Thread: Popped a Spoke
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Old 03-09-20, 11:14 AM
  #13  
cpach
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Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Mt Shasta, CA, USA
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Bikes: Too many. Giant Trance X 29, Surly Midnight Special get the most time.

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For a single broken spoke, it really can just be bad luck, and there are manufacturing tolerances to the wire steel itself that the spokes are made from. If you keep breaking more it means that the wheel has been overloaded repeatedly and the spokes have all undergone excessive fatigue from being detensioned and retensioned during use.

If you brought your wheel to me at the shop I work at and just told me to replace the spoke, I'd replace the spoke and bring the wheel into good true while improving the overall wheel tension balance, and would check to see if any spokes were significantly above or below the average tension and correct them if possible (assuming a relatively straight rim). My tolerance for this kind of work is a lot looser than my (very tight) tolerance for a new wheel build unless otherwise requested. If the overall wheel tension was way off I'd hopefully catch that when initially service writing, otherwise I'd give you a call and advise bringing the tension closer to optimal and charge for an additional 10-15 minutes of labor.

I'm a little more detail oriented with wheel work than some mechanics, so if you have any specific requests for service do just state them explicitly. Find a shop that does higher end custom wheel builds on a regular basis if possible.
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