Hi,
I am cutting down on stuff and i want to be down to 2 set of wheels for a hard tail and a heckler. I am a big boy and would run one set of wheels with light tubes and tyres and the others as dh wheels.

I have a the following wheels.
xt rear disc 729 32h
Bulb rear 321 32h bent
bulb front 521 32h
bulb front halo combat 32h

but i also have a set of mavic 721 36h on non disc hubs from 10 yrs ago which are perfect. they havent been trued once in 10 yrs after significant abuse.

Is this luck or are 36 spoke wheels much stronger in which case should i try and get two hope 36h hubs to rebuilt the 721 and sell off one of the other pairs.

might consider putting the 729 on the bulb.

cheers Ed

They’re a bit stronger, sure. 32s are plenty strong enough for most people, but for those for whom they’re not, 36s could be.

are the flanges on the hub different? Because putting an extra 4 holes in it is likely to make it weaker.

36 are stronger was initially a weight saving issue (strength comes from the spokes mainly)as you may be either a litle on the large side or just rad to the sick and doing 15 foot drop offs you need stronger wheels or softer landings or a diet 😀

Yep, 36 spoke wheels are definitely stronger for the same type of rim and hub. If you’ve already got decent hubs, there’s probably no reason to change, but maybe just remember when you next buy wheels or hubs to go 36 hole?

Makes bugger all difference, if the wheel build is still rubbish.

Personally i refuse to build 36s because i skag my knuckles on the spokes as they are closer.

321s adn combats are bendy rims anyway so you would do better witha good build on stronger rims, and try blowing your tyres up too!

If it’s the original d321 check the wheel build – they’re unbreakable.

36 hole wheels are not stronger, due to the size of the tangent that is formed where the spokes cross. with a 32 hole hub/rim the size of the triangle (for want of a better description) that is formed where the spokes cross is fairly large, however a 36 hole the spokes are closer together so the triangle is smaller and the stresses of the wheel are not spread as evenly through the rim. if you feel the tension of a wheel built 32 hole wheel you will find more often than not that the spokes are tighter than those of a 36.

cheers for the input guys,
It is an original 321 must be 8 years old now, got damaged in a rock garden doh. Otherwise has been fine.

so the opinion is a well built wheel is more important than the number of spokes.
maybe the 721s were built very well, hence their reliability.

36 hole wheels are not stronger, due to the size of the tangent that is formed where the spokes cross.

I beg to differ – i’m intersested to know where/how you came to this understanding. Having built hundreds of wheels in the past i always assumed that 36h wheels were approximatly 15% stronger.

i think the late Mr Sheldon Brown agrees with me on this.

SHELDON BROWN IS DEAD? Well, grease my nipples…

Personally i refuse to build 36s because i skag my knuckles on the spokes as they are closer.

You’re having a laff, aint ya?
My very first wheel build was a 36 spoke, and I had no probs AT ALL.

I’ve just done some rough sums based on a rim with a 544ERD and at 32 holes the spokes are about 53mm apart, on a 36 they are 47.
6mm difference? WTF!?!?!
Do you have hands like a silverback Gorilla??

😉

Turnip – you would hate the front wheel on the tandem then – its a 48 spoker!

More spokes + stronger all else being equal