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I'm lacing up a new wheelset for the first time (DT Swiss 350/481/511/Competition straight pull). Would any experienced wheelbuilders care to share their opinion of whether to interlace the third cross in the 3-cross lacing pattern (ie. under/under/over or over/over/under) or just go over-over-over/under-under-under with the spokes not touching at the third cross?
I wouldn't have thought straight pull spokes are any different to J-bend in this regard, and everything I read for J-bend says to interlace at the third cross, but my old Spank factory-built straight pull wheelset doesn't interlace. Looking at photos of DT Swiss prebuilt wheelsets it's hard to tell if they do interlace.
Advantages, disadvantages, does it really matter?
I'm no wheel builder, but i'd have thought that the 'over 2 spokes, under 1 spoke' is the best way.
Crossing spokes too soon after they exit the hub flange would cause unnecessary deformation?
Never laced a straight pull tho'
So might be best to ignore me.
2 under, 1 over for 3x - I build mine trailing spokes heads-out and then the leading spokes heads out, which are the ones that cross.
I think scientifically it doesn't matter much - there's a theory that the interlacing slightly balances out the compression cycle of the spoke, and there's the other theory that interlacing means a snapped spoke doesn't flail around so much.
On big wheels I usually interlace, on small wheels I don't bother.
A friend just told me that his DT Swiss wheelset came built interlaced, so that's what I'll do. Thanks everyone.