New bike, rattle from front when going over bumps

[idontlikecoffee]

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone could advise.

I got a new bike and took it out for its first ride today, i noticed when i went over any bumps t a clattery rattle emitted from the front of the bike, on normal road surfaces if made no noise, but if it went over little very little pot holes and over a level crossing it rattled.

I foolishly bought the bike from a shop 160 miles away (for a £900 discount) so i don't want to have to take it back unless it looks like their is something wrong with it, if its something minor I could let my LBS sort it out, but they are not Trek dealers and i'm worried it will invalidate the warranty.

I'm hoping it is normal for this to happen, I will try and find out more precisely where the noise is coming from, The bike is a Trek Madone 4.9

Thanks

 

[MikeW-71]

Two possibilities leap to mind.

1. cables rattling against the frame.
2. headset is not tight enough.

All 3 of my road bikes will make a rattle noise when going over a significant bump, like a level crossing or a cattle grid, so to some extent it is normal as long as nothing is loose.

 

[Chromatic]

Two possibilities leap to mind.

1. cables rattling against the frame.
2. headset is not tight enough.

All 3 of my road bikes will make a rattle noise when going over a significant bump, like a level crossing or a cattle grid, so to some extent it is normal as long as nothing is loose.

In my experience number 2 above is most likely.

 

[MikeW-71]

For example:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mN3wKrzS8vI


That's my aluminium CX bike on descent with a cattle grid and some rough surfaces. Nothing wrong or loose. Over a level crossing I'll get a "clack, clack" as I cross the tracks.

 

[moo]

Loose presta valve nut maybe?

 

[ColinJ]

A different type of rattle perhaps, but I was hearing the bottles rattling in my bottle cages until I bent the cages slightly to give a tighter grip.

I found that my Garmin Etrex was rattling. I put some gaffa tape on the back to stop it rattling in the mount, but half the noise was still there. That turned out to be the back plate of the GPS being slightly loose. I solved that problem by stretching a rubber band round the edge of the case where the back clips on. The band is squeezed by the back plate, fills the gap, and damps down any vibration.

The inner (shifting) levers on my ergopower controls rattle a bit so I often rest a finger against each one to stop that. A small rubber band wrapped round the end of each lever would probably sort the problem out too.

 

[idontlikecoffee]

Two possibilities leap to mind.

1. cables rattling against the frame.
2. headset is not tight enough.

All 3 of my road bikes will make a rattle noise when going over a significant bump, like a level crossing or a cattle grid, so to some extent it is normal as long as nothing is loose.

Thanks, is there anyway i could check the tightness of the headset? I do have a bike tool kit, but i i've never had anything to do with the headset

 

[sittingbull]

Check the headset by applying the front brake firmly and pushing the bike back and forth, dragging the tyre. There should be no play.

I'd remove both wheels and put them back making sure the QR levers are secure. Lift each end of the bike and check for lateral play at the wheel rim.

Check all Allen bolts on the stem and bars are tight but don't over-tighten.

 

[idontlikecoffee]

For example:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mN3wKrzS8vI


That's my aluminium CX bike on descent with a cattle grid and some rough surfaces. Nothing wrong or loose. Over a level crossing I'll get a "clack, clack" as I cross the tracks.

My bike sounds very similar to that, thanks

 

[idontlikecoffee]

Check the headset by applying the front brake firmly and pushing the bike back and forth, dragging the tyre. There should be no play.

I'd remove both wheels and put them back making sure the QR levers are secure. Lift each end of the bike and check for lateral play at the wheel rim.

Check all Allen bolts on the stem and bars are tight but don't over-tighten

Thanks i will do that, i bought a torque wrench so i will use that to ensure i don't overtighten

 

[jay clock]

if you have cables inside the frame/bars it could be that

 

[sittingbull]

Be careful with the torque-wrench, if it's not set correctly you will strip the bolt thread. Practice first.

I prefer Allen keys, as opposed to a multi-tool (OK for on-the-road repairs). As the diameter of the bolt increases (withstanding higher torque) so does the length of the key and you can gauge when it is hand tight without over-tightening.

 

[idontlikecoffee]

Thanks for the replies, the problem seems to be sorted

I've just been out for a quick ride over a road that needs resurfacing and the rattle had gone , it makes slight noise, but all my other bikes do that, I did everything suggested, checked bolt tightness (most were fine, a couple needed a tiny bit of tightening according to my torque wrench ) and I removed both wheels, and put them on again, I also took off everything i added to the bike, gopro mount, garmin mount and frame bag, I put cushioning under the cables where they flapped a tiny bit on the frame, but when i took the padding off there was still no noise so it was not that.

Thanks again, time to get excited about my new bike