I know it’s not the brake rotor and pad making contact cause when I bounce it I am keeping the brake lever squeezed…
Not sure whether it’s the fork or the wheel making noise.
Accidentally rode with my thru axle loose yesterday without noticing, now my bike is making this new noise, and ideas what it could be?
byu/Old-Sherbet9812 inbikewrench
by Old-Sherbet9812
7 Comments
That’s a weird sound. Try removing the front wheel and bounce that alone. Does the noise come from the front wheel?
Check your spokes. Sounds like one could be hitting the disk. I’m guessing here.
Hi had my Zebs make this noise. The internal damper unscrewed itself. When wheel is off , shake your bike about to check suspension
after checking what the previous commenters said to check, look at your brakes. maybe they got forced out of position and got loose that way.
also inspect your axle and the holes in your fork if anything is deformed, regardless of you maybe finding another reason for the sound before.
Unfortunately I think there are two noises. One from the brakes and one from the fork. I’m no specialist but that’s what I’ve seen watching his hands on the brakes. There’s one sound when he’s not applying the front brake and the fork doesn’t go thru it’s travel and another one when he is applying the brake and the fork goes thru its travel. I’m pretty sure they are distinct. Are your brakes new? I’ve had the same chattery noise from the brakes when I put on new disks and metal pads( hayes dominion). On the first ride I thought my bike is going to dezintegrate. The tolerance was so small that the pad were hitting the rotors on harsh terrain. On the other hand I’ve heard the same sound coming from your fork when it’s going trough it’s travel. It’s a very specific sound. As I’ve said I’m no expert but there are a lot of riders riding with that sound. I don’t know if it’s ok. Ask your lbs.
related but not to the solution you are looking for, paint pens are great for keeping an eye of if bolts are backing out. Thru axels being a perfect use case
If you rode with the axle loose it’s possible your hub axle broke (been there, done that), or if your hub has threaded end caps one of them unscrewed itself a bit. Pull the front wheel and look inside the hub where the axle goes, is it in good shape? Is there play in the end caps? Try your other front wheel and see if the problem goes away.