Threadlock

Jonesinamilion

Evening all, amateur here..

I've previously taken all the brake levers / shifters off the bars & didnt use it.
On another bike I've removed the rotors and did use it.

I'm removing a second bottle cage from the seat post and I'm (stupidly?) thinking I should thread lock them back as there's no tension there now... I don't want them falling out and water / dirt getting in the frame...its not always a safety thing with thread lock is it a.

Where would / should / do you you use threadlock?

nicklouse

Very few places really need thread lock.

It can help on rotor bolts but that is about it.

Jonesinamilion

Thanking you... Mind put at rest!

Clockworkmark31

I would say rotor and head bolts. Other than that some grease and correct tension on the bolts is enough.

Jonesinamilion

Clockworkmark31 wrote:

I would say rotor and head bolts. Other than that some grease and correct tension on the bolts is enough.

As mentioned, I'm an amateur.

Bigger bolts get done up tight, smaller ones less...it's all in the feel?

I've got no carbon parts (nor a torque wrench for that matter!) so good call on the head bolts.

The Rookie

All bots should be done up tight, but tight for a smaller bolt is a lower torque than for a bigger diameter one, for most the bolts on a bike (M5) 5Nm is fine which is about the limit when using a normal Allen key without going stupid with it.

FishFish

Because the tools for tightening the chain ring bolts are in my experience a bit feeble then some threadlock on those bolts might help keep them from coming loose.

Twentytoo

I never use it on cycles. Just a torque wrench. I've always considered (rightly or wrongly) the absence of high frequency vibration negated the need. I've not had anything fall off yet :-)

The Rookie

Never ever had a chainring bolt come loose, ones its vaguely tight there is no need for holding the female side in place (friction does that), however I do use double Allen key bolts from preference to the slotted female as my inner engineer prefers the design, but that's only on two bikes of my four.

Besides if you don't like the tool, how the heck are you going to undo it with threadlock on? It can't have increased the torque to undo beyond what you can undo without it or you can't undo it, and it won't have been tightened top the same torque, so all in all a bad idea.

FishFish

The Rookie wrote:

Besides if you don't like the tool, how the heck are you going to undo it with threadlock on? .

...truly I found that out the hard way!

clydefrog

Rear mech hanger bolts (the ones that attach the hanger to the frame).

Chunkers1980

Is that because they don't actually do anything?

clydefrog

Just because I heard it's one of the few things you should use it on to stop them vibrating loose.

Monty Dog

Depends on which grade of threadlock because they go from light/temporary grades to permanent. As bottle cage bolts have no other means of mechanical locking, then good engineering practise is to use a retainer compound such as Loctite 222 to stop them vibrating loose but they don't require high torque to release. This kind of application is standard practise in aerospace and other high integrity engineering such as high pressure hydraulics and gas.

The Rookie

clydefrog wrote:

Just because I heard it's one of the few things you should use it on to stop them vibrating loose.

You heard wrong, done up right it won't vibrate loose!

Bottle cage bolts do have a means of locking, it's called the correct torque, like 99.99% of bolts in this world! Threadlock is added security but unless a bolt can't be torqued up for a specific reason (such as pivot bolts through bushings were you create unwanted friction) then there is no need to use it, just do the bolt up properly! Aerospace is incredibly risk adverse for obvious reasons and will use additional features where there is even a 1/100% chance of it coming loose.