# Bike clicking in certain gear



## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

THis weekend I notice my bike clicking, it is very strong on the 3rd smallest gear in the back and is absent or weaker in the surrounding gears. I hear no clicking at all in the smallest gear. 

What could be the cause of this. I have been trying to track it down, but have not been able to find anything. 

It seems to click twice per rotation, but I am not absolutely sure if that is the case. It also seems to vary with how hard I am pedaling.


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## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

This post should be in the 'components/wrenching' section. That said, have you installed a new chain lately? What kind of shifters do you have and when was the last time the cables were replaced?


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

cxwrench said:


> This post should be in the 'components/wrenching' section. That said, have you installed a new chain lately? What kind of shifters do you have and when was the last time the cables were replaced?


Sorry, I kind of glued myself to the noob section since thats what I am, but I guess ill start to drift to the other parts of the forum. 

The chain and cables are new because the bike is new. The shifters are downtube tension shifters. I have tried slightly changing the position of the shifter to see if it was derailleur noise, but it is not.


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## Srode (Aug 19, 2012)

Downtube shifters on a new bike? What kind of bike is it?


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

Srode said:


> Downtube shifters on a new bike? What kind of bike is it?


Its a Korean brand. The bike is a 삼천리 rc1000. I doubt anyone has heard of it. I paid about $180 for it so it obviously isnt the best of the best but its rideable. I wont be in Korea for more than a year so i didnt want to drop big money on a bike. I just need something that will get me through my upcoming trip across the country.


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

Could be a number of things. First thing I'd try is to pull the RD cable away from the bike (slightly and slowly) while pedaling in that 3rd smallest cog. If the noise lessens as you do, the cable needs to be adjusted tighter. Common on new bikes.


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

PJ352 said:


> Could be a number of things. First thing I'd try is to pull the RD cable away from the bike (slightly and slowly) while pedaling in that 3rd smallest cog. If the noise lessens as you do, the cable needs to be adjusted tighter. Common on new bikes.


I got around to trying your suggestion yesterday and it didn't work. The clicking is still there when i add some pull to the RD cable. It seems to get a lot louder/stronger when I have the pedals under pressure and weaker when I am pedaling slower/relaxed

Any more ideas on what it could be? I did an inspection with my eyes and pushed the pedals with the back wheel up, but couldn't hear anything or see anything out of place.


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

deltaskelta said:


> I got around to trying your suggestion yesterday and it didn't work. The clicking is still there when i add some pull to the RD cable. It seems to get a lot louder/stronger when I have the pedals under pressure and weaker when I am pedaling slower/relaxed
> 
> Any more ideas on what it could be? I did an inspection with my eyes and pushed the pedals with the back wheel up, but couldn't hear anything or see anything out of place.


Hard to diagnose over the net, but my next best guess is a loose cassette. 

Try to get someone to assist and have them hold the bike with the rear wheel off the ground. You can crank with your hand and listen for the source of the noise. Also, check for something (FD cable end, for example) hitting the crankarm as it passes - or the chain hitting the FD cage.


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

PJ352 said:


> Hard to diagnose over the net, but my next best guess is a loose cassette.
> 
> Try to get someone to assist and have them hold the bike with the rear wheel off the ground. You can crank with your hand and listen for the source of the noise. Also, check for something (FD cable end, for example) hitting the crankarm as it passes - or the chain hitting the FD cage.


Ok I got around to checking this today and I found a slight (ever so slight) amount of lateral play in the cassette. Should it just be solid and not have any lateral play?

I included a video here to show you how much lateral movement there is.


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

Wow, good job on the vid!

I was thinking play between the cogs, That's more of a wobble (or play) in the freehub or between cassette and freehub. Or, it's a freewheel, in which case as you rode, it would tighten, but there could still be play in the hub.

All that said, I can't say for certain the wobble is the source of your problem, but it may be a contributing factor. You could pull the wheel and investigate from there, checking where the play is - or just opt to bring it to your LBS to get checked out.


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

ok, is there any way to tell if that is a freewheel or freehub just by looking at it?

I read this (Freewheel or Cassette?) but I'm not clear if I need to pull the wheel to verify if its a freehub or freewheel


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

deltaskelta said:


> ok, is there any way to tell if that is a freewheel or freehub just by looking at it?
> 
> I read this (Freewheel or Cassette?) but I'm not clear if I need to pull the wheel to verify if its a freehub or freewheel


Unless you have the specs for the bike, not as far as I know. Gotta pull the wheel and see if the cassette slides onto the freehub or freewheel screws on.

