Bicycle Mechanics - Why do spokes keep breaking?

I am very pleased with the construction of my Fuji Touring bike. They did cut a couple corners, since it is a great price. Componetry,etc. But still all good components. just not top of the line.
One problem, I have Richey double walled rims.
I have almost 3,000 miles on it. I use it for tours and commuting. When commuting, maybe have at most 20 pounds stuff, that I am carrying in rear panniers, and the trunk rack.
Last three times I rode it, each time I come home with broken spokes. In all, maybe 6 spokes have broken off at head.it has 36 spokes, I think. More than normal road bikes.
So why do I keep ending up with broken spokes. When on tour last September, maybe carried 50 pounds. Luckily ,that trip spoke problem had not yet matarilized.
The bike has 15 g. generic spokes. Not DT's. The mechanic who assembled it, said he will re-spoke the wheels, with heavy weight DT stainless, double butted spokes. Think the problem will then go away?
Hope the problem goes away before I do my fall tour across Nevada.

15g is very narrow for touring. The spoke heads may be loose in the hub flange holes.
Standard size for touring would be a 13/14 guage butted spoke.

Re-spoking should solve the problem. Your mechanic sounds like he knows his job, but do ensure that the current spoking pattern is sound ( a standard 3 -cross pattern is usual), and that the new spokes follow the existing pattern. This is so that the spokes bed into the flange using the same small indentations, rather than make new ones.

Originally posted by MichaelW
do ensure that the current spoking pattern is sound ( a standard 3 -cross pattern is usual), and that the new spokes follow the existing pattern.

This is crucial. If the hub's spoke holes have become elongated or deformed by the spokes (very common), the new spokes will break if they are oriented differently.

I used to have a Fuji bike long ago and had the same exact problem. I rarely went for a ride without breaking a spoke. I got to the point that I was carrying a large wrench and a freewheel tool with me in case of a break. I had to hitch rides home and it was a major pain.

It was all because the spoke holes on the cheapo hub were too large and counter-sunk improperly. Because of the poor fit of the spoke in the hole it would break at the "elbow" bend of the spoke everytime. I'd recommend getting a higher-quality hub or just buy a new wheel that is built up for touring. It will be worth the price. You could try respoking the wheel and hope for the best, but I'd bet it is the hub, not the spokes that are the problem.

Rebuild your wheel with some heavy duty, high quality spokes like 2.0 - 14 gauge or 2.0/1.8/2.0 - 14/15/14 gauge double butted DT spokes, and have the wheel built by a very GOOD wheel-builder. You may have some inferior quality spokes on a wheel that was built by machine using a too low tension setting. You probably WILL NOT need to replace your hub.

Ride Well Built
Pat

Bikeman. Just curious. Today I got my wheels rebuilt by my trusted mechanic. The hubs are Shimano Sora. While not top of the line, the mechanic says they are decent. Sora hubs are often used especially for mountain bikes. did not recommend upgrading them. They had cheap generic spokes however. He also put on a heavier spoke.
Wondering when you had your Fuji can you recall the name of the hubs.? My mechanic is top notch. Says the components on my Fuji are respectable, except for cheap spokes. Hope my problem is gone.
Maybe my next tour not a great test. it will be sag supported. My mechanic also said, if hubs Fuji presently used caused spokes to break, it would show up on the holes in the hubs as elongated holes. He said that was not the case.

i am curious weather the broken spokes are always on the drive-train side or the non-drive train side (i am assuming the rear wheel is the problem) - the non-drivetrain side usually has problems upon load. that is an easy fix (for a competant mechanic)

Riph. No. They broke on both sides, but always at the head.

Cyclezealot,

Last year I bought a Specialized cyclocross, which immediately began breaking spokes. The shop I bought it from changed out several spokes. Meanwhile, a couple of other customers reported the same problem with that model.

Finally, they changed out all the spokes on both wheels with DT's. That was almost a year ago, and no broken spokes since! No charge. Good shop. Specialized didn't give them a lot to do the job, though, I understand.

Hi, I,ve got a question along this same line.. I have a Specialized hard rock sport I,m converting for touring. It has Araya vp-20 rims and Acera hubs (rear) and parallax (frt). Should I just get the wheels rebuilt with 13-14ga DT,s or replace the rims as well. They look fairly sturdy but I,m going cross continent and need something that will take fully loaded touring. The hubs are in good condition.....Any thoughts? Thanks

jmichael

SCRoadkill, If it were me I'd go with DT straight guage spokes
(14s) for a cross country tour. I tend to practice the
kiss principle (keep it simple stupid).
Just my 2 cents worth,
Marty

When I first started cycling long distance carrying gear, I had the pleasure of breaking spokes on a regular basis. I started carrying spare spokes and the tools needed to replace them. When I got sick of becomming one with the trees on the side of the road, I did a bit of research on wheel building, purchased parts and starting building my own wheels. I have been building wheels for over 10 years now and have built over 200 wheels for myself and cycling friends. None of the wheels i've built have had broken spokes and they stay true and round through many, many miles of cycling.
This is what I've learned.
DT spokes, when manufactured have a 90 degree bend at the head, this is not the correct bend when installed in the hub and tensioned, there is an unusual amount of stress at the bend point. Wheelsmith spokes on the other hand have an over 90 degree bend and sit in the spoke drilling in a more natural and less stress generating fashion. I use wheelsmith spokes on all of my builds.
Spokes never break in the center, they always break at the head or at the threaded section just under the nipple. So I always use a 14 DB, butted spoke to save a tiny bit of weight, they also look better. I lace using a X - 3 pattern, I find this to be the strongest wheel. The secret to straight, strong and true wheels is equal spoke tension. I lace the wheels, bring up the tension, working to get the wheel straight and round and dished properly, when the wheel is straight , round and dished, I then bring up the tension using a wheelsmith spoke tensionometer assuring equal tension and the correct amount of tension. I have found that when you build a wheel using a good straight rim then keep your spoke tension equal it will end up true and stay that way.
For tooling I use a Park TS-2 truing stand, nipple driver, Wheelsmith spoke tensionometer, Park micro adjust dishing tool and park spoke wrenches.
Keep this in mind when talking to a bike tech.
1. Wheels should stay straight and true for many miles.
2. It is NOT normal to break spokes, even when carrying heavy loads.
3. Spoke tension should be consistant throughout the wheel and they should be tight.
4. All pulling spokes should be on the outside of the cross.
Good luck, keep crankin