Bicycle Mechanics - A metallic ping noise in my front wheel.

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cyclezealot
03-17-04, 11:44 PM
I was riding my touring bike back yesterday...I am not sure what is going on..At an irregular basis, I keep hearing a metallic ping in my front wheel..Seems more common as I go faster down hills.
First thought I might be the plastic reflector attached to my spokes...Took it off. Not that.Took off the reflector the ping continues. I cheked the spokes they seem tight at each end..... The skewer seems tight.
My best guess is, if possible...The wheel wobbles from time to time...? Wheel seems pretty true...Could something be loose in the hub causing the wheel to sporadically shift. Possibly this could cause the wheel to move out, pushing the speedometer magnet to strike speedometer sensor?
What else could it be.. When I hear the ping I put my hand on the headset..I sense no vibration originating there.

Resident
03-18-04, 02:51 AM
It could be your spokes losing some tension. I'd get the wheel re-tensioned (100kgf) and perhaps drop some lube where the spokes cross.
cyclist2
03-18-04, 02:57 AM
check for loose spokes, take to bike shop and have spoke tensions checked if needed

cyclezealot
03-19-04, 08:15 PM
Maybe we all would appreciate knowing the diagnosis of a problem- to help us later, with our own bike mechanical problems....
Today, I was riding my touring bike about 20 miles away from home, when the noise in the wheel really became intense..Could feel more of a vibration coming up the stem, through the headset into the handlebars.
Luckily, I was about 4 miles away from a respected bike shop when the noise became so intense.
The problem was in the hub. Mechanic said the cones were in very poor shape...Said if I had rode the bike a long distance home, I probably would have destroyed the races in my hubs...
Could this problem be serious...? One rider in my group said this could cause such heat, real damage could result while riding the bike?
So if you hear a pinging and a vibration starts, hope you are near a bike shop... The bike probably has oh, 10 to 15 K on it. Is this problem premature.?
..It has been on two unsupported tours, carrying probably up to 45 lbs...Of course the weight load was less on the front..Strange the problem did not occur in the back first.