Spoke dispenser for spoked wheels in a spoke-fitting machine

A dispenser of spokes for spoked wheels, each spoke formed by a cylindrical rectilinear rod having a head at one end thereof of a diameter larger than that of the rod, comprising a spoke reservoir, a knife selection device positioned at the outlet end of the reservoir for selecting spokes and disposing them on a downward guide ramp, a rotary drum mounted adjacent the outlet end of said guide ramp for rotational movement about a transverse axis with respect to the feed travel direction of the spokes, peripheral grooves arranged on the surface of said drum and extending parallel to the axis of rotation of said drum, the cross-section of said grooves being greater than the cross-section of the spoke rods, the drum being disposed down-stream of said guide ramp for introduction of the spokes into said grooves, and a discharge ramp disposed on the side of said drum opposite said guide ramp to collect and guide the spokes after their travel on the drum, so that rotation of the drum transports the spokes from said downward guide ramp to said discharge ramp, said discharge ramp comprising two inclined and substantially parallel guide surfaces facing one another at a predetermined distance apart so as to allow a spoke to slide there between, the first guide surface being smooth and having a width at least equal to the length of the spoke, the second guide surface being made from an adherent material and having a smaller width than said first guide surface so as to allow free rotation of the spoke head, the distance between the two surfaces being greater than the diameter of the spoke rod and less than half the sum of the diameter of the rod and the distance of the end of the spoke head to the axis of the rod, so that the second surface creates a rotation torque on said spoke during sliding thereof whereby the spoke head slidingly engages the first guide surface and remains in a position upwards with respect to said rod.