Originally Posted by
Peterpan1
"Let's talk 26" wheels here for a moment. Do you really think 36 or even 32 is necessary?
I have 36-spoke, 26" wheels on my Surly LHT. On a unloaded century ride from beyond San Francisco to Santa Cruz I hit a bridge joint at high speed at the bottom of a hill. I was forced into it by a motorcycle illegally passing creating a four-abreast situation (right to left: me, car, motorcycle, car-coming-the-other-way). This broke the plies on the Conti Travel Contact rear and very, very slightly set the rear rim out of round producing a barely noticeable bumping for the rest of the trip. Replaced the tire and trimmed up the wheel...No problems for several thousand miles since.
But, it is possible to knock a 36-spoke, 26" wheel shod with 26 x 1.5 tire out of true. (I weigh about 170 lb.)