Broken spoke why

This will tighten the spokes pulling the rim back toward the side of the broken spoke. Never make drastic changes to the tension of a spoke at any one time.

Just make half-turns with the spoke wrench each time and check and see how true the wheel is. It is easy to go too far. Once you get it roughly straight, you can ride the wheel.

If the rim is still slightly touching the brake pads, open the brake quick-release to allow for more space. Then use your spoke wrench to loosen the nipples on the spokes in the area around the broken spoke as you tightened and loosened them to get home. However even a well built wheel can eventually reach this same point — metal fatigue on spokes happens to basically all spokes made of metal after all after enough use.

Another important consideration is the quality and design of the spokes used to build your mountain bike wheel. J-bend, straight pull, butted spokes, straight gauge spokes — and many different spoke thicknesses, and even types of metal used in the spoke or spoke nipple — all these things play a part.

It is normal for mass produced mountain bike brands to machine build the millions of wheels they require, and is quite common for the spoke quality to be on the lower side to keep their costs down — particularly on entry level or even mid-range mountain bikes.

This was the case with my wifes mid-range full suspension Liv Intrigue trail bike, and over time the spokes had just reached a point where they were failing one by one very regularly. When getting a wheel repaired or built new by your local bike shop or wheel builder, make sure you discuss with them what will work best for you, your type and frequency of riding and your weight.

The wheel was also hand built by the mechanic who is an experienced mountain bike wheel builder, which does also help. The crucial thing however is that the wheel has all new fresh spokes, properly tensioned, which are no longer all well on their way to failing.

This is the core part of the solution for almost all cases of mountain bikes regularly breaking spokes. Rougher terrain will also deteriorate the rims faster, which in turn deteriorates the spokes faster. Investing in a quality bike that is suited to your specific terrain is what will save you time, money, and energy. If you own a bike for fun or for commuting purposes , you ought to know the correct bike for your body type and environment so it can be enjoyed as intended.

There is nothing worse than riding down the street on your way to an important appointment or even simply trying to get home after a long day of work, and you hear that pop from your back tire. This article is to help you avoid that situation altogether. Spokes are no joke forgive me for that one as they maintain the entire wheel and also keep you in a straight line and moving forward.

Spokes will fatigue at some point as all metals do. This is not difficult and the technique is similar to playing the guitar. This is the spoke that needs to be tightened. This will permanently damage your tire rim and is not worth it. At this point, hop-off and push until you can get home or to a repair shop. Which leads me to my next section —.

Save some cash too through these simple steps:.