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I recently broke a spoke on my rear wheel, no doubt due to previous damage from a thrown chain. I took the wheel to a LBS to have the spoke replaced and to have several other slightly damaged spokes replaced as well. The wheel is a well used high end, lightweight, disc XC wheelset with aluminum rims, and I was careful to point out that the spokes were butted when I dropped off the wheel. The original spokes are 2.0 mm at the nipple end tapering to 1.8 mm mid-length as measured with a digital caliper. The replacement spokes are straight 2.0 mm throughout.
From what I understand about wheels, spokes stretch to accomodate stress, then return to their original length when unstressed (under normal conditions, without overloading the spoke causing it to permanently stretch, etc.). Thus, the butted spokes will stretch more than the straight spokes since they have a smaller cross section and therefore less material. My concern is that the wheels will not stay true as a result.
Is this something that I should be concerned about, and is it reasonable to ask the shop to replace the straight spokes with the correct butted ones?
The principle advantage of butted spokes is that they are lighter. All the spokes in a bike wheel are under tension all of the time, if they arent you will really notice...
If the spokes are the correct length (which actually is the critical thing) and the wheel has been properly trued up this wont make a great deal of difference if you have a few spokes that are not butted. I had to do an emergency repair on a wheel a few years back using a non-butted spoke and the wheel stayed true for about 2yrs afterwards. The bike shop may have been a tiny bit cheeky but if the wheel builder knows his/her stuff you should be ok.
Won't matter a jot.
Could someone please translate "jot" into American?
your wheel will explode and you will die. (truth)
I believe a jot is the little dot over an i.
It'll be fine.