Cycling UK Forum

A lot of the lists of things you should take on tour suggest that you should take a few spokes. Is it worth it if your spoke tightening skills are likely to render a wobbly wheel useless before you know it? Whenever I've tried to true a wobbly wheel, it's ended in disaster. It's a month today until our tandem trip to South West France.

Take some spokes. Our experience of a dodgy tandem wheel in France is every bike shop, car garage and candlestick maker is an expert wheel truer if you present them with the right length and diameter spoke. Some didn't even want paying but saw it as a chance to practice their skill, especially in the country and small towns. Remember mopeds are, or till very recently were, mass transport and many needed wheels mending so it's just seen as a common and necessary talent.

Yep def take some, we had a broken axle which in turn broke 2 spokes in our back wheel. Bike shop fitted new axle but did not have any right sized spokes, we supplied the spokes he trued the wheel.

Robert82 wrote:A lot of the lists of things you should take on tour suggest that you should take a few spokes. Is it worth it if your spoke tightening skills are likely to render a wobbly wheel useless before you know it? Whenever I've tried to true a wobbly wheel, it's ended in disaster. It's a month today until our tandem trip to South West France.

Zip tie them to the pannier rack, gear side to gear side pannier strut etc

Paul_Smith
www.bikeplus.co.uk

I keep my spokes in the seat post held in with a cork, drill a hole in the cork push them through

numbnuts wrote:I keep my spokes in the seat post held in with a cork, drill a hole in the cork push them through

Top tip there.

Mine went in the suitcase. Plenty room. Even took this laptop!

I remember a guy used to keep his spare spokes in his dropped handlebars - just take out the end plug. Once used in a wheel, any distortion from the bending sorted itself out.

i used to keep em taped to the seat stay back in the day.

Thanks for all your replies - so the next thing is to buy some spokes.

I have only ever broken spokes on the drive side of my back wheel, which are 2mm smaller than the other spokes. I would possibly restrict myself to carrying only that size. They could do the job of the other spokes with 2mm less thread engaged, in an emergency.

numbnuts wrote:I keep my spokes in the seat post held in with a cork, drill a hole in the cork push them through

I do the same.

I carry mine permanently.
Most of my recumbents, Broptons and Airnimal have unusual spoke lengths.

Even if I pop into my LBS it is ridiculous to expect they stock spokes to fit your unusual wheels....

Following this thread memories come flooding back to me of times spent at the side of roads replacing spokes and trueing wheels. The freewheel side was always the killer carryng a remover and the means to undo the thing. I learnt that the gates at french war cemetaries are excellent for this just outside Buzancy. But all this is memories because I haven't broken a spoke in years.
I don't know why as I'm travelling just as far on roads/tracks that are just as rough. My camping gear hasn't really reduced but it has generally got lighter over the years although I still have the same tent I had 25 years ago. I have learnt to spread the load ( shock - horror ) evenly front and rear between 4 Kendal panniers and a Camper Longflap saddlebag or 2 Kendals front and longflap rear, which has helped a lot. I don't carry a freewheel remover these days - cassettes have sorted that problem - and I don't carry spokes. Maybe I'm being complacent.
I'm trying to get to Norway this summer before the ferries dissappear totally and I'm hoping to take a recumbent which means I won't have the same options to balance the weight so maybe the days of broken spokes are due to return.
Have fun and be safe
Wallyone

numbnuts wrote:I keep my spokes in the seat post held in with a cork, drill a hole in the cork push them through

that is a brilliant idea!!