Can we talk wheels, again? (36-spoke vs 40)
I want to build a new front wheel for our Co-Mo after our 3,800-mile X-country fully-loaded on a 40H Son hub + Velocity Dyad + Schwalbe Marathon Supreme.
Team weight: 300-ish. Luggage load on bike: about 100lbs, including water. No wheel problems on the X-C except tube failures.
Reasons for wanting new wheel:
-Switch to a disc front fork/brake, partly because the tube explosion from overheated rim wasn't pleasant.
-Want to try tubeless.
But!
It seems like the only company that offers 40H rims anymore is Velocity, and the 40H tubeless options are either lightweight or pretty wide (Aileron on one end, Cliffhanger on the other)
And, what?! Judging from a search of this forum, maybe I no longer need 40-spoke (never mind 48) wheels? People are posting that with modern rim/spoke combinations, 36 or even 32 spokes should do? Even for fully-loaded touring?
Any advice appreciated, especially from real-world experience.
Last edited by sapporoguy; 09-02-21 at 09:56 AM.