Dear all,

I'm considering to buy the used (and cheap) wheels you see in the picture, but the seller can't tell me if the spokes are made of stainless steel, galvanized or zinc plated. He just said that they are quite shiny. Is it possible to tell the material from the picture (click to zoom)?

Thank you!

Judging by the rims, I'd say Stainless. It'd be really odd to see rims of that quality laced with galvanized spokes.

That's really what I hope...

A magnet will tell you immediately. Galvanized spokes have carbon steel under the coating. Stainless steel spokes are non-magnetic 300-series stainless. Some stainless steel spokes may show very week magnetic attraction but the difference between them and galvanized (or cadmium plated) spokes will be dramatic.

I agree, those are awfully good rims and highly unlikely to have been built up with galvanized spokes.

Thank you,

I know this method, but I'm buying on the Internet, so I can't perform the test myself...

I'd be extremely surprised if they're not stainless. If I were buying the wheels I'd care more about, are they butted or straight gauge? If they're butted I'll say 99.99% chance they're stainless.

Not that straight gauge spokes should be a deal breaker but they're not as nice as butted.

I agree that it's rare for hand built or even quality factory aftermarket wheels to be built with plated spokes, but it's not unheard of.

Judging ONLY by the photo, and the color they LOOK more like plated spokes. Stainless spokes have a pronounced yellowish cast to them, and these are showing as the same silvery gray as the rim and hub. Of course lighting and other factors come into play, and the nickle plated nipples which are also yellowish also appear silvery.

I suggest that you have the seller perform a magnet test and confirm that they are stainless, and at the same time whether they are plain gauge or butted before you buy.

Galvanized are not shiny...

Galvanized means zinc plated.

No, galvanized is a hot-dipped process; zinc plating is done electrically...

Sort of, but not quite.

Zinc plating, often called bright zinc, is an electro-plating process, the same as chrome, nickle, cadmium etc. The finish will be very bright and shiney when new, but dulls over time (slowly).

Galvanized steel has the zinc applied either by dipping into molten zinc, or by a mechanical process where the zinc is pounded by tumbling in a mix of zinc powder and steel balls. Both processes apply a much thicker coating than plating does, and it has the dull finish of a Cyclone fence immediately.

So, yes, it is zinc, but no it isn't the same.



a much thicker layer than plating does

I don't see any discrepancy between what you posted and what I did; you simply went into more detail...

Why should there be discrepancy? The fact is we post posted in response to the same post, you just typed faster, while I got interrupted and didn't finish until after you. Overlapping posts by people who agree are SOP here, so not to worry.

The "Sort of, but not quite." made it sound as if you did not agree with my post.

My bad if I misunderstood (wouldn't be the first time!)...

And the guessing continues unabated. At least that's what the OP asked for this time. Galvanizing is just a trade name (marketing) which has consistently included electroplating for many decades.

I'm glad to know there are two different zinc processes. This is news to me.

Back in 1982, DT still had zinc plated spokes, and they were as Francis described. They started out shiny. I built a pair of wheels with them. Now the spokes are a very dark, almost black. I thought it a good choice for my street commuting bike. If I remember right, there was a substantial cost difference between zinc and stainless.

Actually, it was my fault. I originally hadn't quoted, then went back to do so, and clicked on the wrong post and copied the link. It's fixed now for whatever that's worth.

... and the "bright" part is a chromate conversion layer that is the final step in a typical zinc plating job. If you just plated with zinc and rinsed, the plating would get pretty dull from oxidation in no time.

Magnets stick to some stainless steels.

I went down and checked some of my spokes. The magnet did not stick to most of my stainless steel spokes.

HOWEVER, it did weakly stick to most of the DT stainless spokes. A lot weaker than the attraction to plain steel spokes, but it did stick to them.

Those wheels you found look modern enough that I would be surprised if they had galvanized spokes, and I wouldn't worry too much about it if the wheel set is a good deal.

Keep in mind that the best Craigslist deals don't last long. I just snagged a pair of wheels off of Craigslist. I called within 10 minutes of when I first saw them (although the ad may have been up for an hour or so). The guy said he wanted to meet after work at 4:00. Apparently he got a few calls from "buyers" begging to sneak in before the scheduled appointment to meet. Anyway, you snooze, you loose.

Got it; now it makes sense...

That's true but not to the 300-series (usually 304) stainless steel typically used for spokes. The 400-series of heat treatable "tool steel" and "cutlery steel" stainless steels are strongly magnetic but are not used for spokes

Sorry, no.

Galvanizing is a rougher coating commonly used for outdoor applications (think chain-link fences) whereas zinc electroplating is a thinner coating than hot dip galvanizing making it unsuitable for outdoor usage.

Plating is shiny with a uniform color so it is more decorative than galvanizing but nowhere near as rugged and definitely not the same.

As I said, all of my DT spokes were weakly attracted to the magnet. Other brands weren't.

Are you saying that the nuts and bolts used on chain-link fences are unsuitable? Please advise.

Yes, the swaging/cold working of 304 stainless can let it develop a very weak magnetic attraction but the difference between it and carbon or 400 stainless steels is obvious.