Spoke specs for 2020 Turbo Levo S Works please...

[Alpman]

Somewhere in occupied France. Put a branch through the my rear wheel today and bent a spoke loose. Tightened OK but want to replace it. Anyone know what length the replacement spoke should be? I have done some research and the spokes are DT Swiss Competition Races. The bike is a 2020 S works Levo with Roval Traverse SL wheels and 2,6 in tires. I know I could dismantle the tire and measure the spokes but want to order while keeping riding. Thanks.

 

[Gary]

a bent spoke straightened and re-tensioned should be absolutely fine so long at the threads are still good and there's no actual damage to the spoke

 

[Gary]

rear 29er spokes more often than not are around 290-292mm
But you can loosen the nipple and remove the spoke threads from it and measure it without removing the tyre (or even the wheel from the bike)

 

[Alpman]

Thanks Gary I’ll give that a try.

 

[Frank_Denmark]

rear 29er spokes more often than not are around 290-292mm
But you can loosen the nipple and remove the spoke threads from it and measure it without removing the tyre (or even the wheel from the bike)

Strange question
How do I measure the lenght of a spoke - Does the length include the thread ?

 

[Gary]

yes. from the very end of the thread to the shoilder of the j bend. be aware spokes are far more commonly available in 2mm increments so round up/down to the nearest 2mm depending on how seated the threads are in the nipple. ideal length is when the threads just reach the nipple the internally. depending on your rims (eyeletted or non) and their wall thickness this will be around 4-5mm beneath the edge of the rim hole for a standard nipple.

Honestly if there's no visible damage to it it sounds like the spoke you've retensioned will be fine.

 

[Frank_Denmark]

Thx for Your help
One of my rear spokes snapped so I need to install a new one

 

[Alpman]

By way of update: Inspected the bent spoke more closely and it does have a bad nick in it so think I’d better have a replacement standing by. Been on the net and cannot find a spoke with the same specs anywhere. Very annoying but prolly one of the pitfalls of getting a hi end bike with Gucci go faster kit. After some deep digging worked out that the orig spokes are DT Swiss Competition Races, 282mm, double butted 2.0/1.6/2.0. A number of shops have straight pulls but mine are J‘s. If anyone can point me toward a place to buy these I’d be very grateful (and impressed).

 

[Mcharza]

By way of update: Inspected the bent spoke more closely and it does have a bad nick in it so think I’d better have a replacement standing by. Been on the net and cannot find a spoke with the same specs anywhere. Very annoying but prolly one of the pitfalls of getting a hi end bike with Gucci go faster kit. After some deep digging worked out that the orig spokes are DT Swiss Competition Races, 282mm, double butted 2.0/1.6/2.0. A number of shops have straight pulls but mine are J‘s. If anyone can point me toward a place to buy these I’d be very grateful (and impressed).

Have you checked from here? Spoke 14 Black

 

[Alpman]

No joy. Thanks anyway.

 

[Gary]

By way of update: Inspected the bent spoke more closely and it does have a bad nick in it so think I’d better have a replacement standing by. Been on the net and cannot find a spoke with the same specs anywhere. Very annoying but prolly one of the pitfalls of getting a hi end bike with Gucci go faster kit. After some deep digging worked out that the orig spokes are DT Swiss Competition Races, 282mm, double butted 2.0/1.6/2.0. A number of shops have straight pulls but mine are J‘s. If anyone can point me toward a place to buy these I’d be very grateful (and impressed).

2.0 plain guage and 2.0/1.8 butted spokes are common everywhere and either will fit your rim and wheel eyelets/hub drillings fine.
The 1.6 part you've quoted is just the diameter of the butted section in the middle of the spoke.
So just fit a 2.0 1.8 butted spoke of the correct length (that means 2.0 at the elbow, 1.8mm in the centre and 2.0 at the threads BTW). it won't really matter that it's 0.2mm thicker in the middle than your original spoke. it will stretch a miniscule bit less and weigh a miniscule bit more but once tensioned correctly it will not affect your wheel in any negative way.

