Buckled wheels; broken spokes

ajoten

Hopefully not completely dumb questions -

What causes wheels to buckle and how can I avoid it?
What causes spokes to break and how can I avoid it?

Andrew
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I am a bear of very little brain and long words bother me

Garybee

The answer to both questions is the same really...crappy road surfaces. You can avoid pot holes to the best of your ability but you're bound to bounce through the odd one occasionally. The heavier you are (and the weaker your wheels are) the more likely it is that you will do some damage.

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Hypocrisy is only a bad thing in other people.

monty_dogcp

Poor quality build is you answer - inconsistent and incorrect spoke tension means that the load on the rim and spokes isn't even, so if you suffer at impact, a spoke will break and send the whole wheel out of true. If the spokes are consistently and correctly tensioned, the wheel as a whole is stronger and more able to withstand impacts - within reason. A poorly built wheel will go out of tension quicker and therefore buckle and break spokes - a propoerly built wheel will probably stay true for longer and require less attention. If your wheels are constantly goining out of true, try taking them to an experienced wheelbuilder, but basic wheels use low grade componenents and you can never get them to last that long anyway.

Uncle Phil

Both the above answers are true. Here's another factor: riding style. Some riders just sit on the saddle like a sack of potatoes regardless of what they're riding through or over. Others are more responsive and shift their weight forward or back to let the bike pivot underneath them, and this has to make life easier for their wheels.



"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot
Nothing is going to get better. It's not"
- Dr Seuss

Give Baby Elephants Room!

ajoten

Hmm. I guess the more expensive the wheel the longer it will last, but should I be taking wheels in to be "serviced" regularly? The local shop told me I might as well buy a whole new wheel when I brought in one with a broken spoke (œ250 bike, so not great wheels). On my other bike (œ500, so presumably better wheels) a spoke got pulled away from the rim, leaving a hole in the rim.

Andrew
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I am a bear of very little brain and long words bother me

ajoten

Er - is this kinda thing any less likely to happen with suspension? Or smaller wheels/fatter tyres etc?

Andrew
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I am a bear of very little brain and long words bother me

AndyGates

Suspension's more about roadholding (and pillowy bounce). If we ignore the extremes of crazy drop-off nutters, mostly with wheels it's about having a good wheel well made.

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