wiggly wheel
 

I have asked about this before, but I still have not solved it and I need some clarifications and advice. I do not know the technical terms, but I will decribe it as best as I can. I have a trek 820 and the rear tire wiggles from side to side. From what I have read to remedy this you should remove the wheel and make adjustments to the nuts on the inside of the axel so that the axel moves inpendently of the wheel, but the axel is tight enough that it does not wiggle. My first question is do I have that right? If I do, I have very hard time getting it just right, sometimes I do. When its fixed the bike rides great, I'll get about five miles and feel it start wiggling again. This has been frustrating me for a long time now. I need some advice on what I should do about it.

1) I could take it to a bike mechanic, but I am afraid they will do the same thing I did to fix the bike and I'll just end up paying for a temporary fix.

2)Somebody suggested before that I might purchase a new wheel. I am curious what it would cost to have a new wheel installed? Does a new wheel come with all of the bearings, axels, etc.? Is it possible to install the new wheel my self or would it be best to have a bike mechanic do it?

3)I could purchase a new bike, I am a bit weary about that though since the problems with my current bike poped up after one season of serious use.

I appreciate your help.

It depends a little bit on the bike, but most bike hubs have a cone that rides against the bearings and a locknut that tightens against the cone. The trick is to get the cone in just the right place and hold it there while you tighten the locknut against the cone. The process usually requires a very thin 15 or 16mm cone wrench and a 17mm open end wrench.

If you have tried this several times and the cones continue to loosen themselves up, you obviously have an additional problem. My experience has been that the axle threads wear right at the sweet spot and won't hold the cone in adjustment. The obvious solution is to replace the axle.

There are two possible causes:

1. The bearing adjustment is loosening up (already mentioned).
2. The wheel is going out of true (spokes loosening up). If this is the case, one or more spokes and/or spoke nipples may need to be replaced.

Thanks for the help,
I am pretty sure that the problem is with the bearing adjustment. I was playing with it today. When I adjust the bearings the adjustment is tight so that bearings are not able to move and the axel and wheel will only move as one, which I know is too tight but even with it being too tight the axel is still wiggly. I am going to get a new axel and see if that remdies the problem. Just out curiosity what would I need to bring to bike store, the whole bike, the wheel, or just the axel? Also what roughly does an axel set cost?

Thanks again

Hub adjustments are a two part deal. Yu need to adjust the cones so you have no play, then lock it down with the locknuts. If you adjust it without doing the two then you get yourr results. Any LBS should know how to do this. You could always go here and learn the correct way.
http://www.parktool.com/repair_help/index.shtml

If you tighten it down to where the axel and wheel move together, but it still wiggles, you may have a ball bearing or two missing.

I'd probably take the whole bike to the shop if I was going to have them work on it, but at least take the entire wheel.

i agree with avalanche. it's probably not the axle or spokes, just missing or broken ball bearings. however, it could be caused by a bent axle. i broke some bearings on my bmx bike and similar stuff happened; i'm pretty sure it was the axle, which was bent from grinding, that caused uneven wear. what i'm saying is ask them to check the bearings, maybe replace and repack them.

I bent the ring that holds bearings in place a while ago this was after the wiggle started. I took it to the bike shop and they did not have a replacement in stock, the mechanic told me that I could just pack the bearings in loose, the bearing ring held eight balls, but without the ring nine fit. I have tried both nine and eight and had problems with the wiggle, was the mechanic right? Is it possible that not have having the ring is preventing me from fixing this?

Loose balls should be just as good, if not better, than balls in a retainer, as long as you have the right amount and size.

Well I finally took it to the bike shop, they said the hub was damaged and I had them put on a new wheel for $55, I think I checked it but I cant be sure, I went on 25 mile ride I came back and the new wheel is wiggling. That shouldnt happen right? There is no reason that there should be any wiggle in a brand new wheel? Should I take it back in? Could it possibly be the way I ride that is causing it to come out of adjustment or some other component unrelated to the wheel?

I'd take it back to the shop while it is still wiggling so the actual cause can be determined and corrected.

I took it back and they gave it a hub adjustment, I took it out again and it seems like its starting to wiggle again, although its not as bad as last time yet. I'll take it a few times on the weekend and see if it gets worse before I take it in again. The new wiggle is barely detectable, if it doesn't get any worse should I bother taking it back again?