Back wheel wobbling!

Cantdosleepy

I had a bit of a prang recently, and the back wheel's not been the same since.

Before the prang I got a puncture once every six months on that wheel. Since it I've been getting about one a month. The front wheel was obviously bent after the prang, so I took it to the LBS and they fixed it up a treat - punctures are no more frequent than before.

With the wheel-nuts tight, the front wheel has basically no lateral motion - grabbing the front most part or the wheel an pullin it from side to side has no effect. The back wheel, however, can be wobbled about an inch in each direction, pressing up against the brake pads. The wheel-nuts are tight - I can't see where this wobble is coming from.

Any advise would be greatly appreciated!

will3

Sounds like your bearings are worn or badly adjusted, or in extreme you've snapped the axle.
Either are fairly easy to replace if you know what you're doing.

nicklouse

sounds like the cones need adjusting,

Or the axle is broken.

How to adjust the bearings.
http://sheldonbrown.com/cone-adjustment.html

Cantdosleepy

Cool - will I need to find out what kind of bearings and/or axle my bike has, or are they all pretty much the same? How much are we talking, £-wise? And will I have to buy special tools to fit them?

Cantdosleepy

So it looks like my rear wheel is a Alex DM18, silver, alloy, 700c, ANOD. W/CNC sidewall, 14Gx32H with a Formula TH-31 hub,

Can I grab the tools/parts I'll need from an Evans or whathaveyou on the way home from work? Or is this an 'order from a specialist' jobbie?

will3

on that particular hub, no idea. Ususally you need a set of cone spanners (which are extra thin) and the replacement axle.

Cantdosleepy

Thanks for the advice guys - just went at it with some adjustable spanners and it's much better!

unscarred

I think I've got a similar problem - the wheel on my station bike keeps slipping and jamming on the chainstays, so this morning I brought a better, longer spanner in so I could get more leverage on the nuts and tighten them up properly.

I expected it to tighten up and be immovable after a few turns, but it actually just kept turning and turning. I fear this means the axle has snapped, so I took the tube this morning instead.

How do I verify if the axle has snapped? How do I fix it? Should I just get a new wheel, or swap over the rear wheel from another even older bike I have sat at home rusting?

It's an old fifteen speed mountain bike with forward facing horizontal dropouts that I've converted to single speed by removing the deraillers/shifters and shortening the chain. The chain snapped recently so I got a new one, but some people have advised me to get a new cassette too. Can I transplant the wheel and chain from the other bike, even if it has a different number of cogs at the back?

will3

unscarred wrote:

How do I verify if the axle has snapped? How do I fix it? Should I just get a new wheel, or swap over the rear wheel from another even older bike I have sat at home rusting?

If you take the wheel out and the left and right side of the axle are not connected, it's pretty obvious.

Axles for nutted wheels were fairly cheap last time I bought one, and LBS etc.

unscarred

So it turns out the axle hasn't snapped, but is very badly bent. The wheel transplant fixed that. Half an hour in the cold and rain yesterday well spent, I thought.

Then halfway across the various junctions at Tower Bridge this morning the bottom bracket went.

Aaaaaargh! :evil: