NIGEL LAND wrote:
> from my early engineering training I recall that curved spokes in cast
> wheels were that way to avoid casting cracks, when the molten metal cooled.
> Cast iron, in particular, has little strength in tension, and the curves
> gave just enough flexibility to, as you observe, relieve the stresses in the
> cooled casting. They also look more decorative and would appeal to Victorian
> aesthetics.
Not being an engineer or metallurgist of any type, I have to wonder if this has relevance to forged parts? Or is it simply aesthetics?
--
-John Thompson (john@os2.dhs.org)
Appleton WI USA