Originally Posted by chuckdupp
maybe its just that until the last year or so i didnt care therefore notice things like a radial build. it definately is abit of a fad, ill probably do it next time i build a wheel just cause it looks cool though
some hub manufacturers have a clause that voids the warranty if you radial lace them, and there's a good reason: when cross lacing, you end up with two adjacent spokes on the rim going to opposite or near-opposite sides of the hub. when you hit a hard bump or drop off a curb the force is distributed to those opposite sides. when laced radially, the force of that bump gets concentrated on one smaller part of the hub flange and makes it more likely to crack.
I've heard in general that only forged aluminum hubs should be laced radially, and CNC'd aluminum should not be.