Pro Connect - Sheard Spoke - HELP !!!!!!!

[timelordUK]

Hi, I wonder if anyone can help me.
I got a Pro Connect about 4 months ago and have been using it to cycle to work (its a school, I am a teacher) ever since. It's a brilliant machine and I am loving cycling and the fuel money I have been saving.
However, When I got to work yesterday, I noticed that one of the spokes on the rear wheel had sheared off at the hub. I am now really clueless about what to do.... here are a few questions I need to ask..

1) What causes this to happen?
2) Would it be covered under the warranty? (only 410 miles covered so far)
3) If not - is it expensive to fix.
4) I am a novice - how easy it it to fix myself and what type of spoke would I need?
5) How safe is the bike to ride in the mean time? (I really dont want to resort to the car)

Many thanks in advance for the help !!!

 

[burncycle]

Hi, I wonder if anyone can help me.
I got a Pro Connect about 4 months ago and have been using it to cycle to work (its a school, I am a teacher) ever since. It's a brilliant machine and I am loving cycling and the fuel money I have been saving.
However, When I got to work yesterday, I noticed that one of the spokes on the rear wheel had sheared off at the hub. I am now really clueless about what to do.... here are a few questions I need to ask..

1) What causes this to happen?
2) Would it be covered under the warranty? (only 410 miles covered so far)
3) If not - is it expensive to fix.
4) I am a novice - how easy it it to fix myself and what type of spoke would I need?
5) How safe is the bike to ride in the mean time? (I really dont want to resort to the car)

Many thanks in advance for the help !!!

Hi There!
Sorry you're having trouble but you are not alone with the rear wheel problems.
Got mine back last week as I was having trouble with the rear wheel on my Pro-Connect. 2nd Time back to 50cycles since I got it.
1st time the bike was making a pinging and grinding noise when the wheel was turning.
The wheel and spokes had to be retightened (or something like that).
They quickly resolved it but after 400 miles it returned again.
Back again last week for similar problems with the rear wheel again. This time pinging and grinding noise when the wheel was cranked under load.
They found nothing but they took it apart and gave the whole thing a FULL SERVICE, and up to now it is riding better than ever.
Still holding my breath though until a 400-500 hundred miles are under my belt.
The mechanics at 50cycles are great guys (FAO Lloyd) and they really know what good customer service are all about.
Dont worry, im sure they will do all they can to resolve the problem for you.

Though I am more worried about Derby cycles quality issues now I know im not alone with the rear wheel problems and we seem to have got the same batch at the same time.

Hope this helps!

Bob.

 

[timelordUK]

I had that grinding noise too !!

 

[Lloyd_50cycles]

Spokes do occasionally break, could be a number of things I'm afraid. Hard to pinpoint. Fear not though, I will send you one in the post tomorrow morning first thing, and if you take it to your local shop, ask them to fit it and re-tension your wheel whilst it's off.You are of course welcome to bring it here for us to do also. We'll do it under warranty so just give me a call tomorrow to arrange where to send the spoke and who will be fitting it. Hopefully it will just be a one off, and obviously if there are any future problems we will sort it for you asap.

All the best

Lloyd

 

[timelordUK]

That's brilliant !!!! Thanks Lloyd!!

 

[timelordUK]

I have just taken the rear wheel off in order to get this repaired (nice and straight forward!), and i noticed quite a lot of white coloured grease at the non drive side of the Nexus gear hub... is this normal or is it leaking from somewhere?

 

[JamesC]

Nexus 8 Grease and Dust Cap

I have just taken the rear wheel off in order to get this repaired (nice and straight forward!), and i noticed quite a lot of white coloured grease at the non drive side of the Nexus gear hub... is this normal or is it leaking from somewhere?

Hi Timelord
It is quite normal to be able to see white grease around the nut that is inside the rounded black dust cap on the non-drive side.

For info, the detail of the hub and wheel is shown here - Shimano WH-8R25.

