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I9 spokes

OB1

Monkey
Thats good to hear. They are sweet looking wheels. But I have had many unexplainable spoke breaks. I even went so far as to check my spoke tension before every race. Once or twice a month whether they need it or not. I finally starting speaking up about the problem a few days back, and i've had 3 other guys chime in with the same issue. Customer service at I9 has been superb. But it's annoying to constantly fight broken spokes. Especially at 5-6 bucks a piece! All my wheels in the past have been wash n wear. Even with some spokes out of tension, they roll on.
 

1soulrider

Monkey
Apr 16, 2002
436
10
nor cal
Checking spoke tension often is more critical on I9s when used on gravity bikes.
Not keeping an eye on this can lead to spoke issues.
We have had a few spokes break (over a several year period), but almost always as a result of crash damage. The one exception has been a single spoke on a wheel with two seasons of race use, beat way out of round, with completely uneven spoke tension.
I find the I9s on my trail bike very rarely need spoke attention, the dh bike wheels need some love much more often.
 

OB1

Monkey
From forks, to wheels....I guess any parts made for racing require more maintenance. I9's are too cool to ditch. So i'm gonna maintain them myself instead of relying on my lbs. As usual I9 is stepping up to help me out again even after my latest spoke issue was crash related. Customer service is top notch! What tension meters do you all use? And what tension are you running?
 

Banshee Rider

Turbo Monkey
Jul 31, 2003
1,452
10
I finally broke one the other day "JRA" on my AM bike. The wheelset is on its third season and has been relaced to new hoops twice. I'm still not sure how it happened.

I once broke a number of spokes in a derailleur/crash incident a few years ago, but I havent broken one since on my DH bike.

The shop I work at has over a dozen pairs floating around (all xc/am use) over the passed couple years, and I can count the number of broken spokes on one hand.
 
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Mulestar

Turbo Monkey
Sep 18, 2007
1,061
0
in the dirt
I break them sometimes...3 this summer I think? Its usually after a crash or a drivetrain malfunction though.

The exception was last summer, when I broke 13 at once and tacoed a front wheel during a crash. I think that was a tension issue.

The main issue I've seen is that if you damage a spoke (sharp bend or deep gouge), you need to replace it or it will break later.
 

OB1

Monkey
Yeah, this last round of breaks was due to gouging the spokes with my chain in a crash. But I'm convinced now that spoke tension, or lack there of, is to blame for the past problems. I'm not going to trust anyone else to check my wheels. I'll do it myself. And I bet my problems will be history. I9=bling.