Why are some rims made with eyelets? Do I need them? Will my wheel break if I don’t have them? These are a few questions that many people ask about rims. This is a short article for beginners with a picture of a rim that has eyelets for the spokes.
Most rims do not have eyelets for the spokes. There is a hole for the spoke to pass through in the rim and this suffices in most cases. When a rim is under stress, such as from heavily loaded touring, or extreme off road riding it may develop radial cracks around these spoke holes. These cracks mean the rim has failed and will eventually lead to a total failure of the rim.
A typical rim with eyelets in the spoke holes.
The eyelets in the rim help prevent radial cracking of the rim. Some rims are fitted with one eyelet, while other rims have double eyelets. The second eyelet is on the inside of the rim. Depending on the design of the rim, it may have two parts that the spoke has to pass through.
If you are planning on building up some wheels for heavy duty use such as long distance touring or off road riding, then it may be worth considering using rims that are fitted with eyelets.
This should help the rim to last longer, but having eyelets will not compensate for a poorly built wheel, or a wheel that is overloaded.
