Originally Posted by
caloso
Very interesting article. I have been annoyed by brake rub when sprinting on my 50mm carbon tubular race wheels. The front wheel only. I noticed that it has radial spoking elbows out, which means that the spokes go from the hub to the rim on the inside of the hub flange. I have considered rebuilding them with the elbows in, thereby widening the brace angle slightly. It may be enough to eliminate the brake rub. Or it may be a huge hassle for nothing....
First, I think you made an error. I think you mean "heads out" or "elbows in" (the same thing, but not what your said) which is the lower bracing angle setup. Then I think the point of the article was that making a stiff carbon rimmed wheel stiffer with spokes can't usually address a problem brought on by too stiff a rim. The force causing the deflection is at the road and hub. If you can isolate the flex there because the rim is not too stiff, then the part of the rim near the brakes doesn't have to move. If the rim is so stiff that it stays straight and just tilts at the hub instead of actually bending, then you get the movement at the brake and rub. I wouldn't think the small increase in "build" stiffness due to turning the spokes around would fix the problem. Besdes, elbows out (heads in) looks just awful. We do have to keep up appearances, after all.
Robert