spokes / wheel pinging?

henderson_mk

hey folks,

i've a set of am-classic cr420s on me bike... but i'm hearing some curious sounds from the front wheel.

firstly about 2 weeks ago... it started rattling a wee bit... so i checked the spokes and one was a bit loose so i tightened it up using a spoke key on the nipple... this more or less sorted it and the wheel is almost true. However, now when I start off or get out of the saddle on the tops i generally hear almost like a 'ping' type sound... which made me think i'd broken a spoke... but they all seem ok.
There is one though that looks a tiny bit bent... but not laterally if you know what I mean... more in the direction of drive.

anyone any thoughts? is it still ok to ride on? or should I bring to the bike shop at lunch time today?

DTM12

Spokes tend to ping when they have been adjusted and the wheel hasnt been stress relieved. Generally when you tighten a spoke it twists, It will ping back when you either stress relieve the wheel after you have adjusted the spokes or when you first ride (usually when you get out of the saddle) Unfortunately it usually means that the wheel goes slightly out of true again. And may need re-adjusting. When I true my wheels its a process of "true the wheel" then de-stress it. Then go back and true it again then de-stress it and repeat until all the spoke wind up is gone and the wheel is still true.

However on the flip side. Each spoke you have adjusted should only ping once or twice and then go quiet. I find a wheel that hasnt been de-stressed pings like mad for the fist few miles and then goes quiet all be it slightly out of true again

henderson_mk

hmmm.... it seems to keep pinging is the thing.... i think a visit to the bike shop to get it done properly is maybe the order of the day

DTM12

Yep, you could be right, If its what I suspected then it should go ping a couple of times in the first few miles, then it should have settled.
If it keeps pinging then something may be iffy

Kléber

Is this a radial wheel?

If not, try lubing the spot where the spokes cross eachother. If this silences the problem, then it could be that the spokes are too loose and they're flexing too much.

Check the spoke tension anyway, all spokes on front wheel should make the same note when you pluck them.

henderson_mk

yeah its radial.... and the spokes all seem to have a bit of a different tone to them... to the LBS without further ado!!