Berd Spokes / Frequently Asked Questions

Berd spokes are far lighter and just as strong as their traditional steel counterparts but due to the bedding-in process of the fibers, the wheels can lose up to 30% of their initial tension after 3-6 months of riding depending on usage. We recommend checking your spoke tension after 2-3 months and adjusting accordingly.

Adding tension will require a truing stand, a Park Tool TM-1 Tension Meter, the Berd Spoke Holding Tool (to stop spokes from twisting up) and the Berd External Nipple Tool. You can get away with using a traditional double square wrench to add tension to the spokes if you don’t mind removing your tire and any tubeless tape. As a reminder, you can purchase any Berd related small parts at noblwheels.com.

To bring the tension back to the desired 100 KGF (equivalent to 15 on the Park Tool Meter) start by adding 2 full turns to each nipple, then check to make sure your tensions are still even. Next you may have to do some minor truing by turning the nipple on the opposite side of the affected area ⅛ – ¼ turns until the rim comes back to straight.

Using dish soap and warm water, clean each spoke with a lint free rag. Do not use pressured water directly on the spokes.

You will need Berd specific tools to replace a spoke. A thin External Nipple Wrench or an internal double square nipple wrench, a Berd Spoke Holding Tool, an Awl for opening loops of spokes (you could improvise with another tool if needed), the Spoke Pulling Tool and a Wire Loop for feeding the spoke through the hub. Note that a traditional nipple wrench will not work as the spoke must be held to prevent twisting.

If you have straight pull hubs, you may need a Tangential Straight Pull Insert that goes inside the hub if the original one cannot be recovered. You will also need an Insert Pushing Tool to push inserts on heads of the spoke.

If you break a spoke, it’s best to replace it with a Berd spoke rather than a steel spoke as the two spokes behave much differently during riding. In the unlikely event that you do break a spoke when riding, it shouldn’t cause an issue to finish your ride gently before replacing the spoke.

We don’t need to modify straight pull hubs in most cases as we use a special Tangential Straight Pull Insert to prevent abrasion where the spoke exits the hub. For J-bend hubs, we do modify the hubs by slightly rounding out the hole openings. Hub manufacturers are unlikely to recommend the use of metal spokes after this modification, so by choosing Berd spokes and J-bend hubs you are making a commitment for the lifetime of the hub. This also means that your hub shell warranty is void on J-bend hubs.

We are unable to use Berd spokes on radially laced (0-cross) straight pull wheels or hubs with a carbon shell.

No. Berd spokes stretch out significantly during the build process compared to conventional metal spokes, so the lengths will not be the same for any given wheel build.

The best nipple to use with Berd spokes is a Double Square Sapim Secure Lock. The spokes will stretch as you build up tension and these nipples have ample space for thread engagement. They also resist loosening off, are corrosion resistant, and are very strong.

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Featuring a 2mm threaded steel spoke bonded to top, Berd spokes connect to the rim in the same fashion as a conventional steel spoke. Due to the stretch of the spoke, double square nipples are used, allowing more operating room to tighten the spoke during the build process.

These Double Square Sapim Secure Lock nipples are already our favorite nipple option and used in virtually all of our builds due to their high corrosion resistance, strength, and their secure lock function.

The spoke is pulled through the hub with a temporary Wire Loop and a hooked tool (Berd refers to it as their “Pulling Tool”). After the spoke is pulled through, the Wire Loop is removed and a special Berd spoke cut-off is placed in the loop of the spoke. When the spoke is pulled away from the hub, the loop closes on the cut-off, preventing it from coming back through the hole in the hub.

There is a small loop at the end of each spoke. You place a special piece of wire through the loop and use a tool with a hook on it to pull the spoke through the hole of the hub. Then remove the tool/wire, place a ~5mm piece of material (same material as the spoke) through the loop, pull on the spoke to close the loop.