number of spokes

[fast eddie]

is there a minimum numbers of spokes in a bmx size wheel necessary for the wheel to be sturdy enough for frequent road riding? it wont be getting jumped or anything, just street cruising. i cant wait to post pics of this thing!!!!

fast eddie outty

 

[Clothespin n]

I would put as many Spokes on it...as their are
holes in The Rim!.....sorry..I could resist. :lol: :lol: :lol:

Most new BMX wheels that are decent for Road Riding and the odd Trick have 48 Spokes.
Like a Haro Freestlye BMX and the Likes.

The Average BMX Cruising Rim will have 36 Spokes.

peace,
Kev.

 

[fast eddie]

here's what i did, i took a 36 hole rim, removed the hub and spokes, and laced it with a different hub that holes more holes in the flanges than the hub i replaced, this allowed a custom spoke pattern that is symetrical and loooks very cool, then i dissassembled it again to paint some stuff to match the rest of the bike. i think the wheel will have a total of 20 spokes. there wont be any rime brakes on that wheel either. should i post pics of the wheel before i took it apart? i took some to make sure i could get it back together! fast eddie outty

 

[Clothespin n]

that sounds cool..
it will look great.

I'll let The wheel experts take it from here..
show us Pic's when it's done,



peace,
Kev.

 

[wahoonc]

Well I have seen a wheel with just 1 "spoke" before :shock: :lol: For what you are proposing if it is laced evenly I think 20 would be the bare minimum. I have had bikes with as few as 24 spokes in a conventional wheel with no problems.

Aaron

 

[new_dharma]

is there a minimum numbers of spokes in a bmx size wheel necessary for the wheel to be sturdy enough for frequent road riding? it wont be getting jumped or anything, just street cruising. i cant wait to post pics of this thing!!!!

fast eddie outty

This type of wheel requires unusually high spoke tension, since the load is carried by fewer spokes. If a spoke does break, the wheel generally becomes instantly unridable.

the big problem with running a low number of spokes is if you're a sidewalk rider...going from sidewalk-to-street-back-to-sidewalk even when the sidewalk is at ALMOST street level during the transition...you put stress on the wheel from the side increasing the chance for a bent rim/broken spoke.

 

[fast eddie]

isnt there some kind of hardware that attaches from one spoke to the other to keep em more rigid?

 

[wahoonc]

isnt there some kind of hardware that attaches from one spoke to the other to keep em more rigid?

You can tie and solder where the spokes cross. We used to do that on some rear racing wheels to stiffen them up.

Aaron 8)