Help with diagnosing creak on my Tricross
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Posts: 802
Hi
I know from my recent searching that creaks can be the nastiest of things to track down properly, so I thought that I might ask for help with ideas (and suitable treatments) for a creak that has started recently on my Tricross.
I get a creak that seems to come from the front of the bike whenever I go over any road bumps. It seems to increase when I am out of my saddle and putting more effort in (so leaning more on the bars), but also happens when freewheeling over bumps. So I think (?) that rules out the drivetrain and saddle, which is a shame as I recently replaced the chainrings/cranks/pedals and that would have been an obvious culprit.
My current candidates are: headset, bar clamp, front skewer. Any other suggestions or diagnostic steps to suggest? Is a modern headset easy to deal with?
I know from my recent searching that creaks can be the nastiest of things to track down properly, so I thought that I might ask for help with ideas (and suitable treatments) for a creak that has started recently on my Tricross.
I get a creak that seems to come from the front of the bike whenever I go over any road bumps. It seems to increase when I am out of my saddle and putting more effort in (so leaning more on the bars), but also happens when freewheeling over bumps. So I think (?) that rules out the drivetrain and saddle, which is a shame as I recently replaced the chainrings/cranks/pedals and that would have been an obvious culprit.
My current candidates are: headset, bar clamp, front skewer. Any other suggestions or diagnostic steps to suggest? Is a modern headset easy to deal with?
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trial and error im afraid,
star at the front of the bike and make sure everything is tight.
remember noises travel especially on a bike so when a noise sounds like its definitely coming from the front it might be the BB or chain ring bolts
welcome to the world of squeak finding!Keeping it classy since '830 -
mudcow007 wrote:trial and error im afraid,
star at the front of the bike and make sure everything is tight.
This is a good reason why a torque wrench is a nice thing to have - at least you can leave the decision over whether something is tight or not to an inanimate object!
Headset easy enough - loosen stem bolts and tighten top cap. Then re tighten stem bolts.Faster than a tent.......0 -
Sounds like it could be the headset. I had a similar problem. I sprayed a load of GT85 at it and it went away. GT85 can get rid of a lot of creaks*
*does not work on knee jointsFCN 2 to 80 -
Rolf F wrote:This is a good reason why a torque wrench is a nice thing to have - at least you can leave the decision over whether something is tight or not to an inanimate object!
Headset easy enough - loosen stem bolts and tighten top cap. Then re tighten stem bolts.
Ta Rolf and Mr P. I'll give that a go. I have a BBB torque wrench my wife got me for Christmas (encouraging me to look after her bike!). She will be happy to see it used at last.Mr Plum wrote:Sounds like it could be the headset. I had a similar problem. I sprayed a load of GT85 at it and it went away. GT85 can get rid of a lot of creaks*
Shame!Mr Plum wrote:*does not work on knee joints0 -
I get exactly the same kind of creak from the front of my Tricross (see "commute" in sig) after it has been used on a wet commute - sometimes a small creak over a bump but more exaggerated when standing up to climb, sprint etc.
Turns out that there was nothing wrong with the hub, headset, bottom bracket, cranks or pedals - it turned out to be residual moisture at the front dropout.
REMEDY - take out front wheel and wipe dropouts with a clean rag or glove, sleeve etc (whatever is available) - problem solved until the next time the bike is left to dry naturally after a wet ride then repeat as necessary...NO MORE CREAK!!
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Oooh, sounds possible. The creak (it is a sharp, short creak, like a cable tapping the fork or headtube) was better in the drizzle on Wednesday, but worse after. I also first noticed it after a rather wet overnight ride to Bognor a month or so back .... hmmmgs3 wrote:I get exactly the same kind of creak from the front of my Tricross (see "commute" in sig) after it has been used on a wet commute - sometimes a small creak over a bump but more exaggerated when standing up to climb, sprint etc.
Turns out that there was nothing wrong with the hub, headset, bottom bracket, cranks or pedals - it turned out to be residual moisture at the front dropout.
REMEDY - take out front wheel and wipe dropouts with a clean rag or glove, sleeve etc (whatever is available) - problem solved until the next time the bike is left to dry naturally after a wet ride then repeat as necessary...NO MORE CREAK!!