The grease used inside the Nexus hub must always be the special white grease, designed for the purpose - item 45, part number Y-041 20800, available from Petra Cycles here. Contrary to the library picture, I can assure you that the correct grease for the bearings and gears in the Nexus hub is white.

Magnify the picture on the screen of the hub and wheel. The group of parts where you have seen the grease are the bottom group on the left hand side - in particular group shown as item 21 which is the Left Hand Dust Cap. The large part (black) rotates with the wheel, and the inner silver part remains stationery with the axle, but with only a small clearance. To assist in keeping out the dust and rain, the small clearance is smeared with grease at assembly, and it is this that you can see.

Immediately inside the dust cover is the Left Hand Bearing - item 12 - which is also greased quite liberally, and may cause some excess to penetrate the dust cap area during the first 500 miles or so of running in.

The excellent data at hubstripping.com includes this little sheet, which explains the need for grease between the static and rotating parts of the dust cap. Picture 2 is the dust cap on the drive side of the hub; dust cap A (large black plastic) rotates at the speed of the wheel, whilst the silver metal dust cap B rotates at the speed of the chain sprocket. Again, grease is used to fill the small gap between.

So, no worries.

James

 

[c_elder]

Another Brokenn Rear Spoke

One of my rear wheel spokes, also on a Pro-Connect, broke near the hub yesterday :-(

Took it to Evans. They didn't have the part but more importantly didn't have a slot free in their workshop for 16 days! :-((

Their mechanic said that for the weight of the bike, the Pro-Connect is under-spoked. He expected at least 36 spokes (to the current 24).

Will contact 50Cycles on Monday. They have been very helpful.

 

[Mussels]

One of my rear wheel spokes, also on a Pro-Connect, broke near the hub yesterday :-(

Took it to Evans. They didn't have the part but more importantly didn't have a slot free in their workshop for 16 days! :-((

Their mechanic said that for the weight of the bike, the Pro-Connect is under-spoked. He expected at least 36 spokes (to the current 24).

Will contact 50Cycles on Monday. They have been very helpful.

Fewer spokes seems to be a bit of a fashion thing which has negligable benefit to the average cyclist but makes the wheel weaker.
I've had quite a few problems with spokes and I found that the CTC website was a good source of information if you want to get clued up on the subject, spoke strength is not a simple subject at all.
Good luck and if you are paying to get it sorted yourself then it's probably worth contacting SJS Cycles (rather than Evans) and posting it to them as they have some specialist experience.

 

[burncycle]

So does anyone think this is a flaw that will cause problems with other Pro Connect owners in the near future?

When I took mine to 50cycles, they said my Pro Connect was the only bike that they had in with this problem.

 

[flecc]

So does anyone think this is a flaw that will cause problems with other Pro Connect owners in the near future?

When I took mine to 50cycles, they said my Pro Connect was the only bike that they had in with this problem.

Quite possibly. I agree that having less than 30 spokes in a full size wheel has the potential for trouble, since the fewer the spokes, the more vital it is to have a flawless wheel build, not easy to achieve in mass production.

I see no sense in having less than 36 spokes as the Agattu has, since the weight difference on a road bike is negligible.
.

 

[stokepa31_mk2]

Quite possibly. I agree that having less than 30 spokes in a full size wheel has the potential for trouble, since the fewer the spokes, the more vital it is to have a flawless wheel build, not easy to achieve in mass production.

I see no sense in having less than 36 spokes as the Agattu has, since the weight difference on a road bike is negligible.
.

Another thing to consider is whether folks are having their bikes correcly serviced. It is normal after around 100 miles or so to have the bike checked over with the spokes being checked for the correct tension and gears and brakes being fine tuned too. factory built wheels always loosen up after being run in. My LBS charges £30 for a first service. Well wort the peace of mind when you've spent £1500

 

[Mussels]

Another thing to consider is whether folks are having their bikes correcly serviced. It is normal after around 100 miles or so to have the bike checked over with the spokes being checked for the correct tension and gears and brakes being fine tuned too. factory built wheels always loosen up after being run in. My LBS charges £30 for a first service. Well wort the peace of mind when you've spent £1500

A wheel needs a service after 100 miles , are you sure about that? Or is it a sign of poor manufacturing as I've seen one wheel builder advertise that their wheels never need to be checked.

