Tech/Repair/Parts

Joined: A long time ago...

if u know why a patern is called a x3 for example(one spoke ill go across 3 other spokes) then all u need to know is the more "crosses" the stronger it is....BUT the more "crosses" the longer spokes have to be...and the heavier the wheel will be

in the other hand the least amount of crosses you can have is zero(radial). and it is the weakest but it will also be the lightest

when people cutombuild wheels they take in mind what theyre doing so no one patter is 'best' for all situations

hope that helps

Joined: A long time ago...

I use X3, on a set of Sun ZX-25's laced to Specialized hubs for street. Works good, haven't had any problems, also, my bike is pretty light, about 25-30 lbs, lighter than most bikes around this area.  I would say go with the standard X3, or if you're not concerned about weight go hardcore and go like, X5, or however many crosses you can get. If you are concerned about weight, I would suggest X2 at the lowest, depending on your riding style. I do drops up to like, 3 feet tall. If you don't do many drops, I'd say X2.

Joined: A long time ago...

for flat you can do radial on both wheels no problem

i ride radial on front and 2x on rear.  2x on the back just because i rode a radial back and you can feel the torque get lost in the wheel...the spokes ill just pivot in the flange because they go straight out.. not a BIG deal but you feel it every time.

you COULD do radial on the non driver side and 2x driver side for the back. but how buying spokes works out is u buy a batch of one length regardless of how many u need. so youd need to spend twice as much to do this since u need 2 lenths.

you building custom wheels??

Joined: A long time ago...

hmmm, its  because what really moves the wheel is the HUB itself. you turn the cranks, the chain turns the hub, and then the hub turns the wheel.

pretty much with a X patter there are spokes wich PULL and PUSH the rim at the same time. so they push AND pull the wheel in the same direction

a radial wheel ill just end up lossing torque cuz all the spokes ill reall just pull the rim along

spokes are really just thich wires... theyll bend and stretch. the energy from your pedaling ill make the spokes stretch so less energy gets to turning the wheel itself

Joined: A long time ago...

All lacing paterns feel the same to me. I've had both wheels radial but the rear wheel spokes always broke and the wheel had to be tuned alot so i did a 2x wheel for the rear and it worked perfect. Never had to adjust it. The front wheel radial was good. None of the spokes broke and i never had to adjust it. Today i laced a 36h hub to a 48h rim. Looks realy good. . As others said more crosses = stronger(more flexible)wheel. For flatland any pattern will do fine if you don't ride hard.  If you inflate your tires at 100-120 psi you'll roll and spin like crazy