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Lacing wheels 2 cross or 3 cross??

fiddy_ryder

Turbo Monkey
Jun 17, 2005
1,653
0
Hollywood
Opinions on 2 cross vs 3 cross lacing for freeride ,, when i say free ride i mean urban dj, light dh type of riding. oh yah on hardtail with 6" up front.
 

danW

Monkey
Mar 8, 2005
170
0
Greensboro
...I know a wheel builder who runs his personal setup (2x) and his riding style is seriously brutal - he swears by it?...I guess I'm confused?...

danW
 

mack

Turbo Monkey
Feb 26, 2003
3,674
0
Colorado
If you have to ask, you shouldnt be building your own wheel.


I run 36 hole 4x for my urban wheels.


danW, your not confused, it your wheelbuilder. It not some crazy mystery that 4x is stronger than 3x wich is stronger than 2x wich is stronger than radial.

Why would any one go 2x? Unless your some xc rider or just really lazy when building wheels, there isnt a reason not to do a 3x lace pattern. As for twisting spokes.... ehhhhhhh. :think:
 

sanjuro

Tube Smuggler
Sep 13, 2004
17,373
0
SF
danW said:
...I know a wheel builder who runs his personal setup (2x) and his riding style is seriously brutal - he swears by it?...I guess I'm confused?...

danW
It might be a good building style, but as an informal guess I would rank wheel popularity as such:

3x - Most common by far
Radial - fronts mostly, occasionally non-drive side rear
4x - Considered the strongest
1x - It does not void hub warranty like radial
2x

It doesn't mean it is a bad style, but it is a compromise between weight, stiffness and strength.
 

ctrailfreak

Monkey
Apr 19, 2004
546
0
Independence,Mo
4X on all my wheels. Atomlab trail pimps 36 spoke laced 4x for my freeride and urban. Ex-823 36 spoke 4x for my trail rims laced to Hope Bulb hubs.

I'm a big guy and have done some fair sized drops and have never even come close to knocken em out of true let alone a Taco'd rim.
 

danW

Monkey
Mar 8, 2005
170
0
Greensboro
...great clarification guys - I asked a few more question and paid a little more attention - so as to my previous post - the builder I refered to actually uses a "twist method"...he also use some huge gauged spokes in combination with some kind of custom oversized hubs (huge suckers) - however, he certainly confirmed the 3x or 4x as being stronger if one wants to build it as such but if you know what you're doing 2x can be designed...?!...

(i personally don't know - i just ask the questions :confused: )


danW
 

Grizzle

Monkey
Sep 7, 2005
216
0
La Crescenta, CA
seems weird that he would use a 2x pattern but cross them up, and use a ginormous hub with it all. Kind of seems like a bastard child of a wheel, i would just stick with a standard 4X. You bring a twisted laced wheel into a lot of shops and they will look at it like WTF?
 

ZachTheMech

Monkey
Mar 17, 2004
295
0
Browns Summit, NC
I build wheels and been doing it a long time like 20 years. Ive done mine radial front radial nondrive and 1 x drive before( X Country) and ive done Twist 3 x back when i was racing BMX on both my Cruiser and 20inch back in 89' I still do my Mtn Wheels Twisted and stand by um. My X Country i did 2 x front twisted and rear. My Bighit currently has a 3x twisted front and a normal 3 x rear( 24 in wheel) but the backs not twisted cause i havent had to rebuild it yet.

Another thing ive done is using 14/17g spokes while twisiting them

14/15s are also just as strong if not stronger then 14g straight. Plus they are lighter. if thats your thing.

Next set i do id prolly 2 x um but thats only cause i would be building um and twisting um, for you id prolly go 3 x 14/15g with SS Nipples.


Also mack, How can you be Lazy if you make a wheel 2 x instead of 3? To do 2 or 3 takes the exact same work, You still have to get the spoke lengths and lace and true the wheels.
 

danW

Monkey
Mar 8, 2005
170
0
Greensboro
whats up zack - just for the record I wasn't refering to you earlier in this post...I thought you might reply to this though!

cya at Hobby

danW
 

mack

Turbo Monkey
Feb 26, 2003
3,674
0
Colorado
spacemanspiff06 said:
ok, what is a twisted spoke pattern?

Twisting spokes is for hippys.

Its when you twist the spokes around each other to make the wheel super complicated with no proven benefit.

Ive never seen a twisted wheel, im pretty sure its somthing from the early days of mt biking.
 

OGRipper

back alley ripper
Feb 3, 2004
10,647
1,116
NORCAL is the hizzle
I know some serious wheelbuilders who love twisted spokes, and some more serious wheelbuilders who dismiss it as an unnecessarily complicated fashion statement. I tend to agree with the more serious folks. Proper hand-built 3X wheels are the way to go for me -relatively light, simple, and proven. I've never had a failure that would have been avoided with 4X, the only wheel failures I ever have are dents/flat spots that will occur regardless of lacing.
 

mack

Turbo Monkey
Feb 26, 2003
3,674
0
Colorado
OGRipper said:
the only wheel failures I ever have are dents/flat spots that will occur regardless of lacing.
:stupid:


A quality wheel that is tensioned and trued properly will usually not fail.
 
May 12, 2005
977
0
roanoke va
mack said:
Twisting spokes is for hippys.

Its when you twist the spokes around each other to make the wheel super complicated with no proven benefit.

Ive never seen a twisted wheel, im pretty sure its somthing from the early days of mt biking.
oh. sounds tarded.
 

ZachTheMech

Monkey
Mar 17, 2004
295
0
Browns Summit, NC
Im still waitin to see how going 2 cross is lazy vs 3 x.

I twist cause i can and because ive personally seen the benefits. and its not from old school mtbiking , its old school bmx.