Spokes – re-use?

I’ve got to replace a hub in the next couple of weeks, never built a wheel before but woundered if the spokes can be re-used from the current wheel?

I’m guessing not but wanted to check before I binned ’em.

I have reused a set of spokes that lasted fine – only really works if you replacing an identical or very similar rim / hub

Cracked a rim and replaced it with almost like-for like, went for eyelets this time though! Re-used a set aerolites (at £4 each I figured they were worth the risk) A year on they are absolutely fine.
Other than that rim/hub changes have meant spokes have been the wrong length to re-use.

Thats the plan, Hope for Hope back onto the same rim, I was hoping there’d be a way of taping the spokes together then relacing to speed things up.

I almost always re-use spokes. Pro wheel builders don’t normaly because of the time it takes to strip down and salvage the old spokes.

If the dmensions all match up there’s no reason not to re-use. As long as they’re not damaged they’ll be fine.

I find rebuilding with old spokes is easier than with new – the elbow’s “relaxed” and the wheel’s easier to stress-relieve.

Always re-use my spokes where I can, never had any fail. You can tape the crosses, undo the nipples (don’t do one spoke fully at a time, do them all a couple of turns until loose then do them fully), slip them out and into the new rim, re-nipple and re-tension. Jobs a goodun.

EDIT _ spotted you’re replacing the hub not the rim, just keep the spokes for each side apart if it’s a rear, otherwise get some photos for the rebuild 🙂

Reusing old spokes is fine so long as the length is the same and they’re not damaged, e.g. chain going over the back of the cassette and gouging them.

(Hmm, is there an echo in here…?) 😉

The only thing new I would add is that I’ve reused many old spokes but do rather like to use new nipples as older ones tend to be a bit corroded/cracked/rounded, especially aluminium alloy ones. They’re cheap as chips, just get the correct diameter, measured near the start of the thread (usually 2.0mm, though über-lightweight ones might be 1.8mm). I may be set in my ways, but tend to avoid alloy nipples unless someone requests them – they’re not a great idea for long-term wheels.

Good luck, and remember the advice that has got me through building hundreds of wheels: “It’s not rocket science!”

All good advice up there, if you’ve got ally nipples i’d change them for brass, you could do with a copy of Rogers Wheelpro book, do a search on line its down load able.

Yes re-using spokes is fine – even on different rims/hubs. It is a good idea to re-use them in the same position wrt the flange if you CBA. Brass nipples can often be re-used fine…as for alloy…don’t even use them in the first place!

Thanks! I’ll get stuck in with the spoke key later.

Re-use spokes?? Are you mad??

Only joking 😆 Done it a fair few times without any issues.

Have fun.

Yes, absolutely fine. Have done this for years, no problems.

Yup I’ve done it a lot.

As an aside, fellow wheelbuilders, you’d be surprised atr a) How much error you can get away with on spoke lengths, and b) How few different length spokes you need to build most 26in wheels!
I reckon 3 or 4 different lengths will build 90% of 26in hub/rim combos that I come across.

🙂

Fewer combos than that I reckon PP – 258/260 will do pretty much everything (26″) I recall seeing.