f650 snapped spokes - Horizons Unlimited

**JLawton** · #1 18 Jul 2005

Hi, I have snapped several spokes in my rear wheel. They have snapped where the head of the spoke goes through the eye in the hub.

Anybody any ideas why so many would snap at once? or is it more likely that some have been snapped for a while but the wheel has still managed to maintain itself until a critical spoke went ping and then everything started to wobble.

**Grant Johnson** · #2 19 Jul 2005

Welcome to the HUBB!

Very often when one spoke goes, it starts a train of breakages. When one breaks, it's loss increases the load on the others. You should always replace a broken spoke ASAP.

If you aren't familiar with trueing wheels, get a pro to do it for you, as you can easily cause more damage by mistightening.

If you have broken about 10 or more, my strong suggestion is to get a whole new set of spokes and relace the whole wheel. Sounds drastic, but in my experience it's actually the easy route in the long run.

You can save some money by swapping out all the spokes yourself, and taking it in LOOSE to a pro for final tightening and trueing.

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Grant Johnson

Seek, and ye shall find.
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One world, Two wheels.
www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

**JLawton** · #3 19 Jul 2005

thanks, I found an old man with a garage full of rims and draws full of spokes who has been fixing wheels for the past 127 years. He also said i needed to replace all the spokes and rebuild the wheel.

Prior to the 'big collapse' the bike did wobble a bit a high speed and in the past week had started pulling slightly to the right when you take your hands off the handlebars. I think this suggests some spokes were allready snapped. Hopefully when i get the wheel back everything will be rosy. I'm off to lake district on thursday so best to get it sorted.

cheers

**LordStig** · #4 26 Jul 2005

Sounds like a wheel builder I know. Did this man, er, have legs? The drawers of the wheel builder I'm thinking of are all at ground level, but man does he know what he's doing!

Stig

**JLawton** · #5 26 Jul 2005

he had legs but had lost some marbles. he lives in sible hedingham, essex, did a really good job and was a very nice chap.

**LordStig** · #6 29 Jul 2005

Ah, certainly not the same one unless he's grown some and used them to move to Essex! There is a lot of priceless experience out there that just isn't getting passed on.

Stig

**Margus** · #7 29 Jul 2005

Also if you got one or few spokes cracked and carry spare on the road you may put them on. The correct tighness can be indicated via sound - click them all with screwdriver or some other metal piece lightly, you can hear the tone spoke makes, the higher tone - overtightened, lower tone - undertightened. Just compare the sound with others, and step by step get the right tightness for the one you're replacing by geting the same tone to it as others have. It's just like calibrating musical instrument you know, just all the strings (spokes) play the same tone

Margus

[This message has been edited by Margus (edited 29 July 2005).]