Tire spoke question
07-26-18, 08:43 PM
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Tire spoke question
I have a 2014 Trek 2.3 with 700c wheels. Both rims have 24 spokes. Broke my first spoke on the rear tire this evening. Was wondering how these tires would hold up to my 210 body. Have ridden this bike on a brevet and a few populaires and I like the way it feels as it is lighter than my Trek 520. Have about 2500 miles on the wheels before the first spoke break.
Looking to to have a new wheel built for the rear with 32 or 36 spokes to better hold my weight. Will running two different wheels with different spoke counts affect handling? I would guess this affects weight, so that is the reason for not altering the front rim. Comments?
Looking to to have a new wheel built for the rear with 32 or 36 spokes to better hold my weight. Will running two different wheels with different spoke counts affect handling? I would guess this affects weight, so that is the reason for not altering the front rim. Comments?
07-26-18, 10:49 PM
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The 32 or 36 spoke wheel may be heavier, but other than its weight I don't think you'll notice anything different. Mismatched wheels will not affect the bike's handling.
The rear wheel often carries 50% more weight than the front wheel, so you may be okay with the 24 spoke wheel in front, but we cannot know the future.
The rear wheel often carries 50% more weight than the front wheel, so you may be okay with the 24 spoke wheel in front, but we cannot know the future.
07-27-18, 11:34 AM
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More in rear makes sense. A touring bike I built up a year ago has 32 in front, 36 in rear, but that is a touring bike that can carry panniers on front and rear so I need more on both front and rear than you do.
I think it is logical to have more spokes on a dished wheel like your rear too. I assume your rear rim is not one of those offset ones.
I think it is logical to have more spokes on a dished wheel like your rear too. I assume your rear rim is not one of those offset ones.
07-27-18, 03:34 PM
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I went to my LBS and had the spoke repaired and the wheel trued. I did not have the tool to take the cassette off. While I was there, I was talking with the store manager and he had a loaner Velocity 36 spoke wheel available. So he swapped the cassette and it is not on my bike so I can take a test ride. The hub is one of those that makes a little more racket than I am used to, but it was a free loaner to see how things go. Thanks for the replies and I will report how the feel differs.
07-27-18, 07:43 PM
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Took the new rear wheel out this evening. Seemed fine, but hard. So I let a little air out as the LBS pumped up to 110 psi as prescribed. Then it hit me. Last few weeks I have been running my tires 25 -30 psi lower to try and soften the ride. I ran 2500 miles on this bike with no broken spokes and now get one when running pressure a little lower. Could that have been a contributing factor to the broken spoke? My old tire had 24 blade spokes. Have a loaner 36 spoke tire that I will take out tomorrow on a longer ride. I will run with the softer tires, but even at 36 spokes, will I still have a chance of busting a spoke?
07-27-18, 08:11 PM
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low pressures are fine. Your weight shouldn't be a problem either. The broken spokes were most likely due to low spoke tension. I would ask the shop to check the tension.
Last edited by unterhausen; 07-28-18 at 10:27 AM.
07-28-18, 05:55 AM
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I tour with the weight of my camping gear on 36 spoke wheels, I would have a greater chance of a breaking a spoke on a bike tour than you probably will have with an unladen bike running the same number of spokes.
My road bike has 28 spoke wheels on both front and rear, I do not notice any difference in ride between those wheels and 36 spoke wheels, other than the 36 spoke wheels are laced up to robust (heavy) rims designed to carry a heavy load.
Avoid the potholes and have a great ride.
07-28-18, 01:46 PM
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More in rear makes sense. A touring bike I built up a year ago has 32 in front, 36 in rear, but that is a touring bike that can carry panniers on front and rear so I need more on both front and rear than you do.
I think it is logical to have more spokes on a dished wheel like your rear too. I assume your rear rim is not one of those offset ones.
I think it is logical to have more spokes on a dished wheel like your rear too. I assume your rear rim is not one of those offset ones.
Thanks for everyone's input.
07-28-18, 04:30 PM
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... maybe a 36 spoke wheel might be a good investment. I think I will get another wheel built for this bike and probably get another cassette installed on the wheel, so it is an easy swap out of the rear wheel if I am on a longer ride or anticipate having a bikepacking seat bag along for the ride....
.... I did go out today with the loaner wheel and it made some noise - tinny sound. Not sure if that was due to the type of spokes. But it ran fine, ....
.... I did go out today with the loaner wheel and it made some noise - tinny sound. Not sure if that was due to the type of spokes. But it ran fine, ....
Did the loaner wheel have a spoke protector? My road bike came with one, as the wheel rolled the spoke protector would rub on the spokes and make a noise. Was not loud at all, but riding on a paved trail with minimal wind I could hear it. I eventually removed it.
07-28-18, 05:26 PM
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I think a well built wheel with 24 spokes will work well, I have a 24 spoke rear wheel I use on brevets and many other hard rides and haven't had a lick of trouble with it. I did have a spoke break on the front though, which is kind of unusual... it was in the middle of a 400K and the wheel survived the rest of the ride and was able to be repaired. I am thinking of doing 28 or 32 spokes for a gravel wheelset in the future but that bike has had its 24 spoke rear wheel rebuilt with lubricated spokes and it hasn't given me any more trouble, but the original factory build was breaking spokes since the nipples had seized. I rode it with a 24 spoke front and an old 36 spoke touring wheel in the back, didn't really notice much difference between the wheels. There's not heaps of weight to save with a few spokes though so I would just find a good wheelbuilder and get something made well.
