Broken Carbon Spoke

wayneabs
wayneabs Posts: 63
in Workshop
Hi everyone,

I have just noticed one of the carbon spokes on my front wheel is broken. No idea how it happened, just randomly looking down at the wheel while stopped and saw daylight through the spoke.

The wheel is an old school Mavic Cosmic SR which I believe is from around 2012ish

I did ride the bike home which was about 20km and didn't notice any physical difference to the wheel. It still feels quite solid even when I push it.

I can't find a spare spoke anywhere on the internet, so am I resigned to the fact of losing the whole wheel? :'(





Comments

  • webboo
    webboo Posts: 6,087
    11 years is not a bad life for a wheel.
  • wayneabs
    wayneabs Posts: 63
    webboo said:

    11 years is not a bad life for a wheel.

    Sadly I've only had the bike a month! Got it second hand off Facebook.

    Tarmac SL2
  • webboo
    webboo Posts: 6,087
    That’s not good.
  • wavefront
    wavefront Posts: 397
    Perhaps have a chat with Lee @ Zed Wheels. He uses carbon spokes on his builds and maybe be able to help source one for you or suggest a suitable replacement in another material?
  • wayneabs
    wayneabs Posts: 63
    wavefront said:

    Perhaps have a chat with Lee @ Zed Wheels. He uses carbon spokes on his builds and maybe be able to help source one for you or suggest a suitable replacement in another material?

    Ok will do thanks
  • super_davo
    super_davo Posts: 1,228
    I am pretty sure that on those Mavics you can't change the spokes, because they are bonded to the hub. More modern carbon spokes have standard ends with truable nipples that you can completely replace. That is what Zed and other brands will use today, but have only been around for 3 years or so.

    You might be able to get a carbon repair specialist to fix it, but at that age I wouldn't want an expensive repair and would replace. I'm sure there will be rim wear, and wheel tech has come on a fair amount in 11 years such that you'll get equal or better performance from a reasonably budget set.
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,325
    edited July 2023
    there was a thread with a similar issue and the owner also could not get hold of the spoke. I don’t seem to be able to find it anymore… it was early in the year, around January.
    The spokes are double threaded and meet at the hub, where they overlap to each other, so they can indeed be replaced, the problem is that there are no replacements available, because Mavic are a bunch of axxeholes.


    In the other thread I came up with a possible solution, which would involve buying a long steel spoke, they seel them for Penny Farthing restorations and get it cut to length and threaded on the other side too. Then it is simply a matter of fitting it to the existing pattern. It will look wrong and silly, but it should do the job and avoid having to skip a perfectly usable wheel.
    The other option is to recycle the rim and build it over a new hub with standard spokes… it is a 20 holes rim, so plenty of options available for not much money. Either way, don’t throw it away… there are options
    left the forum March 2023
  • MidlandsGrimpeur2
    MidlandsGrimpeur2 Posts: 2,127
    OP - Hopefully the whole bike is fine but as you have bought it 2nd hand and the wheel is like that I would be wondering if it is possible crash damage. Probably not as it is a single spoke but might be worth giving the whole bike a proper once over if you haven't already done so.

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