Originally Posted by
slcbob
You have problems with spokes breaking when tension is inconsistent and one winds up getting overloaded. If tension is uniform and (paradoxically?) high, then they all work together better.
+1 to a well built wheel. Either hand built, or machine built then gone over by a good mechanic in setting up the bike (or remediating the lack thereof). Very important to get the wheel TENSIONED, not just trued. A good wrench will explain the difference and will, when replacing a spoke, check the overall tension.
The reason high tension is good for keeping spokes from breaking is that it not only keeps the tension from cycling between zero and full tension on every wheel revolution (which leads to fatigue failure), but also because it forces more spokes to carry the load. When you load the wheel, the force of the ground tries to push the wheel out of round, and the job of the spokes is to keep it round. If the spoke tension is too low, it goes (ever so slightly) out of round, and the few spokes at the top are carrying all the load. If the tension is correct, all of the spokes get involved in keeping the rim from deforming, and the ones at the top see less total load since they're sharing it with the others.
Tensioning wheels is easy if they're not already in bad shape - just give each nipple an equal twist to tighten up the spoke. If your tension is already uneven or the spokes are already fatigued, though, doing this may just hasten the inevitable failure.