time I got back it was all effed up. What a waste of a summer.

Thanks. Did almost 60 miles but by the time I got back it was all effed up. What a waste of a summer.

How hard do you ride :eek:

I'm thinking you need to go to a 40 spoke touring wheel. We have a very good wheelbuilder here in Lafayette. I'll hook you up with him if you'd like. He's at my LBS. He's the one building my wheels for the Allez.

Didn't ride hard at all - even avoided most of the bumps ;) The original wheel which was rusty and 20 years old lasted longer than this 'hand built' POS so I'm really leaning towards a bad build versus I'm too heavy for it. According to the mechanical guys (http://bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=342373) that wheel should be fine for me.

The wheel wasn't true when I got it back which I think was part of the problem. The non drive side was really loose too which they said it was supposed to be but I don't buy it. I'm going to have the other lbs give it a true and see how it does after that - when they worked on my mtb wheel it was really straight for a while and on that I DID ride hard (jumped every curb I saw, nailed every pothole. I was a bit frustrated and it felt good to ride hard. Finally popped a spoke after a hundred miles of that but they said it was pretty shot so I didn't care.).

I may take you up on that Tom, see how this truing round goes.

My front wheel is showing the years too (plus some rusty spokes that I keep lightly sanding but I'm sure the lbs won't want to touch it) ...I'm wondering if I should get a wheel or switch both to 700cs. I hate to eat the money on all the new tires I just got for the 27" though.

I'd think about the switch to 700c, and put the 27" tires on Fleabay or CL to recoup some of the $$. Sounds like the wheel guy at your LBS is FOS, if ya know what I mean ;)

Watch your PM's
Didn't ride hard at all - even avoided most of the bumps ;) The original wheel which was rusty and 20 years old lasted longer than this 'hand built' POS so I'm really leaning towards a bad build versus I'm too heavy for it. According to the mechanical guys (http://bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=342373) that wheel should be fine for me.

The wheel wasn't true when I got it back which I think was part of the problem. The non drive side was really loose too which they said it was supposed to be but I don't buy it. I'm going to have the other lbs give it a true and see how it does after that - when they worked on my mtb wheel it was really straight for a while and on that I DID ride hard (jumped every curb I saw, nailed every pothole. I was a bit frustrated and it felt good to ride hard. Finally popped a spoke after a hundred miles of that but they said it was pretty shot so I didn't care.).

I may take you up on that Tom, see how this truing round goes.

My front wheel is showing the years too (plus some rusty spokes that I keep lightly sanding but I'm sure the lbs won't want to touch it) ...I'm wondering if I should get a wheel or switch both to 700cs. I hate to eat the money on all the new tires I just got for the 27" though.

Sorry to hear about your wheel dramas, with a bit of luck it will be the last of your troubles

I'm going to give wheel truing a shot myself. I've had my rear wheel trued about 150 miles ago and now the spokes are so loose they rub on each other, making so much racket.

One a side note, I changed form 26x2.25 MTB tires to 26x1.75 hybrid tires and the difference is like night and day. :)

In an effort to keep everything connected here's another thread I started (http://bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=349283) over in the mechanics section about the rim and if it's shot or not.

Air, I wish I could give you and your bike a big hug. This must be seriously frustrating.

Yup and thanks! Here's more good news, after I fixed the other two wheels spokes on both popped. 3/3 non-long distance rideable bikes. Woot.