If it helps, 7 speeds and up are cassettes, 7 speeds and down are freewheels. Obviously, 7 speed can be either.


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## JCavilia (Sep 12, 2005)

deltaskelta said:


> ok, is there any way to tell if that is a freewheel or freehub just by looking at it?
> 
> I read this (Freewheel or Cassette?) but I'm not clear if I need to pull the wheel to verify if its a freehub or freewheel


Yes, it's easy, and you don't have to disassamble anything. You found the article. Look at the picture again. Look at the narrow part of the hub shell, (between the flanges where the spokes attach). Notice on the cassette freehub there is a bump where the shell widens (to accomodate the internal bearing) toward the sprocket side. The freewheel hub has no bump.


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

JCavilia said:


> Yes, it's easy, and you don't have to disassamble anything. You found the article. Look at the picture again. Look at the narrow part of the hub shell, (between the flanges where the spokes attach). Notice on the cassette freehub there is a bump where the shell widens (to accomodate the internal bearing) toward the sprocket side. The freewheel hub has no bump.


If I had ever known that, I've forgotten. Haven't had a bike so equipped since around the mid-90's. Live and (re)learn.


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

JCavilia said:


> Yes, it's easy, and you don't have to disassamble anything. You found the article. Look at the picture again. Look at the narrow part of the hub shell, (between the flanges where the spokes attach). Notice on the cassette freehub there is a bump where the shell widens (to accomodate the internal bearing) toward the sprocket side. The freewheel hub has no bump.


OK thanks, I wasnt sure if all hubs were like that, or only some of them


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

PJ352 said:


> Wow, good job on the vid!
> 
> I was thinking play between the cogs, That's more of a wobble (or play) in the freehub or between cassette and freehub. Or, it's a freewheel, in which case as you rode, it would tighten, but there could still be play in the hub.
> 
> All that said, I can't say for certain the wobble is the source of your problem, but it may be a contributing factor. You could pull the wheel and investigate from there, checking where the play is - or just opt to bring it to your LBS to get checked out.


OK I am pretty certain now that is is a freehub because I remember looking at the hub when seeing that article but I will check for sure when I have a chance tonight.

The play in the gears should definitely not be there, correct?


So when I pull the wheel, what are some obvious things to look for since the freewheel is most likely tightened by the chain?

EDIT: NVM i see thats a stupid question now that I read your response again. I'll just pull it and see what I can see


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

deltaskelta said:


> OK I am pretty certain now that is is a freehub because I remember looking at the hub when seeing that article but I will check for sure when I have a chance tonight.
> 
> The play in the gears should definitely not be there, correct?
> 
> ...


Given the wobble your vid showed, I'm betting you have a freehub. Also, it would be hard to imagine the source of a wobble with a freewheel, but who knows till you check a little further.

Discernible play between cassette cogs or cassette and freehub should not exist, but I've seen slight wobbles (variations in manufacturing tolerances) that didn't cause problems. I think you'll know more once the wheel is off.


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## gte (Jun 7, 2013)

Once I had a problem with tuning my rear derailleur - no matter what I tried it would always make noise at one cog or another. In the end it was my wheel that was not properly centred. After centring it all the noises disappeared. I don't know if your problem is the same, but it's worth (and easy) checking.


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

So i have pulled the wheel and it is definitely the cogFreewheel wobble: Freewheel wobble - YouTube that have play around the driving mechanism. There is no play in the hub,axle, or between cogs. 

I think ill just have to take it to the lbs because imimited on time and tools but these korean shops have never been a help in the past so im not expecting much.

I have a video here. Sorry i cant embed it on my phone. It just messed up where i pasted it too. Sorry this website isnt very optimized for mobile


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

deltaskelta said:


> So i have pulled the wheel and it is definitely the cogFreewheel wobble: Freewheel wobble - YouTube that have play around the driving mechanism. There is no play in the hub,axle, or between cogs.
> 
> I think ill just have to take it to the lbs because imimited on time and tools but these korean shops have never been a help in the past so im not expecting much.
> 
> I have a video here. Sorry i cant embed it on my phone. It just messed up where i pasted it too. Sorry this website isnt very optimized for mobile


Hard to tell from the vid (good job, though), but it looks like the play is between that ring and the inner part with pins that pin spanners fit. If so, there may be some adjustability there. 