 

[stokepa31_mk2]

A wheel needs a service after 100 miles , are you sure about that? Or is it a sign of poor manufacturing as I've seen one wheel builder advertise that their wheels never need to be checked.

Hand built wheels are generally of a very high quality and will often last a long time with no changes required. Factory built wheels in my experience are very poor and all the bikes i've had have needed the tension adjusted after 100-150 miles (my Torq was awful needing a complete re-build). Most bike manufacturers recommend the bike is checked over after 100 miles or so as they often need fine tuning after everythng has bedded in.

 

[burncycle]

It would be nice to hear something official regarding this matter.

 

[stokepa31_mk2]

It would be nice to hear something official regarding this matter.

see below for an extract from the Cannondale owners manual re 30 day service and seating of spokes etc.

1. BREAK-IN PERIOD: Your bike will last longer
and work better if you break it in before riding
it hard. Control cables and wheel spokes may
stretch or “seat” when a new bike is first used and
may require readjustment by your dealer. Your
Mechanical Safety Check (SECTION 1.C) will help
you identify some things that need readjustment.
But even if everything seems fine to you, it’s best
to take your bike back to the dealer for a checkup.
Dealers typically suggest you bring the bike in for
a 30 day checkup. Another way to judge when it’s
time for the first checkup is to bring the bike in after
three to five hours of hard off-road use, or about
10 to 15 hours of on-road or more casual off-road
use. But if you think something is wrong with the
bike, take it to your dealer before riding it again.

 

[flecc]

As Paul says, factory built wheels are often to a very poor standard, the most common characteristics being all spokes insufficiently tensioned and/or very uneven tensions. The latter always brings trouble.
.

 

[Beanie101]

see below for an extract from the Cannondale owners manual re 30 day service and seating of spokes etc.

1. BREAK-IN PERIOD: Your bike will last longer
and work better if you break it in before riding
it hard. Control cables and wheel spokes may
stretch or “seat” when a new bike is first used and
may require readjustment by your dealer. Your
Mechanical Safety Check (SECTION 1.C) will help
you identify some things that need readjustment.
But even if everything seems fine to you, it’s best
to take your bike back to the dealer for a checkup.
Dealers typically suggest you bring the bike in for
a 30 day checkup.

Owners of Flyers in Switzerland can take their bikes back to their dealer within three months for a free complete mechanical check-up, cleaning and greasing. As far as I can see, it doesn't actually say anywhere that failure to do so voids the warranty but I suspect that it wouldn't help.

 

[dienamics]

As Paul says, factory built wheels are often to a very poor standard, the most common characteristics being all spokes insufficiently tensioned and/or very uneven tensions. The latter always brings trouble.
.

If its a low end wheel then sure it bound to be poor quality. thats why you spend a bit extra and get a decent wheelset that has been built to a better standard with even tension. that said there is no reason why a lower quality wheel cant be trued up good.

As I understand it the wheelset that comes out on the Pro Connect is a relativily high end Shimano road wheel...I mean, you want a light bike right? If you fitted a 36 spoke wheel to a pro connect your going to be adding a ton of weight.

 

[proper legs]

warranty

Most bike manufacturers and their dealers offer a free service for new bikes after a month to six weeks... it is often a condition of the warranty that this is carried out, but not always... Marin and Specialized bikes do this but some do not.... it is a very loose arrangement between customer/bike shop/ manufacturer and is often offered to promote after sales as well....

Bikes have a running in period where things settle down and start functioning properly... as with anything mechanical servicing is the key!

but wheels touch the ground, it the only bit that does, and our beautiful highways are littered with holes and debris and wheels go pear shaped and spokes break because of this occasionally! cycling fact of life...