Suggestions for new heavy duty rear wheel
rwillett
Posts: 6
Hi,
I've just come back from a week in Belgium/Holland and had the same problem as last year of broken rear spokes and a slightly buckled rear wheel. This time the spokes broke just as we cycled off the ferry in Dover this afternoon
Last year the cobbles of Ypres did for me, so at least I managed the whole trip without an emergency visit to a bike shop which is an improvement.
However I'm tired of my rear wheel breaking spokes, and buckling and so am looking for suggestions for a heavy duty wheel wheel that will stand up to the rigours of London, i.e. kerb hopping and pot holes as well as the cobble stones of Belgium.
I'm so far behind the times on bikes that its untrue and am baffled by the sheer variety of stuff on offer.
My bike is a hybrid Ridgeback from about 15 years ago, though in that time I've replaced the front wheel, the back wheel (twice), the seat, the handlebars, the gear levers, the pedals, the brake levers, the cables, the seat post, the chain and the cassette. I think the handlebar stem is original though
and the paintwork. The bike gets used a lot for commuting into London and I can't quite justify a new one (though I suspect I'm close to having a new one). It fits me so I'm happy. It has 700mm wheels and I run Schwalb Marathon Plus tyres (35mm?) to keep the punctures at bay. It has what I consider ordinary caliber brakes (i.e. not disc).
I've looked through this and other websites to get an idea of replacing my rear wheel with something thats stronger and will take my 15.5st weight and the bashing I give the bike in London and the continental cobbles. I've seen suggestions for various rims (Mavic) and different hubs such as LX and spokes but was struggling to find something recent and that all fitted together. e.g. would it be better to go to a wheel builder or buy the bits myself and get someone to assemble and fit them. Does the cassette on the read make a big difference?
I'm not overly bothered about looks, so something flash is of no appeal, I don't want anything that requires high maintenance, in fact I want a heavy duty wheel that just fits on the bike and I can forget about it. I realise the weight will be increased (or expect it to be), but since I weight 15.5st its unlikely to be a major issue for me.
My budget is up to £100 as I'm tired of stuff breaking.
I'm sure I've forgotten something important but any friendly advice such as local, non-chain shops in SE London who I'd be happy to buy from, and suggestions on rims/hubs/spokes or complete wheel builds would be very much welcomed.
Thanks for reading this far and apologies if I've missed something vital.
Rob
I've just come back from a week in Belgium/Holland and had the same problem as last year of broken rear spokes and a slightly buckled rear wheel. This time the spokes broke just as we cycled off the ferry in Dover this afternoon
Last year the cobbles of Ypres did for me, so at least I managed the whole trip without an emergency visit to a bike shop which is an improvement.However I'm tired of my rear wheel breaking spokes, and buckling and so am looking for suggestions for a heavy duty wheel wheel that will stand up to the rigours of London, i.e. kerb hopping and pot holes as well as the cobble stones of Belgium.
I'm so far behind the times on bikes that its untrue and am baffled by the sheer variety of stuff on offer.
My bike is a hybrid Ridgeback from about 15 years ago, though in that time I've replaced the front wheel, the back wheel (twice), the seat, the handlebars, the gear levers, the pedals, the brake levers, the cables, the seat post, the chain and the cassette. I think the handlebar stem is original though
and the paintwork. The bike gets used a lot for commuting into London and I can't quite justify a new one (though I suspect I'm close to having a new one). It fits me so I'm happy. It has 700mm wheels and I run Schwalb Marathon Plus tyres (35mm?) to keep the punctures at bay. It has what I consider ordinary caliber brakes (i.e. not disc).I've looked through this and other websites to get an idea of replacing my rear wheel with something thats stronger and will take my 15.5st weight and the bashing I give the bike in London and the continental cobbles. I've seen suggestions for various rims (Mavic) and different hubs such as LX and spokes but was struggling to find something recent and that all fitted together. e.g. would it be better to go to a wheel builder or buy the bits myself and get someone to assemble and fit them. Does the cassette on the read make a big difference?
I'm not overly bothered about looks, so something flash is of no appeal, I don't want anything that requires high maintenance, in fact I want a heavy duty wheel that just fits on the bike and I can forget about it. I realise the weight will be increased (or expect it to be), but since I weight 15.5st its unlikely to be a major issue for me.
My budget is up to £100 as I'm tired of stuff breaking.
I'm sure I've forgotten something important but any friendly advice such as local, non-chain shops in SE London who I'd be happy to buy from, and suggestions on rims/hubs/spokes or complete wheel builds would be very much welcomed.
Thanks for reading this far and apologies if I've missed something vital.
Rob
0
Posts
36 hole Rigida Sputnik rim on Tiagra hub? As it's a hybrid it might be best check your rear dropout spacing in case it's more than 130mm. If in doubt phone Spa for a chat.
Thanks for the information. thats the sort of things I'm after.
I'll give them a call.
Rob
retired 9.6kg Carrera Kraken
The Carrera Hardtail combined thread - come on all you Carrera's!
The Sons Scott Genius RC20 build
'Somebody' could build a wheel themselves for this price
In all seriousness, I'll never get it trued properly and I'd never feel happy with it. I know what I can do well and what I can't do well, sadly wheel building is one of my not very good skills
Thanks for the suggestion though.
Rob
_
OK, I'll have a look for the book and see if I think its doable.
Thanks for taking the time to reply.
Rob
Everyday Commuter
Mines that age as well. I'll have a look later today and see if I feel up to building a wheel. My heart says yes, but my head says "mmmmm....."
Rob
I'm fairly handy with tools. Fix bikes, cars, computers, domestic appliances etc. Still not taken the plunge and tried wheel building though. Might give it a go in a couple of years when I retire.
In your position, since it's a rear wheel and you need it to commute on, I'd be buying a handbuilt wheel having discussed my requirements (including dropout spacing) with the wheel builder.
Then as a project I might try building a front wheel to match it...
half the battle with building a wheel is lacing it correctly with the correct length spokes - not an issue for the above
Got pretty good at truing wheels on the kids' bikes and on my MTBs. Pretty easy on 36 spoke wheels. Never had to replace a spoke on any of them. More recently I've got the hang of truing my RS10's, and replaced a broken D/S spoke in the rear. Trickier with so few spokes to play with, but ultimately successful.
I do so little braking on my rural rides that I think by the time I wear out the rims the rest of the wheel will be knackered too. It's not really economically sensible to rebuild wheels like RS10's; the spares cost more than a new wheel.
So in retirement I'm hoping to build some Archetypes on Ultegra hubs, and I'll do a front wheel first
cool. yes factory wheel rims not really economical but tend to last pretty well
retired 9.6kg Carrera Kraken
The Carrera Hardtail combined thread - come on all you Carrera's!
The Sons Scott Genius RC20 build
This exactly. And if you do decide to use Roger's book - 1. it is worth paying for it via his site rather than using one of the versions floating around the web, 2. don't take short cuts / do it the "obvious" way - instead follow his instructions to the letter