Better quality back rim

On Apr 13, 1:31 pm, "[email hidden]" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I keep breaking spokes on my back rim. I checked with my local bicycle
shop, and the owner said he could replace all the back spokes with
something called "alpine" spokes which are less likely to break. I
carry my groceries on my bike, and put on around five thosand miles a
year. I use a "mountain style" bike, 26". I asked him if he could just
order a rim with those spokes already installed, but he said no. Does
anyone know of a place to order a rim already made. I have always
heard that it takes a real expert to build a back wheel, and I am sure
how much of an expert he is.
Would a 700CC bicycle be a better choice for how I ride. It would seem
longer spokes would be more likely to break.

Thanks

Tom

A pre-built wheel won't be any better than the one you have.

Building wheels is not rocket science, so any bike shop should be able
to do it well enough. Quality spokes like th DT Alpine will help. A
wheel with longer spokes would make no difference.

Joseph

On Sun, 13 Apr 2008 11:44:17 -0700 (PDT),

Quoted post said:

On Apr 13, 1:31 pm, "[email hidden]" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I keep breaking spokes on my back rim. I checked with my local bicycle
shop, and the owner said he could replace all the back spokes with
something called "alpine" spokes which are less likely to break. I
carry my groceries on my bike, and put on around five thosand miles a
year. I use a "mountain style" bike, 26". I asked him if he could just
order a rim with those spokes already installed, but he said no. Does
anyone know of a place to order a rim already made. I have always
heard that it takes a real expert to build a back wheel, and I am sure
how much of an expert he is.
Would a 700CC bicycle be a better choice for how I ride. It would seem
longer spokes would be more likely to break.

Thanks

Tom

A pre-built wheel won't be any better than the one you have.

Building wheels is not rocket science, so any bike shop should be able
to do it well enough. Quality spokes like th DT Alpine will help. A
wheel with longer spokes would make no difference.

Joseph

and I would go with some stainlee spokes and a double-walled rim.
That might do nicely

__o | Every time I see an adult on a bicycle....
_`\(,_ | I no longer despair for the human race.
(_)/ (_) | ---H.G. Wells---

Quoted message said:

I keep breaking spokes on my back rim. I checked with my local bicycle
shop, and the owner said he could replace all the back spokes with
something called "alpine" spokes which are less likely to break. I
carry my groceries on my bike, and put on around five thosand miles a
year. I use a "mountain style" bike, 26". I asked him if he could just
order a rim with those spokes already installed, but he said no. Does
anyone know of a place to order a rim already made. I have always
heard that it takes a real expert to build a back wheel, and I am sure
how much of an expert he is.

You don't tell us much about the wheel you have, what kind of riding you
do, how heavy you are, and what you're willing to spend, so it's hard to
get very specific.

In general, if you are having persistant problems with broken spokes,
get a wheel with a full complement of spokes (i.e. 36, as opposed to the
currently fashionable low spoke count ones). If you are particularly
heavy, or carry heavy loads you may want to consider even more -- 40 or
even 48 spokes. Get heavy duty spokes, like 14ga (2mm). Have the wheel
built by somebody who knows what they're doing. If you don't trust your
current shop to do so, find a different one.

--

John ([email hidden])

aka Tom Bates said:

I keep breaking spokes on my back rim. I checked with my local bicycle
shop, and the owner said he could replace all the back spokes with
something called "alpine" spokes which are less likely to break. I
carry my groceries on my bike, and put on around five thosand miles a
year. I use a "mountain style" bike, 26". I asked him if he could just
order a rim with those spokes already installed, but he said no. Does
anyone know of a place to order a rim already made. I have always
heard that it takes a real expert to build a back wheel, and I am sure
how much of an expert he is.

Any back wheel with an adequate spoke count and rim section will work if
built from decent quality parts AND properly built. Find a proper wheel
builder (several frequent these forums) or learn how to properly tension
and true machine built wheels (often the most economical choice).

