Originally Posted by
nayr497
By "play in the bearings"...do you mean I should be able to move the axle when it is inserted? Wiggle the wheel/rim side to side when put back into the frame before closing QR? Or, simply that I should be able to wiggle the QR when inserted, prior to putting it into the dropouts?
With the wheel out of the bike, push and pull the axle laterally. You should be able to feel it move ever so slightly.
Someplace online (Sheldon's site I think) it was suggested to adjust the bearings with a QR compressing the axle. In this case you'd adjust for no play in the bearings. I thread some spare locknuts on the very tips of the axle for the QR to push against. This leaves the regular locknut(s) free to turn. (Note - I'm still new to doing this. None of the hubs I've adjusted this way have been ridden much yet.)