how many spokes does a mtb wheel have? 32? 36?

simple question, and i guess i should know but there you go..

The DT swiss site lists their spokes/weight/spec etc it doesn't really give recommended use.

any one recommend which ones for lakes x-country with a wtb rim and hope xc hub

It can be fewer or more. 36 used to rule the roots but 32 is probably the most common number now. I certainly have all my wheels running 32

I like DT comps in black but they've become pretty expensive by the box now.

32 spokes is the norm, although 36 spokes means greater strength.

Remember that there are different types of spokes, single butted and two flavours of double butted spokes to choose from which all have a significant bearing on the wheel's strength.

Depends also on the rim, some are pinned at the join point, some are welded while others are welded and pinned…

You've also got the spoke cross pattern to consider.

32 Hole is the most common with a 3x spoke pattern, 2x is lighter, but not as strong.

Similarly, you can run a 36 hole hub and rim with 2x which is less strong than a 32 hole 3x.

Simples eh? 😯

I like 36 hole for 29er wheels, but now I want to go tubeless it seems hard to get rims with 36 holes in that size.