Loose Cones?

[Anjow]

So I rode my new bike to uni today and I was showing it to a friend who has ridden BMX for many years. He had a go on it and said that the cones on my back wheel were loose and that I should tighten them up. The thing is, I don't really know what this means because I only just got the bike and I know little about maintenance. He pointed to some things either side of the wheel.

What I want to know is:

- What does loose cones mean?

- What effect does it have? (My back wheel does wobble side to side a little - will it fix that?)

- How does one tighten them up?

- What tools does one need?

- What are the risks of leaving it like that?

So if anyone could fill me in that would be great, thanks.

[Louth Trials]

you need either a cone spanner or a normal spanner that fits.

fistly undo your wheel nuts,

then get your cone spanner or normal spanner and tighten the nut like things. (1st step)(see pic)

**not too tight so that they don't wobble any more and so that your wheel still spins freely**

then the 2nd step in the pic tighten these up to stop the cones from coming loose again.

repeat this on the other side,

then put your wheel in the correct position and tight the wheel nuts up again.

hope i have helped...

[Anjow]

Yes, that's very helpful thanks. Do I need to take the wheel out to do this?

[Elliot]

- What does loose cones mean?

the bearings in your hub are held in place buy a cone shaped nut, when this nut loosens the bearings and therefore the wheel itself can wobble and start to move around

- What effect does it have? (My back wheel does wobble side to side a little - will it fix that?)

loose cones will give your back wheel a wobble that will get worse as the cones get looser, it rape your hub if you leave it, if your tighten and grese the cones the wheel wont wobble and the hub will last longer

- How does one tighten them up?

cone spanners, and if its your bmx you may need to take off your freewheel (cant say I know much about freewheels though)

- What tools does one need?

cone spanners, and what ever tool you need for your freewheel

- What are the risks of leaving it like that?

it'll get worse, raped hub, your brakes will begin to rub, but just get it sorted, its not a big job

go here for more info

have a look around on that site, it'll tell you most of what you need to do to maintain your bike, even as much as wheel building, which I found piss easy when I followed their how to.

Good luck dude, I'm sure you'll get it sorted!

[ScotchDave]

If you can tell us what hub you have, and/or take a picture of it we would be able to help you a lot more.

Edited April 16, 2007 by ScotchDave

[Louth Trials]

Yes, that's very helpful thanks. Do I need to take the wheel out to do this?

you do not have to take the wheel out to do this but just loosen the nuts off,

but if you feel it easier take the wheel out...

[RicH_87]

you don't have to take the wheel out no, just loosen the bolts.

just try and get two spanners that fit, put on on each side then turn them very gently in opposite directions until you feel a little resistance.

don't proper whack on the force and tighten them like hub bolts, they just need to be tight enough to keep the wheel straight (no wobble), but still loose enough for the wheel to spin freely and smoothly.

tighten the hub bolts and spin the wheel with your hand when you are done, if it stops pretty much straight away you have probably tightened them too much.

oh, and don't expect them to last for a long time, un-sealed hubs almost always screw up eventually. just keep them tight and check it regularly though and it'll be fine for a good few months.

[Anjow]

What's happened:

I felt the chain and it was a bit too loose as well. I did take the wheel out, it took a bit of thinking for me to figure out how everything fit together so I could remember to put it back right. I then found out my adjustable spanners were too thick, but both my pedal spanners were almost exactly right for adjusting the cones. So I tightened them up so that it didn't wobble, but didn't feel like there was gravel in the wheel either, then tightened their retaining nuts. That was pretty hard because when I was tightening the retaining nuts they kept rubbing on the cones and making them tighter. I got it in the end. I put the wheel back on, struggled a bit to fit the chain tensioners but managed in the end, phoned a friend about chain tension and got that sorted. Finally I stuck the brakes back on and adjusted them and...

... I'm now left with a bike where the wheel doesn't wobble and the chain isn't too lose.

Thanks for the help, it isn't as scary as I thought it would be.

[Tomm]

Hehe, well done

[Anjow]

However, I've been fiddling a bit and it my brakes feel different to each other, the front one feels normal - a clear bite point and then lots of resistance, but the back one feels a bit spongy - I can feel the bite point but the lever can be moved in further without too much effort. I can see the frame flexing a bit, so I assume the brakes are working as intended and I should be receiving one of those Echo boosters tomorrow.

Does my description say anything to you? Does it sound normal? Will the booster do anything to affect this?

I have always been very particular about brakes, even with my plain MTB several years ago. I like a bite point that you hit very near the start of pulling the lever and I don't like spongy feelings.

Edit: it seems it's because the pads are different distances from the rim, and it is proving absolute HELL to get right. I HATE adjusting brakes.

Edited April 16, 2007 by Anjow

[TomR]

Good on you for diving in and sorting it out mate, bikes are easy to fix once you start as you can see how they come apart as you do it, it's harder to understand without doing it.