 You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
A couple of years ago I bought a set of Hope Hoops with Hope Pro II Evo hubs, Stans Crest rims and double-butted 1.6mm spokes and have repeatedly found broken spokes.
I'm not heavy, don't ride drops and jumps here and I don't think I've broken more than a spoke or two on all my other wheelsets over many years.
What's strange is that apart from one time, I find the broken spokes after the bike's been laid up for a couple of months.
This time, I left the wheel off the bike and I found two broken spokes. One broken in two places. This has been going on for quite a while, so I took a closer look to see if I could figure out what was happening.
The wheels are laced 3-cross 32-spokes. Looking at the broken spoke, I noticed it was bent; then looking across the plane of the wheel, that many of the original spokes are bent sharply where they cross.
Spokes which start on the inside of the hub flange have been laced across the outside of the next spoke and the spokes which start on the outside of the flange are laced on the inside. To my eye, that is the long way round and causing the spokes to be much more bent where they cross.
You may be able to see the bend in the picture (if I've got the links right):
[img] https://goo.gl/sz2B7T [/img]
So what do you think - is the lacing causing the failures, something else, or do I have gremlins?
Unable to help, but I have a rear Hope Pro 2 with Crest that seems to break more than its fair share of spokes too.
Similarly, I'm not heavy and don't ride anything particularly extreme (Suffolk's finest bridleways and forests mostly).
Can't see the pictures, but I had two sets of the hope pro 2's with crest rims and with both wheelsets I was absolutely plagued with broken spokes. Like you, I never had or have suffered this with any other MTB wheels. It got to the point where I couldn't trust them. My assumption was that they were badly tensioned from the factory and I just gave up with them. You could be onto something with your theory though.
So you are saying that the spokes coming from the inside of the flange are going: over-under-over? Can't see the photo BTW.
I've Hope Hoops on my Solaris (my wife also has them on her Soul) not had a broken spoke in a total of six years' riding between the two of us. I can check the lacing pattern when I get home.
I've got other sets of Hope Hoops which have been totally trouble free. Just this set breaks when I'm not even looking at them.
I'll try again with the pic. Followed the instruction for Google Photos image shortening but it isn't working... Try Imgur...
[img] https://imgur.com/FjnS5R4 [/img]
I've had other Hope wheelsets too and they have been fine, just my two crest / hope pro2's 26 inch wheelsets that were hopeless
Sorry the Imgur IMG link doesn't seem to work either.
Try a URL: [url= https://goo.gl/sz2B7T ]https://goo.gl/sz2B7T[/url]
Post the Imgur BBCode:
[img] 
[/img]
Yay that seems to work when STW's own IMG button doesn't.
That appears to be laced the conventional pattern - under-under over for 3x. There should be a slight bend where the spokes cross for the last time, bends are also introduced at the hub and nipple ends. The process of stress-relieving should mean that the stainless steel is pushed into its inelastic zone at these points, thus altering the shape of the spoke in its unstressed state to fit the precise requirements of the wheel/hub/lacing combination.
None of which explains why this seems to be a problem with Hope Crest builds in particular. Crests do have a lower recommended max spoke tension than other Stans hubs (should not be relevant to a properly build wheel though). Maybe some over-enthusiastic stress-relieving bent them too far? Can't really see from the picture.
[img] 
[/img]
So should be OK. But there's a helluva bend where some of those spokes cross.
If they were the other way round, the spokes would be displaced much less, and a smaller bend.
I measured two spokes with a displacement of around 7-8mm where they cross. The bend is quite marked.
Sounds like the bend shouldn't affect the spoke strength in which case why are spokes on idle wheels popping their clogs?
Got to say I'm struggling to understand why this lacing pattern should be used.
Seems to me that if it were the other way round the spokes would lie nearly straight.
Not to say that's why they're breaking of course.
The argument I have heard is that in use spokes alternately find themselves under more, then less tension. The under/over at the last crossing means that as a spoke goes into low tension mode, the crossing spoke tensions it up a bit. Meaning that the point at which the spoke loses all tension is delayed somewhat. Whether this is a significant thing I know not. Apparently some straight-pull wheels are not crossed under/over.
That second pic, it does look like there is too much bend at the crossing, the spoke bends out-in-out, indicating over-enthusiastic stress-relieving. That is probably not good.
Thanks, yes that makes sense in stiffening the wheel.
Nevertheless the bends look extreme.
As the spokes don't break at the bends, it could be this is just a distraction.
I've got the same parts (except maybe spokes) built elsewhere, as well as many other wheelsets including Hope's and all are trouble free.
Just this set falls apart when laid up, and a fourth trip to my LBS for a couple of spokes plus re-taping sealed wheels is driving me nuts.
The probable cause is a poor-quality built and the only decent remedy is to have them rebuilt with a new set of spokes. They've probably been over-stressed in the original build and once they start going, over-loading the others you're just chasing your tail.
Agree, re-build with new spokes indicated I am afraid. BTW I think the under-over lacing makes the wheel less stiff, but a bit stronger and better lasting. ETA - as long as you build it right!
Thanks for all the advice that sounds about right. It is the original spokes which are breaking.
I'll get them rebuilt with fresh spokes.
Once spokes start breaking it's like a zip. The others will go because they have been over stressed.
Rebuild the wheel with new spokes.