Black Spoke Query

jedi_master

Are black spokes worse then silver? I ask as my brothers rear wheel had a spoke snap about a year ago, after owning them for about a year. First ride after the spoke getting replaced, another snapped. Merlin replace the spoke and the second time they re-laced the wheel. A year on and another spoke has snapped. Where it has snapped, the visible metal looks grey and fatigued. The spokes are ACI db black spokes.

Before these wheels he had the standard wheels that had silver spokes that came with the bike, and they never had a problem, even after 4-5 years. They riding style hasn't changed either.

cooldad

Not in itself, but as they were different wheelsets, you can't compare.

stubs

ACI are good spokes I had a pair of Mavic XM719 rims on Shimano XT hubs with ACI spokes built by Merlin about 4 years ago. I have passed the wheels onto a mate when I sold my Canyon but for 3 years I battered them and only broke one spoke and badly bent 4 others when a rock smashed my derailler into the rear wheel.

Wheels are funny things I had a pair of fancy wheels from a very highly rated well known builder (no names) that spent more time in a wheel jig than on the frame and ended up in the small claims court. I have seen wheels on budget bikes that just refuse to break no matter the abuse.

mattv

Not all spokes are the same materials and lacing patterns, spoke tensions, initial true-Ness of the rim etc all make a difference. Black spokes are generally as strong if not stronger than silver with the same quality steel. Your snapping more spokes could also reflect a deteriorating road network, something we've seen in Leicester!

thelonegroover

Depends if the black ones are stailess steel under the surface, they probably are, so should be the same strength.

supersonic

Colour has nothing to do with it.

stubs

supersonic wrote:

Colour has nothing to do with it.

Red spokes make you go faster

buddy_club

stubs wrote:

supersonic wrote:

Colour has nothing to do with it.

Red spokes make you go faster

+1

The Rookie

stubs wrote:

supersonic wrote:

Colour has nothing to do with it.

Red spokes make you look like a poser

FTFY

02gf74

stubs wrote:

supersonic wrote:

Colour has nothing to do with it.

Red spokes make you go faster

surely it is blue spokes as blue light has shorter wavelength.

gt-arrowhead

02GF74 wrote:

stubs wrote:

supersonic wrote:

Colour has nothing to do with it.

Red spokes make you go faster

surely it is blue spokes as blue light has shorter wavelength.

Thats true. Because blue light is when something is moving towards you so the wavelength is compressed, and red is moving away, so its stretched. Llike stars, they have "red light" because the universe is expanding and they are moving away from us.

But red = speed. Its an unproven part of physics :P

thelonegroover

They're moving at the same speed, they just appear to be different.

njee20

The Rookie wrote:

stubs wrote:

supersonic wrote:

Colour has nothing to do with it.

Red spokes look crap

FTFY

FTFY!

Chunkers1980

I do like a red spoke in amongst black. Spokes should only be black (save for one red in some cases)

benpinnick

I reckon theres some tasty Industry Nine wheels with red spokes thrown in for good measure out there.

njee20

Nah, green I9 is where it's at.

drlodge

Any colour that's applied through anodising will weaken the spoke? Not alot I grant you, but a bit.

njee20

Probably a good job that spokes are steel, and aren't anodised then.

Chunkers1980

Actual lol

cooldad

I have Mavic and Fulcrum wheels with black spokes, and I'm pretty sure they are painted.
Anodised steel is effectively rust.

cooldad

Obviously I am poor, so look at the more pauper end of the spectrum.

njee20

But as they're not available in an unfinished state it's a completely moot point in the context of the point being made.

But yes, forgive me for not caveating my response by saying:

"good job spokes are steel except Mavic Zircal, Fulcrum bladed, Marwi ti, Pillar ti, Mavic R-Sys carbon, Mad Fiber carbon, Lightweight carbon, Industry 9 Torch spokes, among others".

Neil_aky

I had a couple of spokes break on a wheel a year ago and, as they happened to be black, I came across loads of stuff on the interweb about black spokes being weaker...

It is all just a web rumour, there is no difference between black and silver stainless spokes. Replace the broken spokes with good quality, traditional spokes (e.g. DT Swiss Champion / DT Swiss Competition); if you keep getting broken spokes then consider replacing all spokes as they can be weakened if you have been riding with a broken spoke of the wheel could have been badly built in the first place.