cyccommute 

While I agree that a 16 spoke wheel is silly for just about any weight so is a 24 on the rear. But, that said, going to a stronger spoke is a bit like going to a higher spoke count. This article explains why. Just to be clear, I was building with triple butted spokes for about 20 years (14 years before Ric Hjertberg wrote that article). I don't necessarily agree with his statement that it's like adding 10 spokes to the wheel. I feel like it more like adding 4 but that's a minor quibble.

But rebuilding with triple butted spokes would be an option.


On the other hand, if you are going to be building...or having wheels built...you might as well address both elephants in the room. And, you might just find that a good build will give you wheels that are strong and light. I went from 20/24 Veluta wheels (2010) to a 32 spoke front and rear Pillar PSR TB 2018 spoke/Velocity A23/White Industries T11 hub and lost 2 lb of wheel weight in the process. That is nothing to sneeze at. I'm also very confident that I gained wheel strength and durability. It's not an either/or choice.

You can have light, strong, durable wheels. It's not cheap but it is possible. Save weight where you can...at the rim...and add just a tiny amount of weight where it is needed...at the spoke head bend. That minimal addition of weight at the spoke head provides far better return for your money than trying to add weight where it does nothing.