Bottom line, I'd bring the wheel to a shop to assess. They should be familiar enough with this to help. 

Just curious... did the noise develop since you had the bike, or was it always present?


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

I cant be sure but i would bet that it developed since i had it.


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

deltaskelta said:


> I cant be sure but i would bet that it developed since i had it.


It may or may not matter. Maybe think about anything that could have caused the RD hanger to be bent or RD damaged. Laying the bike on the drivetrain side, something hitting it, things of that nature. 

Generally with newer bikes this type of noise is due to cable bedding in, but we had you test for that and it doesn't seem to be the case. Another possible cause is the RD cable hanging up, but you'd notice other symptoms like lags in shifts and/ or skipping gears. 

I'd still have the wheel checked out and go from there.


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

Ok im in a bit of a fix here...

I took the wheel into a lbs and had my gf do the talking in korean for me. The guy ended up putting a new freewheel on there with no visual lateral play in it. I could feeel a small small amount of play with my hands but could see none with my eyes. 

I get home and put it back on the bike and take it for a ride and notice it kind of grinds when in the middle three gears. Its a seven speed. I think there is a small amount of play in one of the pulley cogs on the derailleur that may be causing this but i am unsure if it is ok to tighten the bolt that holds that cog on the derailleur or not. I have looked over and tried to analyze where it is coming from for a long time and that all i could come up with

Any ideas? I already adjusted the high and low stops to make the geometry as close as possible


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

Also i think the play is from there because its the middle three gears and that is where the geometry is near perfect IE there would be the most freedom for that cog to boujce around

EDT: here are some pictures. A LBS isntan option right now because my Korean speaking gf is absent rightnow


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

Ahh im so confused. Sorry for the ADD here but i think its actually coming from when the chain dislodges from the back sprocket. I think it doesnt happen on all gears because there is a little more heigjt clearance in the smallest two amd largest two cogs


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

Reading through your last three posts... there's supposed to be some lateral play in the upper pulley, so no problem there. 

The new freehub (or its installation) seems to have created a new problem, so that tells us the old one _was_ a contributing factor. With this new one, because nothings made exactly the same, I suggest trying the cable test like last time.

Pick the noisiest gear combo, lift the rear wheel off the ground, pedal, and as you do, _slowly_ pull the RD cable away from the bike. Less noise indicates the cable needs to be tightened. More, which I'd doubt will be the case, indicates a need to slacken the cable.

I'm not holding a lot of hope that this'll be an ultimate fix, but it's a step to go through.

Because there's some inherent play in the cable path, you can also hold the RD cage and push/ pull it towards away from the rear wheel while cranking. If there's a point where the noise changes, it's a cable tension issue. If not, the problem is somewhere else in the drivetrain.

From that point, RD hanger alignment should be checked, RD checked, so TBH, it may be worth your while to head back to the LBS and have the shop diagnose and repair the problem.


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

I was finally able to chase the sound down and it was the chain disengaging from the sprocket. I am not sure why, but every link that came off kind off stuck for a second and then disengaged. I took it back to the shop and got a new chain put on that solved the problem "almost" completely. 

I hope everything is good because i'll be heading out to Seoul today after work to start my trip.


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

deltaskelta said:


> I was finally able to chase the sound down and it was the chain disengaging from the sprocket. I am not sure why, but every link that came off kind off stuck for a second and then disengaged. I took it back to the shop and got a new chain put on that solved the problem "almost" completely.
> 
> I hope everything is good because i'll be heading out to Seoul today after work to start my trip.


Just goes to show that bikes are both simple and complex at the same time. Some problems (especially the ones caused by more than one thing) can be quite difficult to pin down. 

I'm glad you got this sorted out. I hope you have many happy and safe years with your bike.


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

PJ352 said:


> Just goes to show that bikes are both simple and complex at the same time. Some problems (especially the ones caused by more than one thing) can be quite difficult to pin down.
> 
> I'm glad you got this sorted out. I hope you have many happy and safe years with your bike.


Haha well, less than 1 year most likely with this bike, its not expensive enough to haul back to the states with me if I move.

Thanks for the help everyone, Ill post some pics from the ride after its done. I head out in a few hours


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## deltaskelta (Apr 13, 2014)

To everyone who helped me get my bike ready....Here is a link to the post I posted in another forum here about my trip across Korea. Thanks for all your help.

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/commuting-touring-ride-reports/korea-seoul-busan-323249-post4621447.html#post4621447


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