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**ncmired** · 06-01-2018, 10:10 AM

For a rear wheel, especially electric assist, I'd go with 36. A common believe is that, with 36 spokes, the wheel will better tolerate a single spoke failure. As in, if you carry a spoke wrench, you'll be able to pull the rim into a stable position and get home with a 36 spoke wheel.

Before I rebuilt my 36 spoke factory wheel with quality spokes, I was suffering spoke failures fairly consistently (crappy & brittle spokes), but the wheel never failed (as in, potato-chip). In some cases I didn't even know a spoke had failed until cleaning the bike.

**calfee20** · 06-01-2018, 04:31 PM

Originally posted by theronchaplin View Post

I'm planning a new wheelset build for my Montague Paratrooper and thought I'd try to get some answers from the knowledgeable folks here. For the rear wheel, I'm wanting to build up an Alfine 8, it comes in 32 or 36 from what I can gather, as do most of the rims I'm looking at.

1. Does 32 or 36 spokes matter all that much for an electric bike? I'd just assume go 32 unless 36 is going to make it significantly stronger.
2. The one thing I haven't narrowed down is a front hub. I'd like it to be compatible for QR as I take the front wheel off every time I fold it up. I don't need the best, but I want something that's strong and a good value. Any suggestions?

Thanks for your help!

I pulled this from a Sheldon Brown article.
How Many Spokes?

Up until the early 1980s, virtually all adult bikes had 72 spokes.
32 front/40 rear was the standard for British bikes, 36 front and rear for other countries. The exception was super-fancy special-purpose racing wheels, which might have 32 spokes front and rear.

The Great Spoke Scam: In the early '80s a clever marketeer hit upon the idea of using only 32 spokes in wheels for production bikes. Because of the association of 32-spoke wheels with exotic, high-performance bikes, the manufacturers were able to cut corners and save money while presenting it as an "upgrade!" The resulting wheels were noticeably weaker than comparable 36-spoke wheels, but held up well enough for most customers.

Since then, this practice has been carried to an extreme, with 28-, 24-, even 16-spoke wheels being offered, and presented as it they were somehow an "upgrade."

Actually, such wheels normally are not an upgrade in practice. When the spokes are farther apart on the rim, it is necessary to use a heavier rim to compensate, so there isn't usually even a weight benefit from these newer wheels!

This type of wheel requires unusually high spoke tension, since the load is carried by fewer spokes. If a spoke does break, the wheel generally becomes instantly unridable. The hub may break too; see John Allen's article.

If you want highest performance, it is generally best to have more spokes in the rear wheel than the front. For instance, 28/36 is better than 32/32. People very rarely have trouble with front wheels:

Front wheels are symmetrically dished (except with disc brakes).
Front wheels carry less weight.
Front wheels don't have to deal with torsional loads (unless there's a hub brake).

If you have the same number of spokes front and rear, either the front wheel is heavier than it needs to be, or the rear wheel is weaker than it should be."

I have been using 36 spokes in the rear on all of my bikes. If the front has 32 I am ok with that. Going the 36 hole route can be hard because there are not as many part options. I managed to buy 3 Alec DX32 36 hole rims. I like these because they can be used with rim brakes and you never know where you may want to swap a wheel to. I couldn't find any tonight but I only searched for 5 or 10 minutes. I did find a Sun Ringle that I will suggest on a friend's experiences with heavy hub motor builds. http://www.niagaracycle.com/categori...h-presta-black

I am fond of Sapim Strong spokes. I used this seller just a week or so ago and I think I will switch to him now. http://www.ebay.com/itm/SAPIM-STRONG...BnCr91rr365XyQ

I have been getting a lot of stuff from Universal Cycles and they have free shipping on orders over $150 http://www.universalcycles.com/shopp...80&category=80

I hope this didn't come off like me telling you what to do...………….calfee

**theronchaplin** · 06-02-2018, 06:18 AM

As far as front hubs go, this one seems to be a good value:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007A8LHRK/?coliid=I3PZJKTXG4460U&colid=24K4DYOWUAXNY&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1&psc=1

It's a QR, disc capable, good reviews and budget friendly. Unless I hear something bad about it, this is probably the one I'll get.

**calfee20** · 06-02-2018, 08:05 AM

Why not stick with the Paratrooper hub? On my Paratrooper Pro I could see maybe a wider rim but for a front wheel I have left mine alone.

**calfee20** · 06-02-2018, 01:05 PM

What are you going to do about the rear rack? When you install the Alfine the stock rack won't fit. Montague makes an Alston which is belt drive with an 11spd Alfine and if you could get the appropriate parts from them you would be in business. I sent them an email about it and of course I didn't get an answer. I was going to make some long axle nuts and turn some custom spacers on my lathe to make it fit but I have been using that Rack I have for Slimline batteries so I can carry an extra battery.

With the two batteries I have a minimum of a 70 mile range.

**calfee20** · 06-02-2018, 05:04 PM

Another way to lace a cross 3 wheel. The spoke lengths and the strength are the same. I tried this on and old wheel and the pattern didn't pop enough for me to do one. The most interesting part is near the hub and a rotor would cover most of that up.

**commuter ebikes** · 06-02-2018, 06:04 PM

Originally posted by theronchaplin View Post

I'm planning a new wheelset build for my Montague Paratrooper and thought I'd try to get some answers from the knowledgeable folks here. For the rear wheel, I'm wanting to build up an Alfine 8, it comes in 32 or 36 from what I can gather, as do most of the rims I'm looking at.

1. Does 32 or 36 spokes matter all that much for an electric bike? I'd just assume go 32 unless 36 is going to make it significantly stronger.
2. The one thing I haven't narrowed down is a front hub. I'd like it to be compatible for QR as I take the front wheel off every time I fold it up. I don't need the best, but I want something that's strong and a good value. Any suggestions?

Thanks for your help!

32 spokes are good for saving weight. 36 spokes are good for added strength (e.g. a cargo bike application).

A lot of people's decisions regarding 32h or 36h lie in the availability of hubs that meet their criteria. If you are open to choosing both the hub and rim that you want and having the wheel built, you will get more options.

I think that 36 spokes are plenty light and 32 spokes are plenty strong.

I would (and do) choose 36 spokes for a cargo bike that takes a beating.