How To Repair A Broken Bicycle Spoke

A cleaved spoke is annoying, but not terribly hard to fix. Here's how.

Spokes beak for three main reasons: a manufacturing fault, damage, or metal fatigue. In the latter two cases, the spoke normally breaks at the the bend just before the spoke passes through the hub flange. A fatigued spoke volition snap correct on the curve. A damaged spoke has normally been damaged past the concatenation over-shifting off the largest sprocket and will fail most the curve, with obvious gouges where the chain has dug in.

A faulty spoke might break anywhere. If an otherwise undamaged spoke has snapped at the thread or in the direct section between rim and hub, it was probably faulty.

A faulty or damaged spoke should simply be replaced. In a properly congenital cycle, stainless steel spokes don't fail through fatigue, so a fatigue failure can be the first of many. Two or more fatigue failures means the all-time choice is to rebuild the whole wheel with new spokes.

Tools & Materials

• Replacement spoke
• Spoke key
• Nil ties

1. Remove the wheel from the bicycle, and so remove the tyre, tube and rim record, unless your rims are tubeless models with  fully sealed rim bed, with no access to nipples from backside. Unscrew the threaded end of the broken spoke from the nipple.

Inspect the nipple flats for wear. If they're tatty, now is a good time to supercede it. This i looks to be in good shape, and so it can stay. Poke the other cleaved end out of the hub flange.

2. This item spoke bankrupt in the most usual spot, the rear drive side. These spokes are carrying most of the bulldoze forces and can likewise be damaged past an over-shifted chain.

Remove the cassette to access the spoke hole in the flange. Hither we're unpicking the spoke from the ones it crosses from hub to rim, noting whether information technology passes over or under the others. On a traditional three cross lacing pattern, a spoke would become nether, under, over the three other spokes on its fashion to the rim.

3. You'll need to buy a suitable replacement spoke. Spokes come up in dissimilar lengths, depending on the hub and rim you lot're lacing together; they're available in 2mm length incrememts. The right length is important; likewise short and the spoke won't laissez passer into the rim bed for support, leaving the nipple carrying the torque loads. As well long and the nipple will bottom out on the unthreaded spoke shaft, or the end of the threaded portion could (on low contour rims) poke through the rim record, causing puncture adventure. On-line spoke length calculators are a bang-up way to find out what spoke length you need. Ours is a perfect lucifer.

4. Getting the spoke into the hub flange tin can be a job, especially on rear drive sides, where spoke length is brusk and hub shell width is narrow. Navigating a disc rotor doesn't aid, though you lot should be able to do it without removing the rotor. Don't be afraid to flex the spoke to go it lined up with the flange spoke pigsty, you'll need to nowadays the very end perpendicular to the flange otherwise the spoke threads volition catch. Make sure you lot enter the hub flange from the correct side.

5. Sometimes the new spoke head won't want to seat squarely straight away, the spoke tin can take a bit of jiggling and flexing to get it orientated so it points in the right direction and the head sits flat confronting the the hub flange. Make sure when you thread the spoke that it follows its assigned pattern. Here it'due south a three cross pattern, so our new spoke  passes over two spokes and under the third (non in shot) earlier engaging the nipple.

half-dozen. The new spoke will overlap the finish of the nipple, so you'll need to flex the spoke a bit to get it to line up with the open stop of the nipple.

If you've removed the rim tape, it is possible for the nipple to get pushed inside the rim and rattle well-nigh. It'll usually autumn out with a gentle shake. Utilise the threaded terminate of your cleaved spoke to hold it in position while the new spoke is engaged. In one case a turn of thread is accomplished, the quondam spoke tin can exist discarded.

7. With the terminate of the spoke engaged, tighten the spoke with the appropriate size spoke cardinal. Use a defended spoke key, not one in a multi-tool as they're often poorly finished and can lead to damaged nipples. We like Park Tool's keys and the Spokey; the Park Tool 1 is in shot here.

8. Once the new spoke is in position, you lot tin can either finish the truing chore with a wheel truing stand up, or if you don't take one, you can improvise, every bit nosotros've done here.

Place the cycle back in the frame. Position ii small naught ties, one on each seat stay or fork leg (depending on which wheel yous're working on) at rim level and bending the ends so they but clear the extremes of whatsoever run out. The zip tie ends act as visual guides to the tension adjustments you brand as you return the bicycle to true.

Replace your cassette, if yous've had to remove it. Then when you're happy with the true of the wheel, replace the tape, tube and tyre.

Source: https://road.cc/content/feature/replacing-spoke-8-easy-steps-get-working-wheel-165173

Share this post