Next in the selection process in building good road wheels is the spokes and nipples.
First, let's talk brands. There are two major brands I deal with, DT Swiss and Sapim. The spokes between the two are very similar, and I've built with many of both. I don't have a specific preference between the two in a similar spoke. There is also Wheelsmith, but I have not done as much with them for the simple reason that they don't seem to be as prevalent. I've got nothing against them otherwise.
As for the spokes themselves, there are three major types, straight gauge, butted, and bladed.
First is straight gauge. That means that the spoke remains the same diameter from one end to the other. These really only have a place in cheap wheels. You don't want cheap wheels, so forget about straight gauge spokes. (They are also good if you're building your first set of wheels as they are much easier to work with when the wheel is up to tension)
Next is butted spokes. Most typically, butted spokes are thinner in the middle to save weight, but this design also allows more elasticity in the spoke, resulting in an overall stronger spoke. Some examples of butted spokes are the DT Competition and Sapim Race with 2.0mm ends and a 1.8mm center section. Coming in lighter are the DT Revolution and Sapim Lasers with 2.0mm ends and a 1.5mm center. These have less material in the middle and so save even more weight, but they can be hard to build with as they really, really like to twist as they're tightened. (I've got my tricks to deal with that) Two other spokes worth mentioning are the DT Supercomps, with 2.0mm at the J bend, 1.7mm in the center, and 1.8mm at the nipple end. The center is slightly smaller than the 2.0/1.8mm spokes, and the narrower nipple end allows for a stronger spoke nipple. These are great spokes, and I've built with them. Lastly is the Sapim Strong, a spoke with a 2.3mm J bend, then a straight 2.0mm section all the way to the nipple end. These are designed for really heavy duty wheels, like big guys, tandems, or loaded touring. I've not had the need to build with these yet. For most folks, I'd suggest the 2.0/1.8mm or the 2.0/1.5mm if you want to save weight and your wheelbuilder can handle it.
(you'll see terms like "single butted", "double butted", and even "triple butted". I just go with "butted" and list the diameters. Life's easier that way)
Finally, we've got bladed spokes. The ones we're interested in are normal round spokes which have been flattened out to an oval profile to give an "aero" shape, one that's thin side-to-side (towards the wind) but longer front-to-back. There are many varieties of bladed spokes, but for our purposes, we'll only consider one -- the Sapim CX-Ray or DT Aerolite, which share major specs. Both start with a 2.0/1.5mm butted spoke, and are then ovalized into a 0.9x2.3mm cross section. The key here is that the hubs don't need to be modified like they would with other types of bladed spokes, and that's why these are the only ones that we'll consider. These spokes are pretty amazing, since their weight is about as light as you can get, but due to the reshaping, they are strengthened, and have significantly improved fatigue limits. So, they can make for a light, strong, aero wheelset. Sounds awesome, doesn't it? Well, they kinda are. Awesome has a price, though -- these spokes are usually at least $2.50 each. That adds up quickly in a wheel, especially when good butted spokes can be had for as little as $0.75 each. Still, if you want fancy, fancy wheels, these spokes have to be on there.
Ultimately, a quality road wheel will boil down to four spoke choices. 2.0/1.8mm butted, 2.0/1.5mm butted, 2.0/1.7/1.8 DT Supercomp butted, or the pricey bladed CX-Ray/Aerolites.
Yes -- I know, I'm leaving out a huge amount of really interesting spokes like Sapim's new D-Light and Force spokes, as well as a huge chunk of DT Swiss' cool offerings including the Alpine III. Those spokes are either too new or not generally available so I didn't bother mentioning them.
For spoke nipples, there's really only two choices, and it's between the materials, brass vs aluminum. Brass spoke nipples are heavier (about 30g for a 32 spoke wheel) but are much stronger and corrosion resistant. Aluminum spoke nipples weigh in around 10g for a 32 spoke wheel, so save up to 20g over brass nipples (about 2/3rds of an ounce) and are not as strong. However, there's an easy solution for this which I've been using successfully for a while now. By simply using spokes that are slightly longer than the recommended size, the spoke protrudes through the nipple head, slightly strengthening the spoke nipple at its weakest point -- the junction from the body to the head. Both are valid choices, and have their place. I prefer DT spoke nipples to the Sapims, (I find the quality to be higher) but have built with either. Luckily, the threads are the same between manufacturers, so I have often mixed Sapim spokes with DT spoke nipples. It's a great combo. One nice perk of aluminum nipples is they are available in a range of anodized colors, like red, green, blue, gold, purple, and so forth. Brass is usually only available in silver and black, although you'd be surprised at the results of silver brass and a colored Sharpie. (yes, really, and no, it doesn't last.)
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