Need individual spokes? Check out our range of bicycle wheel spokes; aero spokes, double butted spokes, j hook spokes, stainless steel spokes & more.
Need custom cut spokes? At Abbotsford Cycles we take wheel building seriously, we stock Phil Wood spokes & use a Phil Wood spoke cutter to custom cut spokes to suit your wheelset. Call us at our Melbourne bike shop in Richmond to discuss with us the spokes you need & we can get you back on your bike.
Is the gauge of spoke important in a wheel build?
The gauge or thickness of your spokes is important to the functionality & longevity of your wheel.
Spokes come in a few very common gauges, 14G being the most common. 13G is thicker (so descending numbers are increasing thickness) and makes for a more robust wheel build.
12G spokes are increasingly common in the bicycle industry with the increase in electric bikes. 12G is very much a motorbike sized spoke!
14G spokes are strong enough for most applications – certainly if you chose a 36 spoked wheel. You can easily build a ‘bomb proof’ wheel using 14g spokes, in a two cross or three cross lacing pattern. This gives the wheel strength and balance. And really the strength of your wheel comes from the even-ness of the tension in the spokes. This even tensioning will create a balanced wheel and distributes weight evenly. No lumps or bumps or hops that create weak points!
13g spokes are commonly used on electric bikes, cargo bikes & bikes with motors built into the wheel. So you are more likely to use a 13g spoke when rebuilding a wheel with an electric hub motor in the rear. The hub motor puts an additional force on the wheel, and the added weight is a drag. This means the push & pull of acceleration & deceleration can fatigue the spokes. And is why you want a well built, well tensioned & well balanced wheel with a hub motor in it!
