Rear wheel noise

[Sh4rkyBloke]

Slightly annoyed - got my new Spesh Allez Elite yesterday, had to fiddle with the gears a bit but now that's sorted... however, there's a very annoying noise coming from the rear wheel.

1. Noise is regular (monitored whilst riding and looking at Spesh emblem on rear hub and noting when noise occurs)
2. Not crank/chain/gear related as it happens when freewheeling
3. Not seatpost related as it happens when out of saddle
4. Not brake rubbing related as disengaged brakes and still happening
5. Only happens when weight on wheel (ie I'm riding it rather than just spinning wheel)
6. Nothing catching on wheel (it would happen when not weight bearing too, presumably)

The sound is like metal on metal and I have no real idea what it is but it's driving me crazy. Its not overly loud, but makes my beautiful, shiny, new baby sound like a noisy, clarty, hack.

The wheel seems slightly off-true too (which is also a tad annoying!), and the only conclusion I can come to is that it's a spoke possibly being pushed slightly into the rim (thus catching on the entry point - metal on metal) on each turn of the wheel. This would only happen when weight bearing too... but how can I confirm/refute this, and if it is the case how can I easily fix it?

Advice appreciated!

 

[dodgy]

Not the speedo magnet clipping (probably on the front wheel if you have one anyway)?

 

[Sh4rkyBloke]

Nope, have a Garmin Edge 205 so no sensor.

 

[Sh4rkyBloke]

Update: I tried keeping the bike upright and pressing down firmly on the rear wheel and moving it backwards and forwards, then rotating it a bit and doing it again to see if I could locate the exact area of the noise... and no, I couldn't.

Maybe it needs my complete fat a*se on the saddle to put it under enough strain that it lets out the squeak... no doubt I shall find out on the way home and be embarrassed as I overtake people on my shint bike that makes a funny noise.

Any other ideas, anyone???

 

[stephec]

Are the bearings properly adjusted and greased?

If the bearings are loose then the wheel will move when you grip it and push it from side to side.

 

[Landslide]

Your hub is about to collapse, resulting in a long walk home pushing your stricken steed.

Oh, wait. That's my hub, not yours!!!

 

[Sh4rkyBloke]

Are the bearings properly adjusted and greased?

If the bearings are loose then the wheel will move when you grip it and push it from side to side.

No movement, all seems fine there.

 

[Sh4rkyBloke]

Your hub is about to collapse, resulting in a long walk home pushing your stricken steed.

Oh, wait. That's my hub, not yours!!!

Poor you. If you know it's knackered though....

 

[dodgy]

Have you got another wheel to put on the bike to try and eliminate it from your enquiries?

 

[Sh4rkyBloke]

That's my next step - I plan to mug my colleague at work and remove his wheel while he remains tied up in the corner of the room...

 

[Graham O]

Is the noise continuous or a regular tick/grind? Is it related to the position of the wheel, i.e. does it always happen when the wheel is at the same part of it's rotation?

 

[Sh4rkyBloke]

It seems to be regular - it's difficult to tell as I can only hear it when I'm riding... and this makes it difficult to concentrate on the back wheel as there are so many pesky cars to avoid etc.

 

[swee'pea99]

If it's any comfort (I'm sure it won't be) I have something very similar going on with my front wheel. Sounds like it's less severe than yours - it's more of a wheesh wheesh wheesh noise than anything hevy duty - but it's been irritating me for a couple of weeks now and I'm buggered if I can find out what's causing it.