Originally Posted by
Speedway2
I was wondering why the spokes are lined up on one side instead of cris-crossed (like my front wheel)?
You mean the front wheel is built in lateral cross?
(spokes cross some distance inside the rim when viewed from ahead)
That has a (mostly) theoretical advantage - if the nipples can be made to align with the spokes. A lateral cross will improve the bracing angle, making the wheel stiffer sideways for a set gauge and spoke count. So either you get a stiffer wheel for (nearly) the same weight/air drag. Or you can build an equally stiff wheel with less spokes/thinner gauge.
However, if you have the nipples pointing vertically, and the spokes angling away as soon as they exit the nipple, I'd think that this will be a bigger disadvantage than the increased stiffness. I've killed a couple of rear wheels due to optimistic builds causing an angle right at nipple top.