spoke replacements,need advice please

GoldenMotor.com

outlawbiker

Member
Mar 15, 2009
282
0
16
Chicago NW Suburbs
recently i broke 7 spokes on my OCC stingray rear 20 x 4 1/4 rim, luckily i had a spare rim to replace it. bike shops tell me they can re-lace it but because how big the hub is they cant true it. also they tell me they can get spokes but for 75 bucks!!! ive found many places on the web that sell spokes under 20 bucks but i dont know what size to get. i would like to use a heavy duty spoke so this dont happen again,people here tell me 12 gauge is the way to go.thx for any advice or help.
 

bairdco

a guy who makes cool bikes
Aug 18, 2009
6,537
264
63
living the dream in southern california
i had to find a picture of one, and although the wheel might be difficult to true, it's not impossible. if your wheel isn't bent to begin with, it should true right up. your bike store is either lazy, incompetent, or both. it might not fit on their true-ing stand, but it'd be simple enough to do on the bike.

as far as spokes go, to get 12g. (.105) spokes, you'd need to measure the length of one of the original ones. to do this, you measure from the top at the inside of the bend to the end.

if you tell me how long, i could help you find some.

the fun part, is you'll probably have to re-drill your rim and hub. sometimes you get lucky and they fit, but usually not. if it's an aluminum hub it's a piece of cake. if it's steel, it's a pain, and you better buy extra drill bits. also, you have to have enough "meat" on the hub so it won't compromise the strength.

drilling rims and hubs is common practice, and i've done it myself with no problems, so it's no big deal.

the real problem is finding someone to do it, if you don't think you can handle it.

but if you're breaking spokes, bigger is the way to go.

if you want to spend some real money, you could probably find a motorcycle shop that could rebuild it with 10, 9, or even 8 gauge spokes. then it'd be like a motorcycle wheel. it'd be overkill, but it'd be mighty cool.
 

Kevlarr

New Member
Jul 22, 2009
1,628
4
0
Mi
The OCC stingrays only have 28 spokes don't they? I've never trusted those wheels, they look cool and all but they seem awful spindly.
 

robbdaman

New Member
May 5, 2010
44
0
0
SLO
They aren't spindly because the rims are heaftier, though spoke tension is higher as a result so they could pop easier. Either way bairdco is right that it shouldn't be impossible to tru up, just might be a lot of time to do it.
 

outlawbiker

Member
Mar 15, 2009
282
0
16
Chicago NW Suburbs
The OCC stingrays only have 28 spokes don't they? I've never trusted those wheels, they look cool and all but they seem awful spindly.
i have not counted them,but yea the spokes look far and few in between, i was almost tempted to find some one who does custom mags to do me up a solid steel/aluminum/alloy (whatever material) mag machined up for the freewheel and maybe a disc brake.. i know, i know .... way to much money to set it all up,another pipe dream.

bairdco: i dont understand your measurements, do you mean measure from the spoke in the hub out to the rim on the inside? or should i just disassemble a spoke and measure its length end to end? id think this measurement has to be on the money.
 

chainmaker

Well-Known Member
Jan 19, 2010
2,634
69
48
Ma USA
I did a 20 inch wheel a while back it used 178 mm spokes, but it was a standard width rim so yours would be different. You can check online for spoke length calculators Ive never been able to figure them out. I just went to a shop and asked them to size the spokes for Me. This Guy The Wheel Master will take your rim and drill it and the hub for 10g motorcycle spokes and build you a wheel he guarantees for life. Its expensive though. Check out Pork chop old school BMX for spokes for a 20 inch rim last I paid only .25 ea when the LBS was charging 1.75

Cheers
Chainmaker
 

bairdco

a guy who makes cool bikes
Aug 18, 2009
6,537
264
63
living the dream in southern california
ok, lemme try to explain this...

with the spoke out of the rim, you take a ruler and butt it up to the inside of the bend. basically, you're only measuring the straight part, on the inside, from the bend to the end of the threads.

like if you hooked the bend over the end of a ruler, then measured down to the ... hang on...lemme go ask Sheldon Brown.

"...with the zero end of a straight ruler touching the inside of the elbow (bend,) then measure along the entire length of the spoke all the way to the opposite end..."

got it?
 

outlawbiker

Member
Mar 15, 2009
282
0
16
Chicago NW Suburbs
ok, lemme try to explain this...

with the spoke out of the rim, you take a ruler and butt it up to the inside of the bend. basically, you're only measuring the straight part, on the inside, from the bend to the end of the threads.

like if you hooked the bend over the end of a ruler, then measured down to the ... hang on...lemme go ask Sheldon Brown.

"...with the zero end of a straight ruler touching the inside of the elbow (bend,) then measure along the entire length of the spoke all the way to the opposite end..."

got it?
yep,got it,will report back later with measurements,thx for the explanation,just wanted to make sure.