Requiem for a Jaw

Dennis Collins38 said:Spoked wheels work through tension, not compression. All the weight gets transferred to the hub via those upper spokes because, essentially, the hub is suspended by the rim. That’s why these wheels end up being so light yet incredibly strong. If you try to put a load on a spoke using pure pressure, it just bends without a fight.

Sure, the hub is laced into the center of the rim, so yeah, it deals with some pressure during use.
But when it comes to how the actual load hits the spokes, I find this explanation more logical.

casualharbor9 said:🤔 ... personally, I think they take the load equally since they're all under tension... 🤷

To an extent, sure, but honestly, once the load—like a rider sitting on the bike—actually hits, there's much more stress placed on those lower spokes closer to the ground.

briskbison41 said:Yeah, the spokes are laced into the hub center, so they definitely deal with some tension during rotation.
But when it comes to how the load actually hits the spokes... I think this explanation makes way more sense.

Kind of, sure, but honestly? Once you add weight—like a rider sitting on the bike—the real stress goes to those bottom spokes that are basically touching the ground.

Look, the spokes are under tension, but once that axle takes the hit, it pulls on the top spokes, transferring the force through the rim down to the ground. The pressure on the bottom spokes is negligible because they actually lose tension in the process... plus, they're way too thin to handle much without deforming. A bicycle wheel works the exact opposite way of a heavy-duty spoke on an old farm wagon (and those aren't even spokes, just rigid beams taking the brunt of the weight).