New Wheels needed?

pfishuk

i have 2015 Giant defy 0 which I've been very happy with, kept on the stock wheels (Giant P-R2) with the plan being to replace when they wore out. recently I've been through 3 rear wheel spokes, one today went on a flat straight road with no bumps, just popped 17 miles from home.

wheels have done around 2500 miles over last year.

LBS keep replacing the spokes said they couldn't see anything wrong with the wheel but if it kept happening then it might need a replacement.

so the question is do i keep replacing spokes or get some new wheels, I don't have a massive amount of spare cash so what would be a good alternative to the Giant wheels on a budget? don't mind 2nd hand / eBay.

Bike is used for commuting 17 miles a day plus a ride out at the weekend.

cheers

964cup

Get a proper wheelbuilder to look at the wheel. I doubt you've worn it out in 2.5k miles, and Giant should be using half-decent spokes. Are you a 'larger' gentleman?

Otherwise the usual Mavic Aksium (£130/set), Shimano RS010 (£85/set), Wiggle Cosine 24 (£61/set) replacements should be similar in weight and quality to your existing wheels without breaking the bank.

pfishuk

Not massive (not skinny mind) around 91kg and dropping after Christmas!!

964cup

That puts you + bike at 100kg or so, which is asking quite a lot of the spokes, but ISTR Giant have a 130kg rider weight limit, so that shouldn't be the issue. Like I say, get a wheelbuilder to look at it.

cycleclinic

It is spoke fatigue. On a wheel that is not build up to standard i,e lowish tension or variable tension spokes fatigue more quickly than they should. Spokes can also break becasue they have been damaged by the chain going into the mech. In this case you get the break in the butted section next to the damage. When one spoke breaks yes get the spoke replaced but lkne up a new wheelset as others will follow. Riding on a wheel with a broken spoke just accelerates the fatigue. You can replace the spoke again but another will break and it is impossible to say when. If a wheel comes into me with a wear and tear fatigue failure i always advise a wheel rebuild with new spokes or a new wheels the reason being replace the spoke means another will go at some point and you cant tell when and that can be riding ending. It may seem ott but any wheel that is up to the job of being a wheel should not break spokes unless they have been.

The wheel can be rebuilt with all new spokes also but that is only wise if the resulting wheel is going to be stiff enough. Stiff wheels result in longer spoke life. Also find out before deciding if the freehub on your wheel can be sourced as a spare before commiting to a rebuild. If it can't this is time to get a new wheel for which hub spares can be sourced,

To give context low spoke count is not a barrier to the wheel being reliable. Myself and my commutor is 100kg or a bit more. I carry load on the back too not allt most days thouh. The wheels are 24 spoke disc brake wheels using a 27mm deep and 25mm wide rim. Spokes are cx rays. There are 11000km on these now and i know they will do three times this. So 100kg is not asking alot from the spokes.

Wheels are not a minefield. I hope this spells out your two choices, rebuild or new wheel.