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I had a creak from the front of the bike a couple of months back. Took the front wheel out, wiped the drop outs, put the wheel back in, no creak.FCN 2-4.
"What happens when the hammer goes down, kids?"
"It stays down, Daddy."
"Exactly."0 -
Spokes rubbing against each other?0
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I have a similar problem on my Tricross. I will give these remedies a go and post the results here. Fingers crossed!Mr Plum wrote:Sounds like it could be the headset. I had a similar problem. I sprayed a load of GT85 at it and it went away. GT85 can get rid of a lot of creaks*
*does not work on knee joints
I'm sure that GT85 must have 'for external use only' somewhere on the can ;-)0 -
Nice clean forks and front skewer
Still got the creak
Not the kind of noise I'd expect from the spokes, but possible, I suppose.
@CPS - let me know if anything works for you.
I may deal with the headset this weekend (need to dig out the torque wrench).0 -
Handlebar/Stem? Remove handlebar, clean and put small amount of grease on, re-fit and tighten.
Stem/Steerer? Undo top cap, remove stem, clean and re-assemble.
Headset? Bike in workstand, remove front wheel, undo top cap, remove stem and handlebar, pop forks out (note bearing/spacer/races config). Clean thoroughly and re-assemble with excess grease. Wipe off excess and refit stem/wheel.
I'd spend an hour doing all the above at once, same time I'd check how tight the STI's are, spoke tension on front wheel and might (seen as you're at it) service the front hub. Why not go the whole hog and pop off the canti's and grease the pivots?
Ref: cleaning dropouts - how tight are your QR's?FCN16 - 1970 BSA Wayfarer
FCN4 - Fixie Inc0 -
That sounds like a useful list to try. I think that is all within my fettling comfort zone.Blue Meanie wrote:Handlebar/Stem? Remove handlebar, clean and put small amount of grease on, re-fit and tighten.
Stem/Steerer? Undo top cap, remove stem, clean and re-assemble.
This is where it starts getting out of my comfort zone...Blue Meanie wrote:Headset? Bike in workstand, remove front wheel, undo top cap, remove stem and handlebar, pop forks out (note bearing/spacer/races config). Clean thoroughly and re-assemble with excess grease. Wipe off excess and refit stem/wheel.
Spoke tensions seem fine - tight and even when I pluck them. "Service the front hub"? Gulp? I know it probably sounds more intimdating than it is, but it sounds complex (although it is a handbuilt wheel - Mavic Open Pro on 105 hubs, which I thnk use cartridge bearings, so that might simplify things somewhat)Blue Meanie wrote:I'd spend an hour doing all the above at once, same time I'd check how tight the STI's are, spoke tension on front wheel and might (seen as you're at it) service the front hub.
Well, if I get to that point, I should do that. I've dealt with greasing V brake pivots, and replaced cables on the cantis, so I should cope with that.Blue Meanie wrote:Why not go the whole hog and pop off the canti's and grease the pivots?
Quite tight. I may swap to some QR skewers (these are security ones), just to see if that makes a difference. It might be the spring in the skewer, I suppose.Blue Meanie wrote:Ref: cleaning dropouts - how tight are your QR's?0 -
I just had a go at servicing the headset (loosened handle bars and top cap, lifted the front of the bike then bounced the front wheel off the gorund a few times, retightened everything,) and that seems to do the trick. This was based on advice from my local Guru at Bright Cycles in New Malden.
Crude but effective.0 -
I had exactly the same problem as the OP. Mine creak appears identical (i.e. pronounced when outta the saddle but still apparent when cruising over the odd bump, etc). Anyway mine is coming from the bottom headset bearing (i have an integrated headset, i.e. the bearings are located inside the top tube).
Apparently this is the worst type of bearing system to get as it doesn't provide enough compression at the bottom bearing (i've tightened the compression bolt, tried more spacers, less spacers - everything - still doesn;t work). The only sure fire way of getting shot of it is new forks i'm afraid.
Anyway, check to see if there is a gap between where the bearing race is and the headtube. My top bearing is snug whereas the bottom one is out by 2mm. Every single bump is bascially allows this 2mm gap to come together.
One sure fire way of telling is to push hard on the top of the frame behind the stem. If it clicks then you've got it as well chief.
My bike - SS Giant Bowery 72 20100 -
Could it be your knees?0
