wheel bearings

[mimitabby]

thanks, Deb I'm printing it out.

[mimitabby]

I have the cones now, you can see where they are pitted and worn all along
the curved neck part.

I called the fancy bike shop and they are confident that they have them in stock.
It's too bad, i wanted to give the little guy my business, but i didnt expect to have to get the parts for him too!
He checked the back and said the back wheel is sealed but the bearings are in great shape.

[mimitabby]

well, confidence is unfortunately not enough to get the job done

they do not have the stupid wheel cones that i need for my bianchi so THEY have to order them. The wheel cones did not look like either picture that you
sent m to, Deb, (the same two he had in HIS catalog) he called Campagnolo and they said "oh, yeah, those ancient things" they'll order them
That means at least 3 more visits to LBS's before i get my bike back.

an interesting aside. when the mechanic looked at the damage to my cones he said it was probably because the hub was originally too tight. so what does THAT mean?

owell

[DebW]

an interesting aside. when the mechanic looked at the damage to my cones he said it was probably because the hub was originally too tight. so what does THAT mean?

I wasn't aware that cone damage looks different from a hub being too tight vs too loose vs lack of grease vs grit contamination. The only cone damage I've seen is small pits in the bearing track (the circular wear line where the bearings roll). Probably the whole bearing track wears rapidly if the cones are too tight.

When a hub is put together, the cones are screwed in on the axle until they are holding the ball bearings in place between hub cup surface and cone. Then lock nuts are tightened against the cones with a keyed washer in between to keep them in that position (not as simple as it sounds because tightening the lock nut moves the cone). The tightness of the cones is critical - too loose and the hub and rim can wobble relative to the bike frame, too tight and the wheel doesn't turn freely. The correct tolerance also allows the grease to coat the balls effectively and avoid metal-to-metal wear. After a hub is repacked, it should be checked after a couple hundred miles to see that the cones still have the proper tightness - sometimes they loosen a bit or feel different after the grease has broken in.