Spoke creaks on rebuilt wheel

[lauraelmore1033]

I had my rear wheel rebuilt in June after I broke a second spoke somewhere between mile 50-75 of a 100 mile ride. (had to get back somehow!). Initially, I was just going to have the spoke repaired, but the mechanic called and said the wheel was falling apart in his hands and suggested that I should just have the wheel rebuilt. So I did. So I know I'm really paranoid about the condition of this wheel. since I had only ridden it about 1200 miles before it fell apart in this way. But anyway, I've put about 200 miles on the rebuilt wheel and it has been making funny, creaking, pinging sounds for the last 120 of those miles. They are very faint sounds, and are apparently so faint that the mechanic couldn't hear them when I took the bike back in. He rode the bike and tried to stress it as much as he could by riding up hill in the big ring with the brakes on (!!!?). I probably weigh 50-80 pounds more than the mechanic, but he didn't want to hear about the weight issue. I think he was only hearing criticism of the job he did (which was simply not the case) In fact all the mechanics in the shop rode the darn thing and didn't hear the sound. They also examined th wheel and determined that it was still in true and that nothing LOOKED out of the ordinary, so I took it home. But it still creaks and pings when I ride it. My husband and others have heard it while out on rides. Am I just being paranoid, or does it sound like there could be a problem? I am really reluctant to bring it back to the shop because they now think I'm some sort of bicycle hypocondriac...

[DebW]

How many spokes in this wheel, how many crosses? Are the spokes butted or straight-gage? What model hub and rim? Are the spokes evenly spaced or in pairs? And if I may ask, what is your weight? Wheels do need to be matched to a rider's weight. Pinging noises are perfectly normal for the first couple of rides after a wheel is rebuild, but that isn't normal after 200 miles.

If the wheel is otherwise properly build and appropriate, you might ask your mechanic if he would consider tying and soldering your spoke crossings.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

This may sound nuts, but I had that wierd pinging sound in both my wheels when I put new different tires on that had a higher suggested tire pressure marked on them. I pumped the new tires up to their maximum air pressure and the spokes started making all these weird little sounds, creaking and pinging. My LBS did not hear them either.
The sounds gave me the creeps and I backed off the air pressure by 10 pounds, and the sounds suddenly went away for good. Just my own experience and who knows, but maybe worth a try?

[lauraelmore1033]

Hi Deb,
Thanks for replying. I am fairly certain I am too heavy for the wheel. I was actually hoping the mechanic would suggest a beefier wheel, but he was sure the issue was with poor quality spokes. My weight is somwhere in the neighborhood of 250 pounds (I was close to 270 when I started riding this bike). My wheel has 32 spokes configured (as far as I can tell) in eight pairs which cross near the middle and again with their neighbors at the hub. The rims are Alex DA-16 Double wall, and the hubs are alloy joytech, QR 32h. The fellow who sold me the bike assured me that the wheel was sturdy enough to hold me, but I don't think he realized exactly how heavy I am...

Additionally, while I was out counting spokes, I noticed that the creaking sound was coming from the three spokes which touch the reflector. There is just enough play in those three that they make the reflector ping. I removed the reflector, and hte ping is gone but there is still going to be that small amount of give there.

I think I am still interested in getting a beefy wheel...

[lauraelmore1033]

This may sound nuts, but I had that wierd pinging sound in both my wheels when I put new different tires on that had a higher suggested tire pressure marked on them. I pumped the new tires up to their maximum air pressure and the spokes started making all these weird little sounds, creaking and pinging. My LBS did not hear them either.
The sounds gave me the creeps and I backed off the air pressure by 10 pounds, and the sounds suddenly went away for good. Just my own experience and who knows, but maybe worth a try?


I'm always a bit of a weenie about pumping up the tires, and I tend to be a little conservative about it. I did, however, get new tires which will accept higher pressures about the same time. The old ones were pumped up to 95-100 psi and the new ones to 100-120. Hmmm. It's something to check out...

[DebW]

Hi Deb,
Thanks for replying. I am fairly certain I am too heavy for the wheel. I was actually hoping the mechanic would suggest a beefier wheel, but he was sure the issue was with poor quality spokes. My weight is somwhere in the neighborhood of 250 pounds (I was close to 270 when I started riding this bike). My wheel has 32 spokes configured (as far as I can tell) in eight pairs which cross near the middle and again with their neighbors at the hub. The rims are Alex DA-16 Double wall, and the hubs are alloy joytech, QR 32h. The fellow who sold me the bike assured me that the wheel was sturdy enough to hold me, but I don't think he realized exactly how heavy I am...

Additionally, while I was out counting spokes, I noticed that the creaking sound was coming from the three spokes which touch the reflector. There is just enough play in those three that they make the reflector ping. I removed the reflector, and hte ping is gone but there is still going to be that small amount of give there.

I think I am still interested in getting a beefy wheel...

Good job in finding the reflector making the ping. Your spokes are supposed to flex to take up shocks as you ride, so not necessarily a bad thing if that reflector pinged a bit. My suggestion would be to purchase and carry a fiberfix spoke (http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fiberfix.htm) so you won't be stuck on the road with a broken spoke, but go ahead and use this wheel for now. If it still gives you problems or you just feel uncomfortable with it, then do upgrade to a beefier wheel. You should be on a wheel with 36 or 40 spokes, evenly spaced, 3 or 4 cross, either 14g or butted 14-15-14g spokes. Depending on your budget, Shimano 105 or Ultegra hubs and Mavic rims would be good quality and reliable.

[ridebikeme]

Great effort to find where the spokes were creaking!! I aplaud your efforts and concern for your wheels... I wish more people were that diligent.

I agree with Deb that you should be on a 36 spoke wheel, and Mavic or Velocity would be a good choice for rims. I built a wheel for a gentleman that is a bit heavier than you, he also has extremely strong legs, so he flexes the frame and the wheel with each pedal stroke. I built him a 36 spoke wheel with an Ultegra hub, Mavic rim and he has been riding that wheel for several weeks now. It may be a bit more expensive to go this way, but in the long run it will work well for you. Congradulations for losing weight while riding!

[lauraelmore1033]

Thank you both for the information. I think I would definitely feel more comfortable with a stronger new wheel. I've actually been considering getting a new touring bike (like a Trek Portland or 520) since they are supposed to be more ruggedly built (and we are also planning to do more touring) and it would be nice to set it up with a suitable wheel from the get-go.

[GLC1968]

This may sound nuts, but I had that wierd pinging sound in both my wheels when I put new different tires on that had a higher suggested tire pressure marked on them. I pumped the new tires up to their maximum air pressure and the spokes started making all these weird little sounds, creaking and pinging. My LBS did not hear them either.
The sounds gave me the creeps and I backed off the air pressure by 10 pounds, and the sounds suddenly went away for good. Just my own experience and who knows, but maybe worth a try?

Lisa -

Thank you for posting this!!! My husband recently bought a cross bike that he uses as a commuter. We have been trying to solve the 'creak' problem for weeks now!! Through process of elimination, we got it down to coming from the rear wheel, but even with a after re-truing and spoke tension check, it kept creaking. And yeah, the LBS couldn't duplicate it. He had traded out the original cross tires for a more all-around 700x28 tire. After reading your post, I suggested he try the old tire again. Sure enough, the creak vanished! He's now shopping for new wheels to use without the cross tires. Thanks so much for solving a super annoying mystery for us!!