rear spokes on an e bike

moldy

Finding my (electric) wheels
Mar 29, 2024
7
1
I have a 5 year old carrera vengeance ebike and its now un ridable due to more spokes breaking and coming loose ? the man in the local bike shop said he cant do spokes ?? and doesnt know which ones to buy for it ?? so I will need to take it to a wheel specialist and have it re built ?? seriously ? re built due to maybe 5-6 spokes ??
 

saneagle

Esteemed Pedelecer
Oct 10, 2010
4,180
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Telford
I have a 5 year old carrera vengeance ebike and its now un ridable due to more spokes breaking and coming loose ? the man in the local bike shop said he cant do spokes ?? and doesnt know which ones to buy for it ?? so I will need to take it to a wheel specialist and have it re built ?? seriously ? re built due to maybe 5-6 spokes ??
When the third spoke breaks in any wheel, it shows some problem is present, so you need to get the wheel rebuilt. You can take the broken spoke out and measure it to get the length, then buy a set from Ryan. You should buy 14g spokes as replacements, even if your present ones are 13g. 14g give a better ride and fewer problems.


Wheelbuilding is not too difficult if you follow Sheldon Brown's guide.



Use a 4-sided spoke key, not one with a U-shaped slot.

Correct type:

Incorrect type:
 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,814
30,379
I have a 5 year old carrera vengeance ebike and its now un ridable due to more spokes breaking and coming loose ? the man in the local bike shop said he cant do spokes ?? and doesnt know which ones to buy for it ?? so I will need to take it to a wheel specialist and have it re built ?? seriously ? re built due to maybe 5-6 spokes ??
You don't need a wheel specialist, just a bike shop worthy of the name. Clearly your local one is incompetent, so go to the next one until you find someone who is competent.

Or do it yourself, that isn't impossible since I've seen many in here learn how and succeed from online advice.

N.B. Post crossed with Saneagle's.
.
 

moldy

Finding my (electric) wheels
Mar 29, 2024
7
1
You don't need a wheel specialist, just a bike shop worthy of the name. Clearly your local one is incompetent, so go to the next one until you find someone who is competent.

Or do it yourself, that isn't impossible since I've seen many in here learn how and succeed from online advice.

N.B. Post crossed with Saneagle's.
.
thank you all
 
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Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
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To get the correct length spoke simpy remove a good spoke and measure it.
Sapim Strong 14g SS from Ryanspokes/Ryanbuildswheels.
 
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moldy

Finding my (electric) wheels
Mar 29, 2024
7
1
You don't need a wheel specialist, just a bike shop worthy of the name. Clearly your local one is incompetent, so go to the next one until you find someone who is competent.

Or do it yourself, that isn't impossible since I've seen many in here learn how and succeed from online advice.

N.B. Post crossed with Saneagle's.
.
thanks
 

Sturmey

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 26, 2018
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Halford's (who supply and sell the Carrera) according to their website do
  • Wheel build/spoke replacement
 
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thelarkbox

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 23, 2023
691
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oxon
Having re-laced a wheel myself for the first time at the end of last summer its a doddle,, the hardest part for me was to source the right size spokes,. and while not the best solution amazon prime saved the day allowing me to buy and return only to replace with 1mm longer etc.. with a rapid turn around

to measure a spoke removed for sizeing,(if you have one available), find a ruler which measures from the end and hook a spoke over that end of the ruler, and read off the length, subtracting 1mm for stretching.

If using a multi spoke spanner with lots of sizes, tape off all the sizes you dont want to use, it will save hours....

an old spoke makes a good tool for threading end caps into wheel recesses.

be mindful anazon spoke sets at least, come with exactly 36x spokes and caps.. dont loose any..

And when it comes to beating up your just trued wheel for the first time wheel, dont hold back :)


One or two youtube vids on the subject and you will be well prepared,
 
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egroover

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 12, 2016
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Checkout my post here, this guy will rebuild your wheel with a stronger rim and 14g spokes if you can't find anyone local to you

 
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guerney

Esteemed Pedelecer
Sep 7, 2021
10,222
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Checkout my post here, this guy will rebuild your wheel with a stronger rim and 14g spokes if you can't find anyone local to you

Good info. I'd certainly pay £113 for a trued handbuilt 20" wheel, if he does 20" with wide rims, I'll ask.
 

matthewslack

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 26, 2021
1,627
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Poor man's guide to wheelbuilding:

Take them out and replace with new one at a time! Then you always have a fairly true wheel with less stress on the wheel builder.

