"Java Man (Espressopithecus)" wrote in message
ble.net...

The methaphor "standing on its spokes" is illustrative but does not
fully explain the phenomenon. That is the problem.

It is worse than that: it is actively misleading. Consider a more rigid
rim. Suddenly the change in tension in the lower spokes is significantly
reduced. So on wheels with more rigid rims the hub doesn't stand quite so
hard on the bottom spokes, raising two questions: (a) is "stand" meaningful
if the degree of "standingness" is dependent on the rim rigidity not the
mass applied at the hub and (b) what happens to the component of the mass
which is no longer "standing" on the bottom spokes as a result? Is some of
that now hanging from the upper spokes?

IOW, the "stand" terminology raises more questions than it answers.

The wheel is supported by the spoke nipples pushing on the rim, I say...

--
Guy
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