Originally Posted by
Kontact
That particular diagram (which I did not create) shows a load that is crushing the wheel. The interesting thing is how the highest spoke loads aren't directly above the hub.
I think you're getting too wound up in the semantics to appreciate the fact that the change in load on a bicycle wheel is, in fact, seen as compression on the bottom of the structure, rather than an increase in top spoke tension.
Is it "semantics" to misrepresent simple truths? The compression is only in the rim. The values listed in your diagram all show tension in the spokes.