Rubbery squeaking on front wheel

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Twilkes

Guru
It feels like I’ve had a dozen or more problems with this bike before I’ve even really used it in anger (Cannondale Optimo) but I now have a rotary rubbery squeaking sound on the front wheel.

On the outside of the hub but inside of the forks there are some rubbery covers and things that seem to be acting like washers – this is what is causing the squeak. If I spin the wheel the squeak is there – if I slowly loosen the quick release the noise stops as soon as those washer things turn with the wheel, so I’m assuming the noise is caused by something rotating within rubbery bits?

Edit – in the photo, from left to right, is the skewer cap, the fork, a thin rubbery thing that presumably acts like a washer against the forks, and a rubber cone that presumably just covers some of the gubbins of the wheel. It’s the thin rubbery bit that starts turning when I loosen the wheel and the noise stops.

497132

Anyone recognise this problem, and is there any standard maintenance/cleaning I can do to get rid of the noise, without getting into disassembling things?
 
Location
Loch side.
Yes, common problem. It is the rubbery cup in there. It runs in a groove in the alu hub. Pull it off, put a bit of grease in the groove and replace.
 

Nigelnightmare

Über Member
I now use silicone grease on mine after the last one perished/split.
I was told by LBS that using standard lithium grease can attack some rubbers.
The silicone grease also seems to last longer too.
 
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