corroded spokes - replace or just clean?
 

I just picked up a no-name bike with 7spd Shimano RS100 (or is it RSX100?) road group on it - cranks, shifters, brake, levers, hubs, etc with Araya CT-19N rims. Has a real ugly black and pink fade paint and no sticker for tube type so I'm assuming it's plane gauge steel (26.0 seat tube). Paid $60, which at first I thought was good, but getting it home I'm thinking I paid too much. It looks to have sat outside for a while as there are bits of rust on most of the steel fasteners.

Under good light at home the spokes all looks to have a whitish coating on them and rust on many spots. They do not shine at all. I tried some 0000 steel wool on them but then thought maybe there's a solvent I should try. I'm surprised to see rust on the spokes because I thought most spokes after 1990 or so were SS not zink plated steel.

Then I thought maybe I should ask here to see if I'm wasting my time. Will these spokes start breaking once I true the wheels and start riding? They are plain gage spokes. I could remove spokes from each wheel and measure them, order new ones, and re-spoke it.

As well the rims have no eyelets - should I be concerned, and if I re-spoke it should I put in washers or something? No cracks or even brake wear on the rims, just weathered looking.

It's a low end group.

4 years ago when I had a community shop build me a touring frame to commute on we tried to keep the budget under $400. We ordered new shimano wheels with mavic rims and galvanized spokes. What a joke those pieces of crap were. I'm still running the front with 90% seized nipples and nothing remaining of the original hub but the shell, seriously, I have even replaced the cups. The rear only maintains the shell and original cups the wheel having been relaced after the rim failed. Anyway they still make wheels with garbage spokes. I wouldn't bother cleaning and I wouldn't bother relacing. Spray the nipples inside and out with liquid wrench and let them sit for a day then true them and ride them.

^^^^ thanks for the advice cyclotoine.

Sounds like I'd better rebuild the hubs and check for worn races...:( I did get a decent 7 speed HG cassette with it, so the $60 wasn't all wasted. :) I'll put most of the group onto the commuting bike I'm working on (a frame I rescued from the 'curbside') and sell the frame for $30.

Yup, we've all had buyer's remorse.
I once paid $30 for a fair Cannondale MTB. Once I got it home, $10 was more fitting.
;)
$60 sounds a bit high for the level of equipment and condition of the bike. Surprisingly, cheap spokes (ie. galvanized or plated) are used more often than you'd expect. A Trek 830 and Bianchi Nyala MTB that I fixed, both didn't have SS spokes. The Trek spokes are rusting. And get a rub down with steel wool when required. A coat of wax will help, or spray them with clearcoat or paint.

Definitely stick with SS spokes. As the years and miles build, they are the only ones that last and stay looking nice. Blingy chromed Ridelli spokes I got talked into are now rusting and dull. Black spokes get dinged and look like ass.

You can make 'em look better by rubbing them down with steel wool. You definitely aren't gonna hurt anything but your time budget.

I tried a bit of that tonight - they're even worse than I thought. :( Under the layer of dust and crud is some pretty thick corrosion, especially where the spokes cross. Steel wool makes them smoother but that's it - they're dull and ugly forever. The rims are astoningly clean and straight - like the bike was never ridden but left outside for several years. I feel like rattle canning the wheels flat black...;)

Here's the tally of good parts

RX100 crank (mottled with spots) with 53/42 rings (steel?) in good shape
bottom bracket
105 FD
RX100 RD
RX100 indexed DT shifters
RX100 dual pivot brakes,not bad, surface rust on springs and bolts
RX100 levers with good hoods
RX100 hubs
HG cassette (13-26?)
Araya CT19N rims
one 57cm gaspipe lugged steel frame with horizontal dropouts, with 'sporting' geometry and barely enough clearance for 28 tires.
and
64 rusty spokes

Maybe I should jump on the fixie bandwagon with it - which means spending even more money on it!

:( Trying to feel better about the $$ spent, but seeing NOS RX100 brakes sell for $9 on ebay doesn't help!

I know plenty of people who routinely spend more than $60 on lunch, you could have done worse.

If the spoke tension is even and the wheel is true wait till the damn things start breaking. If they are soft and gushy...then they are likely a lost cause.

Priming then painting galvanised spokes black works really well and makes for a much better appearance. Done properly they will remain looking good though all kinds of weather and are easy to keep clean.

I picked up a Trek 720 Multitrack with galvanized spokes .078" diameter. The rear spokes were rusted from the X point out to the rim. Visible threads not bad for rust. The nipples are aluminum. In cleanup they got mild soap and hot water, air dried. Next day I went over them with green Scotchbrite followed by a wipe down of Liquid Wrench Silicon Lube allowing some down into threads.

The climate is dry and dusty, Baja California Sur.

I am just getting back into bikes after 50+ years. I am new to forum and have not seen any comments on use of silicon spray on bikes.
It worked like a solvent and removed old dried oil and grease from ends of hubs and the gear sets.

The solvent in the Slicone Lube spray that keeps the silicone in suspension is what's degreasing the parts. I bit pricey as a cleaner, fine if the bike isn't too dirty. The silicone will lube and protect and make cleaning easier later. But for lubing, there are better choices. For serious degreasing, I prefer mineral spirits. Doesn't harm paint, plastics or rubber.
The only time I use silicone spray on my bikes is to remove mtb rubber grips from bars.
Used to have a Trek 700 that I flipped, a nice bike!
BTW, welcome to the C&V forum. It's a cool place with fine folks willing to help, and an oasis of information.

I was just cleaning up some rims and spokes from '81. The rims cleaned up really well, but the spokes took some more work. I sprayed them down with WD 40 then used 600 grit sandpaper. After that, I used stainless steal cleaner (only polish I had handy) and they turned out really nice. If you have some time to kill and you like to tinker, they can turn out nice.

I'd be very cautious with the silicone lube when working that close to the braking surfaces. It's very slippery stuff and if you get it on the brake pads, things could get ugly very fast...

I'm not a huge fan of boiled linseed oil, but I do use it on non-stainless spokes because it will form a dry protective coating.

"I'd be very cautious with the silicone lube when working that close to the braking surfaces. It's very slippery stuff and if you get it on the brake pads, things could get ugly very fast..."

Agreed. The bike needs new tires/tubes and the rear rim needs to be trued a little before ride. Figured to wipe the rim sides down with alcohol to make sure they are clean. The brake pads are over 15 years old and plan to replace them.