rear wheel lubrication/cleaning rear cluster?

[janus77]

Just wondering, I've been lubricating my chain every other week (i ride every day), recently with rain I'm lubricating every week.

I got my bike back from a service and the rear wheel and cluster was running super silky. Now when I lube the chain, it doesn't backpedal as smoothly. Also that clicking noise that the bike makes when you wheel it along seems to have gone from quite loud when it was just serviced, to very quiet.

Can anyone give me any info on this?

Also pumped the tyres up to 60psi, I'm loving more than my ass...

[europa]

First off, I'd be lubricating more often than that.

In particular, I lube after EVERY wet trip.

In the dry, I oil the chain as soon as it starts getting noisy, more often if possible, which amounts to at least every 100km and definitely before every long ride.

It sounds like the whole setup is just gunked up with old grease and muck. Give the whole thing a thorough clean with (insert favourite cleaner here) and a stiff brush. I use kero for all that sort of cleaning but if you do a search, you'll find there are more options than cyclists so rather than refight the war here, do a search

You could pull the chain off and the wheel out and do the whole lot that way. Go right ahead if you're that way inclinded and you'll get the whole thing cleaner, but you can do a perfectly adequate job leaving the bike intact.

The pulleys in the derailleur do gum up and do need oiling as well, so include them in the clean and lube. This is probably where your problem lies.

Do all that and see what happens. Even if there is another problem, you won't be able to diagnose it while the drive train is dirty, so no matter where this ends up, the first step is a thorough clean and lube.

Have fun.

Richard
I hate cleaning bikes

[janus77]

Thanks Richard, the bike and gear is pretty clean overall though.

What is it that makes that clicking noise when you wheel the bike along without pedalling?

You might be right re lubing the chain after every wet weather ride, but I'm only riding about 20k's a day in total, so I'm not doing heaps of distance..

[europa]

Fair enough. I'd still lube it after every wet ride, especially a very wet ride. Do it once a week otherwise.

There's a difference between 'clean' and 'mechanically clean'. The outside might look fine but if you look closely at the derailleur, I'd be surprised if you don't have a build up of gunk. Worth a look and worth giving those pulleys a squirt of chain oil.

The clicking noise comes from the free hub - the thing that allows the cogs to turn backwards without turning the wheel. What you're hearing is a number of pawls (small levers) dropping over the ratchet inside the hub. If it's all a bit dry or mucky, it can be noisier than when clean but it's not something that typically needs servicing.

Richard

[janus77]

Gotcha, thanks

Yeah, I'm definitely due to do some lubricating after riding to work through a storm both yesterday and today.. aweful! need to buy some wet weather gear.

[Hawkeye]

Wet weather cycling gear doesn't do a very good job of keeping the water out, I've found. It really only keeps the wind out and stops teh chill factor from freezing you solid. Reason is that you end up perspiring so much that you might as well not wear the things unless it's to keep the wind out.

[s-s-a]

Another thing that could contribute to difficulty with chain reversing is if the rear derailleur is slightly out of adjustment. If you do alot of rain riding you need to make sure your cable housings are lubed - tricky to describe this can you get someone to show you?

As far as wet weather gear goes I agree it doesn't necessarily keep the rain out and unless it's cold you don't really need it. Carrying a shell or vest can be handy to put on if you need to stop unexpectedly (eg to fix a puncture) so you don't get cold.

Another thing which isn't very sexy but worth it is a lightweight mudguard that attaches to your seatpost - this will stop water and road grime from going up your backside and back. You can also get plastic deflectors for underneath your down tube that will catch spatter off the front wheel. Getting rained on is one thing but water off the road brings grime and grease and avoiding it will make your wet rides more pleasant (IMO).

Steph