What to look for when buying the new rim (assembled with spokes)

Asked by: Nick Steen

Do I need to change spokes when changing rims?

Depends on the condition of the wheels … if the spokes took hits, are somewhat twisted, etc., then change them. If condition is good, reuse them but use new nipples any way. Replace spokes and nipples on new build. To re-use is amateur.

How to choose wheelset?

Look at the sidewall of your tire to find the tire size that will correspond with your new wheel size. On road bike tires, you’ll see a number pairing such as 700×23. The first number (700) is a size which roughly corresponds to the outer diameter of the tire in millimeters.

How to buy a Bicycle rim?

You should always choose your rim width based on how wide of tires you’ll be running. Running wider tires, with narrow rims can make your tires feel too tall and mushy, the sidewalls are having to do more work than they should be, and the cornering knobs can’t engage as well.

Are more spokes better?

Your wheel spokes number also determines impact resistance. The more spokes on your wheel, the better it is in terms of preventing impact damage.

What size spokes do I need?

Generally, there is a one-to-two millimeter range of acceptable spoke length for a wheel. If you want to build with non-differential spoke selections, and the two spoke lengths are only one millimeter different, select the longer length for both sides, and the wheel will typically be fine.

Can I use old spokes?

Unless a spoke has a kink that cannot be straightened by hand, it can be reused.

Does rim depth matter?

The stability of a wheel is affected primarily by rim depth and profile. The deeper the rim profile, the more aerodynamic the wheel will be, however, the trade-off is that the deeper the profile, the more it will be subject to getting knocked around by crosswinds.

What rim depth Do pros use?

A consensus is always reassuring – and we got that when we asked Suzuki the same question. “Having evaluated many leading brands’ wheels and having designing some in my bike-industry career, my recommendation for performance or race-focused consumers would be 40mm-50mm wheels.

Why do most car wheels have 5 spokes?

Cast wheels generally have five spokes due to their engineering design. A 5 spoke wheel is strong enough to support the weight of the car and yet not disturb the harmonics of the wheel. In 5 spoke wheels, any one spoke has two directly opposing spokes that will reduce the effect of torsional vibration.

What is included in a wheelset?

They have bearings and axles inside, and on the drivetrain side either threads for cogs or a “freehub,” that the cluster of gears (called the “cassette”) mounts on. Cassettes are sold separately. All our wheels come with quality hubs that are built to last, easy to service and super smooth.

How long should bike wheels last?

“The lifespan can fall within a pretty huge window,” he explains. “In the worst cases, riders may experience rim lifespans as short as 1500 miles, and in the best cases perhaps up to 12000 miles!

When should I replace my bike rims?

Quote from video: Right if you're breaking spokes all the time. Or the real nightmare here is when the nipples start to break so old ally nipples become really brittle. And sometimes even if you're going to try and

What are the strongest spokes?

Double Butted Round Spokes



Double butted spokes are generally very strong, however spokes with 1.5mm center sections can be challenging to build at higher tension due to twisting.

Is it better to have spokes too long or too short?

For most folks, too long or two short really doesn’t matter as long as it’s within about 2 mm, so just round to whichever stock size is closest to ideal. If you go beyond the 2 mm, it is better to be a little short than long.

What tension should spokes be?

Most rims have suggested ranges from 100 to 120 Kilograms-force, or 980 to 1177 Newtons. This is assuming there is no pressure in the tire. Though not super precise, squeezing is still a more accurate technique for judging spoke tension than feeling the amount of effort it takes to turn a spoke nipple.

When should I replace bicycle spokes?

A faulty spoke might break anywhere. If an otherwise undamaged spoke has snapped at the thread or in the straight section between rim and hub, it was probably faulty. A faulty or damaged spoke should simply be replaced.

How do you replace all spokes?

Quote from video: Very simply you can measure one of the other spokes of the wheel to get the right length. You go from the inside of the elbow. Right to the tip of the spoke.

How do I change a bike spoke?

Quote from video: See if there's any more broken spokes if you have one broken spoke in place you can replace it if you have two or three usually need to replace the wheel it could be very far out of tension basically

Is spoke Prep necessary?

Quote from video: So by habit I used the blue for the drive side and the tan for the non-drive side and then with the spoke. Prep. It's important not to use too much you want to dip it just to the threads.

What size are my bike spokes?

Quote from video: The way we do that is by screwing a spoke on each end of a nipple threading. It through opposite sides and then you can take the measurement of the difference in length.