28 spokes vs my weight

Hi there, I am currently in the planning stages of putting together a fixed gear road bike. I am
trying to keep the cost down by buying some of the components used. One option is a set of 28 spoke
Mavic Open CD rims laced to Phil hubs, low flange front, high flange flip flop track hub rear. 15/16
ga front spokes, 14/15 ga rear.

I weigh 200 pounds. For the last couple years I have been happily using a set of Mavic Helium wheels
on my road bike, have never had a problem. However, I very quickly wanged a 28 spoke front
wheel(several broken spokes) on my mountain bike a couple of years ago after having a 28/34 set
built with King hubs/Bontrager Valiant rims. So my experience leaves me with a mixed opinion. This
bike will be used for training purposes, mostly on flat pavement. I plan to use a front brake on
this bike. Any opinion will be helpful. I have nothing against 36 spoke wheels at this point, and I
am not necessarily trying to build a super lightweight, it is just the fancy hub for a good price
thing turning me on.

In article <EUEib.767$kZ5.331@twister.southeast.rr.com>, Jim D
<nospamdigriz_jim@yahoo.com*.._no*spam> wrote:
>Hi there, I am currently in the planning stages of putting together a fixed gear road bike. I am
>trying to keep the cost down by buying some of the components used. One option is a set of 28 spoke
>Mavic Open CD rims laced to Phil hubs, low flange front, high flange flip flop track hub rear.
>15/16 ga front spokes, 14/15 ga rear.
>
>I weigh 200 pounds.

Not a great choice for a long-lasting wheel.

Keep in mind that low-spoke-count manufactured wheels generally use a pretty stiff rim. An Open Pro
with 28 is not enough for your rear wheel. That doesn't mean it's going to explode but my guess is
you won't get to make very many mistakes while riding on it or it won't hold up.

"Jim D" <nospamdigriz_jim@yahoo.com*.._no*spam> wrote in message
news:EUEib.767$kZ5.331@twister.southeast.rr.com...
> Hi there, I am currently in the planning stages of putting together a fixed gear
road
> bike. I am trying to keep the cost down by buying some of the components used. One option is a set
> of 28 spoke Mavic Open CD rims laced to Phil
hubs,
> low flange front, high flange flip flop track hub rear. 15/16 ga front spokes, 14/15 ga rear.
>
> I weigh 200 pounds. For the last couple years I have been happily using a set of Mavic Helium
> wheels on my road bike, have never had a problem. However, I very quickly wanged a 28 spoke front
> wheel(several broken
spokes)
> on my mountain bike a couple of years ago after having a 28/34 set built with King hubs/Bontrager
> Valiant rims. So my experience leaves me with a mixed opinion. This bike will be used for training
> purposes, mostly on flat pavement. I plan to use a front brake on this bike. Any opinion will be
> helpful. I
have
> nothing against 36 spoke wheels at this point, and I am not necessarily trying to build a super
> lightweight, it is just the fancy hub for a good price thing turning me on.
>
If you insist on using 28hole hubs, get some CXP33s or CXP30s. Deeper Vs are going to support you
better at 200#.

Since this is a training bike, why not make it so it'll last? 36 hole stuff is out of favor right
now with most of the cycling world, so you should be able to pick that stuff up fairly
inexpensively. Worst case: find a 32 hole FW wheelset and make it work. Hint: American Classic still
sells their track axle kits, so you can turn your old Am. Classic hub into a fixed gear wheel fairly
inexpensively.

Mike

"Jim D" <nospamdigriz_jim@yahoo.com*.._no*spam> wrote in message
news:<EUEib.767$kZ5.331@twister.southeast.rr.com>...
> One option is a set of 28 spoke Mavic Open CD rims laced to Phil hubs, low flange front, high
> flange flip flop track hub rear. 15/16 ga front spokes, 14/15 ga rear.
>
> I weigh 200 pounds. For the last couple years I have been happily using a set of Mavic Helium
> wheels on my road bike, have never had a problem.

You should be fine with 28 spoke track wheels, assuming they're stress-relieved of course. Others
will say not, but the wide flange spacing in the rear makes it possible.

> However, I very quickly wanged a 28 spoke front wheel(several broken spokes) on my mountain bike a
> couple of years ago after having a 28/34 set built with King hubs/Bontrager Valiant rims. So my
> experience leaves me with a mixed opinion.

How did the spokes break? Stress relieving helps reduce the frequency of broken spokes,
often to zero.

> > However, I very quickly wanged a 28 spoke front wheel(several broken
spokes)
> > on my mountain bike a couple of years ago after having a 28/34 set built with King
> > hubs/Bontrager Valiant rims. So my experience leaves me with a mixed opinion.
>
> How did the spokes break? Stress relieving helps reduce the frequency of broken spokes, often
> to zero.

I'm not sure how they broke, I was just riding along on a trail, next thing I knew I was on the
ground with broken spokes and a bent rim. Maybe I hit a bump at the wrong angle.