BTW Just to qualify: I've been professionally building wheels on and off for nearly 30yrs.

 

[Gary]

Out of interest, did you contact specialized?
some manufacturers can be very helpful in sourcing spares for customers with their own spec stuff.

 

[Alpman]

2.0 plain guage and 2.0/1.8 butted spokes are common everywhere and either will fit your rim and wheel eyelets/hub drillings fine.
The 1.6 part you've quoted is just the diameter of the butted section in the middle of the spoke.
So just fit a 2.0 1.8 butted spoke of the correct length (that means 2.0 at the elbow, 1.8mm in the centre and 2.0 at the threads BTW). it won't really matter that it's 0.2mm thicker in the middle than your original spoke. it will stretch a miniscule bit less and weigh a miniscule bit more but once tensioned correctly it will not affect your wheel in any negative way.

BTW Just to qualify: I've been professionally building wheels on and off for nearly 30yrs.

That was going to be my next question Gary - whether the .2mm butted section would be an issue. I can source 2.0/1.8/2.0 DT Comp spokes easily enough thank goodness. Probably sound desperate but if I couldn’t get out each day to ride I’d go starkers. Thanks for your help (also on behalf of the other inmates chez moi)

 

[Alpman]

Out of interest, did you contact specialized?
some manufacturers can be very helpful in sourcing spares for customers with their own spec stuff.

Heh heh, yeah - 20 minutes ago. No answer yet. Lazy buggers.

 

[Gary]

*sigh*

 

[Alpman]

Sorry to keep bugging you Gary but you do have the answers: The nipple; original is speced as brass. Do you recommend I replace with kind or accept another material? Does it matter and if so what is your preference?

 

[Gary]

I actually go into a tirade at any punter who even suggests I build them wheels with anything other than sensible brass nipples.

Alu are weaker to begin with and corrode which causes issues further down the line. Especially if subjected to all year round Scottish weather.
Fine if you're a serious racer or something and only keep your kit for one season then punt it on.
Not so much when that punter turns up 4 years later having rarely looked at the condition of said wheel and hands it over with its seized alu nipples looking to have it (quickly) trued

 

[Alpman]

Clear. Thanks mate.

 

[Swan]

There is the part number for the spoke.. As mentioned earlier, it's a standard 282mm DT Competition Race spoke that butts from 2.0mm down to 1.6 and back to 2.0mm.


We don't usually keep those super butted spokes in stock at out shop, but keep 10mm increments of the 2.0mm-1.8mm -2.0mm ones in stock that we can cut down those to the exact length we need.. A good quality shop should have a replacement for you or at a minimum have a straight gauge spoke to keep you running.

And I would place a large amount of money that your wheels are not using brass nipples.. Unless Specialized started doing that recently, pretty much every Roval wheelset I can remember has come with alloy nipples and not brass... And as Gary pointed out, alloy nipples suck when they are a few seasons old.. I relace a few dozen wheels a year and replace the alloy nipples with brass.

 

[Alpman]

This is great stuff Mr. Swan, many thanks. I’ve added the part data to my maintenance files; I try and be as mechanically self-sufficient as possible. And if I can‘t do the repair myself at least it speeds up the process when I visit the LBS. And on closer inspection I think you are right - the fitted nipples do appear not to be brass. Fascinating stuff; whenever something breaks it serves as a nudge to learn more - and buy more tools heh heh.

 

[jonasdig]

What size should the nipple be? I see that they are usualy from 12 to 16mm

 

[Tim1023]

a bent spoke straightened and re-tensioned should be absolutely fine

Proof that it's all about the tension. You can use string! First Look: Newmen Components' New Wheels Have Spokes Made of String - Pinkbike Berdspokes

I'm not qualified to judge how well they work, but a funky idea!

 

[Gary]

And not a new idea by over 4 decades mate.

 

[Tim1023]

Probably didn't look as funky 40 years ago, though!