EKW, sorry to hear that. I had better luck. I did my 1st 100 mile ride yesterday. 50 on an old steel bike and 50 with my 24 spoke wheel on a converted hybrid. The wheel held up for the whole 50! It was nice to ride that bike. I forgot how much I like it. I'm gonna buy a new wheel, not a custom one. I'm gonna put a few easy miles on it and have them check it before I do any real commuting on it. It's a lot cheaper and I might be trashing any wheel I get so why trash an expensive one ...