This is an adaptation to an original article written on our blog by Pete Hamer in December of 2006

Wheels are responsible for transferring your power to the ground

When you apply pressure to the pedals and rotate the crank, the rotational force of the crank and chainrings is converted into a linear force via the chain. The chain then transfers this linear force to the rear gear where it’s converted back into rotational force.

Any time energy changes direction some of it is lost. The job of the rear wheel is to transfer as much of the energy from the rear gear to the road as possible. Wheels do this by having high torsional stiffness, which is the ability to resist winding up or twisting. A wheel with low torsional stiffness will absorb more energy than a wheel with high torsional stiffness.

Radial laced wheels exhibit poor torsional stiffness compared to a tangentially laced wheel. Wheels that are have spokes crossing over each other are tangentially laced. If a rear wheel were laced with all the spokes in a radial pattern the hub would wind up or twist under the torsional load. This twisting causes energy loss, and is why you never see a rear wheel or a front disc brake wheel with the radial laced spokes.

A good wheel should be aerodynamic

The most common way for manufacturers to increase aerodynamics is to reduce the number of spokes and increase the height of the rim’s cross-section. If you reduce the number of spokes you have to increase the tension on each spoke, and with higher spoke tension the rim has to be made stronger. If the rim is not made stronger it will crack at the eyelets. I know many of you have already experienced this problem with some manufacturer’s wheels. The alternative is to beef up the rim but that causes more weight to be distributed to the outer edge of the wheel, which is the least efficient place to concentrate a wheel’s weight.

Aerodynamic spokes are available but they are only advantageous when there is no crosswind. Super thin spokes offer better aerodynamics and are not adversely affected by cross winds. Thinner spokes also make for a wheel that can be stronger because they bend more before breaking.

Wheels also act as gyroscopes

The faster a wheel is spinning the harder it is for the bike (and rider) to fall over. Lighter wheels have less gyroscopic effect, which makes it easier to turn or change directions. Heavier wheels require more effort to accelerate, turn and climb with.

Some people are only concerned about the durability of their wheels. To increase a wheel’s durability you can use butted spokes, more spokes, or a heavier rim.

A butted spoke is a spoke that is has a thinner diameter in the middle. Butted spokes have a longer fatigue life than non-butted spokes. Because it’s thinner in the middle it can handle more stress loads than a thicker straight gauge spoke. Remember the paper clip analogy from the preventative maintenance article? Repeatedly bending a paper clip will cause it to break at the bend. Butted spokes have the strength where it’s most important – at the ends. They can handle more cyclic stress loads in the middle.

The fatigue life of a spoke in a wheel is also directly proportional to the number of spokes in that wheel. The spokes in a 24 spoke wheel will last half as long as a 48 spoke wheel assuming the other components are identical. Spoke elasticity and spoke quantity can also affect torsional stiffness.

A heavier rim will bend and deform less than a lighter rim. This will transfer less stress to the spokes making them last longer.

Another important characteristic for a wheel to have is shock absorbency or suspension, also called compliance

A good bicycle wheel offers suspension for the rider in addition to what the tire and frame do. Road vibration transferred to a rider over a long period of time can wear a rider out. Wheels help to lessen that fatigue by smoothing out the bumps and jolts. A lighter weight rim with a shallower cross section will be able to compress more which also helps absorb shock.

The benefit of suspension is not only comfort but also increased traction and efficiency. A good wheel can flex to keep the tire in contact with the road when encountering bumps or while leaning a bike over in a corner. If a bicycle had no ability to absorb shock it would change direction every time the wheel hit a tiny bump. Recall that changing direction causes energy loss.

Wheels have a major impact on the way our bikes feel. If you are not satisfied with how your bike performs you might want to consider installing new wheels to help tune the ride to your liking. Hopefully you are now armed with enough new knowledge about bicycle wheels and their qualities to help you evaluate different wheel choices. If you have any questions feel free to call or stop by our showroom.

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