Walk me through buying spokes for a 26 inch cruiser project.

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DJ Bill

DJ Bill

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Hey RRB'ers, time to order up a set of spokes for my Roadmaster... How do I know what size(s) to get? I was getting stuff ready for the sandblaster today so in a fit of" It's gotta be perfectness", I popped the spokes out of the rims so the wheels can be blasted without ruining the hubs. I wired all the spokes together so as to keep track of them and their order but eventually I will unlace the hubs too. Anyhow, it was pretty obvious the spokes had rusted enough that they were not going to be reused, some had stretched pretty badly as they were pretty thin. Only three broke off between the two rims. My universal spoke tool zipped most of them right off using the size 15 slot in it to turn the brass nipples. I think I need to measure from the inside of the bend to the end of the spoke, right? Fronts are 270mm. Rear are also 270, which sounds wrong to me. ND model D hub rear. And as far as gage goes.....??? I get .087 at the threads to .078 at the bend and even less in the middle of the spoke. One spoke appeared to be single butted and the rest are just plain spokes that look to be the same size throughout but I guess the stretching and rust took their toll.

Lastly.. a few recommendations on where to buy a set of either unpolished stainless or plain plated steel spokes for the bike would be appreciated. I don't want anything fancy, just safe and decent looking. Wheels were chrome but will end up painted silver due to cost restraints and the fact that the chrome is all gone anyway. (No, it isn't savable...)

Thanks for any suggestions.. I know , it is a newbie question, but ya gotta start somewhere.
 
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It appears to me they are both 3-cross. I guess I will actually have to remove a spoke from each hub to measure...

Where's a good place to buy spokes when there is no LBS??
 
Original would have been 268 to 270mm, double butted .080 by .060., 4 cross front and rear (you are probably not counting the first one near the very head of the spoke). I search ebay and Amazon for the cheapest vendor, or buy from Niagara online.
 
I've pulled many wheel sets apart and the front and rear spokes are the same size, with the same lace pattern. It's because if you calculated the correct spoke length for a wheel, you would find the hub flange diameter doesn't change the spoke length that much. Having said that, I have ordered 270 spokes and used them for many 26" wheel, front and rear, without issue.
 
wheelfanatyk wants another quarter for each nipple... danscomp has each spoke with the nipple for 0.25... so, it's like you're buying the nipple and getting the spoke for free!
 
PS- If you're looking for oversized custom-length spokes, check out http://holmeshobbies.com/Sapim-Stainless-Custom-Spokes.html
A l'il more spendy, but more options for gauges and whatnot. Nerps included in price. I haven't completed an order with Holmes yet, but i just ordered 80 13g spokes for my truck bike project.... super-short for the 20" drum front, and normal for the 26" c/b rear...
 

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