Hi I got a flat tire and a broken spoke on my front crystalyte 407. I don't have any spare spokes at the moment, I'm gonna have to order some. What I'd like to know is would it be ok to patch up the tire and continue riding with the 1 broken spoke removed from the rim until I can get a replacement?
Safe to ride with 1 broken spoke?
- Thread starter electr0n
- Start date
liveforphysics
100 TW
Yep.
mrzed
100 W
Ride, but be more careful. Check the true of your wheel, however far out it is now, count on it getting a little worse the longer you ride it.
dogman dan
1 PW
Yes you can ride, but the rim may get more bent, where the broken spoke is. A good bike shop could supply you with a spoke and nipple to use for now for a very small fee. They can cut and thread to any length you need. It might be a skinnier spoke, but it will be better than nothing.
Russell
1 MW
I have ridden about 10 miles with a broken spoke to get home but I always fix it right away. I would not go out on a ride with a broken spoke because all it takes is one missing to throw the whole wheel out of kilter. The first option is as Dogman suggests, get a spoke from your LBS even if it's not the right gauge. The second option would be to compensate for the missing spoke by adjusting the tension on the adjacent spokes to bring the wheel back to something close to true. Just remember or better yet mark with a small piece of tape which spokes you adjusted so you can return them to normal when you get the replacement spoke. The last and not recommended option is to ride it as is.
There are emergency kevlar spokes available but I think they'd be more pain than they're worth.
http://www.ebikestop.com/fiberfix_emergency_spoke_replacement_kit-TL1467.php
Oh yeah another option is to have more than one ebike
There are emergency kevlar spokes available but I think they'd be more pain than they're worth.
http://www.ebikestop.com/fiberfix_emergency_spoke_replacement_kit-TL1467.php
Oh yeah another option is to have more than one ebike
icecube57
10 MW
Does anyone remember justin and his ride. If you have one broken and need to limp home by all means do it. If its the motor wheel do it in without using the motor. The strain with the weight and the motor torque will destroy a wheel. Justin ruined his wheel in a only a few miles. It was the rear wheel fully loaded with his gear. I had my rear wheel break a spoke and as i was limping it back to the car on the trail it broke two more. I barely make it back to my car. The wheel had the worst wobble. I replaced the spokes and I never could get the wheel quite true again. It eventually broke two more after 3 rides.
stevo
10 mW
On a related note, my rim has 3-4 spots where the spoke tension was too tight and it has started to crack a bit (see http://www.ebikes.ca/troubleshooting.shtml - item 6 - Cracked Rims from Overtight Spokes).
how big a deal is this?
how big a deal is this?
liveforphysics
100 TW
I've had 5 broken spokes in my rear wheel since I got the bike. A few ripped out spokes in the front as well, and a few that have no tension on them.
Wheels were like that before converting to electric, and never had anything continue to break, or have any problems.
I think the big difference is that I'm not using a hub motor. Hubmotors are a lot like replacing your hub with a giant sledge hammer head. Since its unsprung weight, adding in suspension only compounds the pounding the hub deals to the rim.
Wheels were like that before converting to electric, and never had anything continue to break, or have any problems.
I think the big difference is that I'm not using a hub motor. Hubmotors are a lot like replacing your hub with a giant sledge hammer head. Since its unsprung weight, adding in suspension only compounds the pounding the hub deals to the rim.
The broken spoke is in a front 407 crystalyte. I'm always cautious with accelerating and do it slowly while pedaling. I actually took it for a couple big rides of 25km to 30km over some moderately rough roads and terrain. I think it's ok so far but now that I see all these new replies I guess I'll be extra careful till I get the spoke replaced. I could never get my wheel trued properly even with all the spokes. The best I could do was reduce the wobble.
docnjoj
1 GW
I have never had a broken spoke on about 8 different wheel/motor combos in almost 10 years of riding hub motors. I wish I could say it is my lacing technique, but 20" wheels and DT forged spokes might have something to do with it. I finally am letting an expert (Holmes) lace my wheels as it ain't that much fun anymore. I would rather ride! Oh yeah, My LBS likes to true electric hubs for about 30 bucks. They consider my work " a challenge"! Nice folks!
otherDoc
otherDoc
Hyena
10 GW
I noticed my rear wheel (motor is a front hub) had 2 broken spokes a month back. I'm not sure how long its been like it but I've been riding it every day at 30mph with the occasional rough offroading and had no dramas so I'm sure you'll be right in the short term. I only noticed when I looked down while riding along to remove some folliage that was poking into my spokes and saw it was a spinning a bit wobbley.
voicecoils
1 MW
liveforphysics said:
Would you do it on a road bicycle?
I snapped one spoke on a 700C Miche rear wheel on a 80km ride a few weeks back and the rim freaked out, producing a ~40mm lateral wobble. I had to remove the rear brake shoes entirely for the wheel to clear so I could limp home.
