Originally Posted by
pdlamb
Those cracks radiating out from the spoke hole look like the result of overtension -- spokes are too tight.
I can't think of a way undertensioning could result in a pattern like that, outside of overcorrecting a bent rim on a single spoke.
I wouldn’t say that you can tell. Both under- and over-tensioning can result in the same kind of damage. An overtensioned wheel will crack because the spoke is changing tension each time the spoke is unloaded and reloaded at the bottom of the wheel. An undertensioned wheel will do the same. It’s the flexing that causes the problem.
Additionallly, the wheel manufacturer also says it’s undertensioned.