^^ You weren't around for some of our discussions with Falanx over the finer points of metallurgy .

I lurked'n'left.

Well, that's a matter of semantics, I think. Any material will stretch when placed under tension, it's just a matter of how much. You could very easily make a wheel out of rubber bands, if you could find any that wouldn't exceed their elastic limit under the required tension.

And aluminum actually has a lot less resistance to stretch than steel: aluminum has a Young's modulus of 60, and steel has a Young's modulus of 200. That means that you have to make aluminum spokes thicker to achieve the same spring constant as a steel spoke. Steel also has a much higher ultimate tensile strength (860 Mpa) than aluminum (483 Mpa).

So I guess I don't see your point.

If you look at the spokes...they're hella thicker. Just like an aluminum frame tube is hella bigger than steel. Still...why would alu spokes vs. steel be any different than alu frame vs. steel?

Next thang you know, they'll be doing 8-bladed carbon spokes...or even worse...maybe a 3 bladed composite.

I wasn't trying to imply that billet made them stronger. They're stronger for other reasons (described in I9's FAQ).

Ah yes, of course. Welcome to bikeshoppingforums™, where technical discussions of leading edge cycling products are subverted in order to make room for "which clapped out early 90's POS can I get for under a hundred bucks" threads.

I9 spokes *are* larger in diameter. And steel's ultimate tensile strength is compromised when stress risers are introduced during the manufacturing process. So perhaps the difference is not as significant as you think.

No point really - just trying to help you understand why something works when you think it shouldn't.

Ya, what's up with that, anyway?

Wow...they made a disc version?

...which are all now pretty much universally regarded as having been Really Dumb Ideas.

I hadn't actually looked at the reviews for the I9's on MTBR:

People seem to have fewer problems with the 26" wheelsets. (And at least it's a good thing that I9's customer service is rated highly.)

I think I'll stick with handbuilt 32 3X with butted steel, thank you very much. And to the OP: King.

And what material will your rims and hub shells be made of?

Aluminum, definitely. Except the nipples, which will be brass. Alloy nipples suck.

For someone self titled as "humorless," your posts sure do make me laugh.

How do you reconcile the statement

with your earlier statement

and for that matter, this bridge:

I think that's about all TAG made. Guy around here rocked a set of 5-spokes on his big ol' Rotec RL9 and probably still has 'em to this day.

Remember the Spin mag? Identical to the TAG...cept it was pre-disc. Probably got the same factory to produce them.

Neither a hub nor that bridge are prestressed (or, more precisely for a bicycle wheel, pretensioned.)

Yeah, I do recall those. I'm actually pretty sure TAG was doing their own mfg right there in their Newprort Beach, CA facility. (George Kotzeff, TAG's president, came from elsewhere in the injection-molding industry.) The FRX5s were fiberglas-reinforced DuPont Zytel 8018 nylon resin (the three-spokers were CF). And I don't think durability was ever an issue with them - - they were just heavy.

They be lookin the same to me:

7075 aluminium alloy has been sold under various trade names including Zicral, Ergal and Fortal

As in these

https://www.ebay.com/itm/MAVIC-Crossm...item5646923b64

Which I was soooo close to getting.

He was in the rocket science industry iirc. I chatted with those guys at crankworx way back when. In fact, I'd probably be on them today if 1) they were competitive weight wise and 2) they had better hubs. The FRX5's were built around hugis.

And you're right, durability was not an issue. Fast forward to 3:20

How can you put a price on Purdy

Ahhh Same color scheme as mine! Only cleane,,,,, much cleaner.
I remember when mine were clean

Dam. My Campag chain rings are aluminium. Should I get rid ?

King is a better made hub IMO but the I9 with their straight and thick aluminum spokes makes the stiffest, toughest wheel out there. Simple to replace broken spokes and super helpful on the phone if you need parts. Both are great tho...

I wanna try the discombobulator!