Newbie question - Rear wheel play

Bendy1975

Hi all,
I have just bought a used 07 Genesis Core 2.0 from ebay. The previous owner says he was a bike mechanic so it should be looked after.
I have put in a new tube after getting a flat and noticed that the rear wheel has a bit of side to side play in it when I have put the rear wheel back on. With the bike upside down, I can grab hold of the rear tyre and gently rock it ever so slightly from side to side. Shouldnt this be solid with no play like the front wheel? Do I need to replace or tighten or check anything?

Thanks for your help
Ben

norco forever

have you tightened the qr skewers before rocking it?

Bendy1975

Yep, the quick release mech is nice and tight.
Ben

norco forever

hmm sounds like you may have a set of shot bearings :S

Pippen33

You may need to fiddle with the cone nuts, as in, move them (or one) out.

BlackSpur

Yep, I would say the cones could need tightening.

Bendy1975

Thanks for the advice on the cone nuts, I googled it and came up with the info below. I'll give it a go, thanks!!!!

Fine-Tune Hub Bearings

Hubs that are too tight or loose are inefficient and sap speed. To fine-tune your hub bearings, use two cone spanners. One goes on the outer locknut and the other spanner fits on the cone nut, which controls how tight or loose the cone presses against the bearings inside the hub. Turning the cone nut clockwise tightens the bearings; counter-clockwise loosens. Eliminating play while avoiding overtightening requires loads of patience. One handy trick: Only tighten or loosen about 1/16th of a turn at a time – about the distance of one spoke to the next on a 32-spoke wheel. This is an easy way to measure how much you’ve tightened or loosened the spanner. Once you’ve adjusted the cone nut, re-tighten the locknut.

Looseness Test: Grab the top of the wheel with your thumb and forefinger while supporting the frame in your other hand. Wiggle the wheel side to side. If there’s lateral movement, you need to tighten the hub bearings.

Tightness Test: Remove the wheel and spin it while holding the axle ends with your fingers. The wheel should spin smoothly with the axles resting lightly on your fingertips. Excessive drag makes it hard to hold onto the axles. To fix, slightly loosen the hub bearings.

supersonic

That is not the best guide I have seen - it does not say that you have to or how to loosen the locknut from the cone, and how to tighten them together.

This is much better:

http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=105

Benjey_boi

i had the same problem with my rear wheel it turns out that i had broke the bearings which meant that the wheel was driftin side to side when i was cycling. so it sounds like u have the same prob in which case u need a new rear wheel.

supersonic

This is quite rare though benjy, it is much more likely it just needs adjusting. Though if in doubt can strip the hub (many benefit from a service anyway)

Bendy1975

Yeah that guide is loads better. Thanks Supersonic. I have done about 10 - 12 miles this weekend, I dont think the bearings are cracked as it seems to ride ok.

Ben