But I agree, it is not as hard as you think.
 
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AndyBike

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 8, 2020
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If you want to build a wheel you're first going to need to buy a spoke machine.
This Phil Wood is ideal. A snip at a smidgen under £6k

........
Very simple to use.
You select the length of spoke you need on the measuring gauge, set that.Decide which thread you want and put in the die. Then place on a new uncut and full length spoke and turn the handle.
The machine cuts the spoke to the exact length and rolls the correct thread on it. It doesnt cut the thread, it cold forges it so no metal is lost, which would weaken it.

If you go to a specialist wheel builder, or someone who calls himself such and doesnt own this machine, he's an amateur.
 
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moldy

Finding my (electric) wheels
Mar 29, 2024
7
1
Halfords looked at the wheel found about 4 broken or missing plus a few loose and said around £170 to rebuild the wheel??? so I am going to buy the spokes from the man whom I was given his details and get a man from the bike shop near me to try and put them in and see what happens otherwise what to do ?? I cant afford £170
 

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
20,131
8,230
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West Sx RH
Halfords looked at the wheel found about 4 broken or missing plus a few loose and said around £170 to rebuild the wheel??? so I am going to buy the spokes from the man whom I was given his details and get a man from the bike shop near me to try and put them in and see what happens otherwise what to do ?? I cant afford £170
The wheel needs a complete rebuild with 14g good spokes , if spokes are routinely snapping and there are already missing spokes then the original build is sub standard.
 

thelarkbox

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 23, 2023
691
219
oxon
Halfords looked at the wheel found about 4 broken or missing plus a few loose and said around £170 to rebuild the wheel??? so I am going to buy the spokes from the man whom I was given his details and get a man from the bike shop near me to try and put them in and see what happens otherwise what to do ?? I cant afford £170
For £170 i would certainly have a go myself even if well outside my comfort zone.. When replacing spokes 1 at a time the worst calamity would be loosing a spoke nut in the wheel recess and that just takes a bit of shaking to resolve (as long as you keep track of the nut as it escapes..) but again if only replacing a few the odd loss is no big deal.
 

matthewslack

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 26, 2021
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Halfords looked at the wheel found about 4 broken or missing plus a few loose and said around £170 to rebuild the wheel??? so I am going to buy the spokes from the man whom I was given his details and get a man from the bike shop near me to try and put them in and see what happens otherwise what to do ?? I cant afford £170
Don't worry, you can do this. Take your time, don't rush, do one spoke at a time to gain confidence.

I was forced to have a go back in October when I broke three spokes in my rear wheel 400 miles from home.

You will likely need to remove disc and cassette / freewheel, and you will need to replace or patch the rim tape. I have used duct tape for patching, it works pretty well because of the reinforcing mesh.

The moment you have replaced one spoke successfully, you are in control, and at about £1-2 per spoke, well under £170.
 

saneagle

Esteemed Pedelecer
Oct 10, 2010
4,180
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Telford
You can't do one spoke at a time without bending the spokes all over the place. There's a sequence you have to assemble them, which is explained in the Sheldon Brown guide linked above. I'd take all the spokes out then start from the beginning.

Before you start or buy the spokes, it would be a good idea to check whether the present spoke lacing is conventional with each spoke through one side of the hub on alternate sides. With some hub-motors, the wheel is built assymetrically with all spokes on the same side of the hub fd through from the same side. Finally, the wheel could be built with an off-set.

What all that means is that there could be different length spokes on each side of the hub, so you should check the length of one from each side.
 

matthewslack

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 26, 2021
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Maybe not in a 20 inch wheel, or with a very large diameter motor. I found in my 700c non-hub motor wheel there was no issue. Any gentle bending needed to persuade a spoke into position is pulled out when the spoke is tensioned.

A full build is daunting. One spoke is not!
 

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