1 x Broken Spoke, 1 x Loose Spoke

nehal

Hi All,

I was hoping someone could help me out here. On my way back home today it seems I broke a spoke on my back wheel which caused it to go untrue, in addition one of the nearby spokes was really loose. I realised half way home (approximately 6 miles to go) when I pulled over to see what the unusual noise on my bike was (the wheel was hitting the brakes). Unfortunately I did not have my spoke tool to tighten the loose one so I had to cycle back with a bent wheel.

This is the second time I have broken a spoke on my the back wheel, the previous time was about 2-3 weeks ago and I got it replaced at the LBS. I have a feeling that its most likely to do with the fact I am suddenly cycling 22 miles round trip each day and the rear wheel just isn't coping that well. I was wondering if I should take it to the LBS get it replaced as I did last time (£10), or look into something more rebuild (£20)

Some information about my bike: It is a cannondale synapse sora, I have the stock wheels that came with it which are some maddux 3.0. In general they seem okay over the 1000km I have cycled on them.

Thanks a lot, sorry for the long post.

Regards,

Nehal

mattv

Tightening the loose spoke would probably have made the buckle worse. Are you carrying a rucksack for this ride? A better stronger wheel would probably be worthwhile if you do.

cycleclinic

Re build the wheel with new spokes or get a new wheel that is able to meet your requirements. Details on your current build are needed along with your weight, what extra load you carry and what tyre width you run. There a various ways to get a relaible wheel build that will last 10,000+ miles. 200 miles a week is not much for the right wheelset.

nehal

Hi, thanks for the replies. Yeap I am carrying a rucksack although its quite light normally, just a change of clothes. The only time it is heavy is when I am carrying my u-lock in it.

I currently weigh around 74 kg, the only extra load I carry is my rucksack and the tyre are 25 mm gatorskins. The wheels I have are the ones on this page http://www.evanscycles.com/products/can ... e-ec042919 . Apparently they are Maddux 32 hole wheels with 15g stainless steel spokes.

nehal

nehal wrote:

Hi, thanks for the replies. Yeap I am carrying a rucksack although its quite light normally, just a change of clothes. The only time it is heavy is when I am carrying my u-lock in it.

I currently weigh around 74 kg, the only extra load I carry is my rucksack and the tyre are 25 mm gatorskins. The wheels I have are the ones on this page http://www.evanscycles.com/products/can ... e-ec042919 . Apparently they are Maddux 32 hole wheels with 15g stainless steel spokes.

I just realised that I my warranty for parts other than the frame is due to expire in 5 days, I think I will chase down Evans on this.

pete_s

nehal wrote:

This is the second time I have broken a spoke on my the back wheel, the previous time was about 2-3 weeks ago and I got it replaced at the LBS.

They've done a bad job. If the original spoke broke due to general fatigue they should've looked over every spoke to check them for signs of damage.

nehal wrote:

I have a feeling that its most likely to do with the fact I am suddenly cycling 22 miles round trip each day and the rear wheel just isn't coping that well.

Nope. Any cheap rim and cheap hub can be made into a strong wheel. The strength of a wheel comes from the quality of the spokes and the quality of the build (of course you can't expect a extra lightweight XC wheel to be used for DH).

nehal wrote:

I was wondering if I should take it to the LBS get it replaced as I did last time (£10), or look into something more rebuild (£20)

That's up to you and how much you can afford and whether you trust the LBS to do a good job. If they've already attempted to fix the wheel and it's broken again then maybe it says something about how good their mechanic is at doing wheels.

nehal wrote:

In general they seem okay over the 1000km I have cycled on them.

And so they should be! Spokes should outlast the life of the rim if the wheel has been built to a good standard. In fact, when your rim does need replacing and you use like-for-like the spokes can be used again. The only time when they shouldn't be is if they have signs of fatigue or they're the wrong size.

supersonic

Spokes should be stress relieved as part of the build - very few machine builds are unfortunately.

The Rookie

My commuters rear wheel has been through a few spokes in the 3000miles it's done (bought used, so total mileage unknown), either the heads snap off the nipples or the spoke snaps where it goes into the nipple (corrosion being a contributory factor), I've toyed with getting it rebuilt, but I just keep a supply of spokes and fit one when it happens, usually fitting a new one and tensioning it pulls the wheel back straight.