Quoted message said:

Would a 700CC bicycle be a better choice for how I ride. It would seem
longer spokes would be more likely to break.

The ISO 559-mm (26-inch MTB) wheel will be stronger than the ISO 622-mm
(700C) wheel for a given spoke count, spoke type and rim section.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
The weather is here, wish you were beautiful

Quoted message said:

and I would go with some stainlee spokes and a double-walled rim.
That might do nicely

My rear rim was warped, and caused a few broken spokes, until the LBS
replaced it with a double-walled rim. End of problem.

rms

Quoted message said:

I keep breaking spokes on my back rim. I checked with my local bicycle
shop, and the owner said he could replace all the back spokes with
something called "alpine" spokes which are less likely to break.

Your problem is related to build quality, not component quality. But
no tweaking of the spokes you have will cure things-- once you get a
few broken spokes, more are surely on the way.

Quoted message said:

I use a "mountain style" bike, 26". I asked him if he could just
order a rim with those spokes already installed, but he said no.

He's wrong. Prebuilt wheels are common and usually the most
economical choice, but they need to be conditioned by hand to give
their best durability. (I would not necessarily trust your local shop
to do that.) However, since you put a lot of miles on your bike and
carry loads with it, it probably is best if you have someone build up
a wheel from parts picked especially for your application.

I recommend an Alex DM24 rim laced with straight gauge 2.0mm spokes to
your own hub or one that matches the rest of your drivetrain. Use a
wheel with 36 spokes rather than 32, if you have the choice.

http://aebike.com/page.cfm?PageID=30&action=details&sku=RM7496

Quoted message said:

Does
anyone know of a place to order a rim already made. I have always
heard that it takes a real expert to build a back wheel, and I am sure
how much of an expert he is.

You could always try a more qualified shop in your area. If that
doesn't work, you could contact Andy Muzi at 608-257-4737. He's a a
frequent contributor here who operates a bike shop in Madison, WI.
His shop is willing to send things out to wherever you are, and
they'll do a good and trustworthy job building up a new wheel. Harris
Cyclery in West Newton, MA and Vecchio's in Boulder, CO are also good,
knowledgeable shops that are well-known in this newsgroup and will
deal with you by mail order.

Quoted message said:

Would a 700CC bicycle be a better choice for how I ride. It would
seem longer spokes would be more likely to break.

700c wheels are intrinsically weaker for their weight, but that has
nothing to do with spoke length. They are physically larger than
mountain bike wheels, so they must be heavier to have the same
strength. Built with like components, 700c wheels should have
strength very similar to 26" wheels.

If your bike is in good shape, there's probably no practical reason to
switch to one with a different wheel size.

Chalo

Chalo said:

Quoted message said:

I keep breaking spokes on my back rim. I checked with my local bicycle
shop, and the owner said he could replace all the back spokes with
something called "alpine" spokes which are less likely to break.

Your problem is related to build quality, not component quality.  But
no tweaking of the spokes you have will cure things-- once you get a
few broken spokes, more are surely on the way.

Quoted message said:

I use a "mountain style" bike, 26". I asked him if he could just
order a rim with those spokes already installed, but he said no.

He's wrong.  Prebuilt wheels are common and usually the most
economical choice, but they need to be conditioned by hand to give
their best durability.  (I would not necessarily trust your local shop
to do that.)  However, since you put a lot of miles on your bike and
carry loads with it, it probably is best if you have someone build up
a wheel from parts picked especially for your application.

I recommend an Alex DM24 rim laced with straight gauge 2.0mm spokes to
your own hub or one that matches the rest of your drivetrain.  Use a
wheel with 36 spokes rather than 32, if you have the choice.

Hah! That'll do it. You probably won't want to use a tire narrower
than 1.7" or so with such a monster. Inside diameter is 24mm.
Strrrrong and cheap. I'm loving the DM18s I built up last month--I can
just take the groceries in a straight line now and the wheels don't
care...curb? What curb?