Spoke length

[petehouk]

Hey everybody. I am building a set of wheels...I used the spoke length calculator on Sheldon Brown's web site to get the lengths I need. It said that I need 259.3 mm for the rear and 254.6 for the front.

Can I split the difference and get 256 mm for front and rear? Just how close do they have to be?

Thanks

Pete

 

[hubgearfreak]

Can I split the difference and get 256 mm for front and rear?

course you can, it's your money. there's a chance it may even work :?

i've built dozens of wheels, and wouldn't do it.

if you're using box section rims, where the spoke end is within a well and not poking the tube, then round up is the best bet

if you're using a single skin rim where the tube rests on the nipple, maybe rounding down is best but if you over do it you risk having threads still showing between spoke and nipple, which would upset my sense of aesthetics. however, if you round up you'll possibly have the extra task of filing the ends off each spoke where it protrudes past the top of the nipple, but a problem that can be solved, whereas the other problem can't be.

for your figures, i'd go 254 & 260. after all 0.7 or 0.6mm isn't far out at all.

good luck

 

[petehouk]

I am using Mavic XM117 rims. They have a box section and it is pretty far from the ends of the spokes to the inner tube. I am not worried about the spoke ends causing flats by poking the inner tube. I am a little worried that if the spokes are too long, then the nipples would bottom out before I had them tightened enough.