Something tightens on a hill

[wafter]

The rear brake on my Fuji audibly rubs on ascents due to the quite literally low-triple-figure power my noodle-legs put out when out of the saddle, but this is rythmic and in time with the pedal strokes; which doesn't sound like you're experiencing..?

 

[Ajax Bay]

So with the rear wheel held off the ground and hand force applied to the pedals, the wheel spins like 'forever', right?
Same for the front: spin it by hand?
The rear dropouts are vertical, so the wheel cannot 'pull' sideways.
Make/model of crankset please (which will reveal BB type)? One the left side (easier to see) are there 20 little slots in the side of the bottom bracket?
With the chain unshipped, how well do the cranks spin?

 

[Martinsnos]

QR or TA? If QR, is it tight? And fully located in the dropout?
How‘s the bottom bracket?

I’m really sorry but I don’t understand what this means.

I had a quick search and other cyclists mentioned tight bearings...

As mentioned in my previous post, having the quick release ridiculously tight can cause problems.

I recently replaced a bearing in my freehub and found that the difference in adjustment between too loose (wheel rattles and wobbles) and too tight (FRICTION!) was surprisingly subtle.

I can imagine that if your hub or QR was a smidge too tight then the extra force acting on the bearings might result in unwanted friction.

As for rubbing disks... I have had that problem but even though my hearing is poor, I have always been able to hear it.

Hi - this idea of the bearings does sound a possibility because when I had a broken spindle once, the feeling (of the resistance) was very similar.

 

[Martinsnos]

The rear brake on my Fuji audibly rub on ascents due to the quite literally low-triple-figure power my noodle-legs put out when out of the saddle, but this is rythmic and in time with the pedal strokes; which doesn't sound like you're experiencing..?

Thank you though

 

[Martinsnos]

So with the rear wheel held off the ground and hand force applied to the pedals, the wheel spins like 'forever', right?
Same for the front: spin it by hand?
The rear dropouts are vertical, so the wheel cannot 'pull' sideways.
Make/model of crankset please (which will reveal BB type)? One the left side (easier to see) are there 20 little slots in the side of the bottom bracket?
With the chain unshipped, how well do the cranks spin?

I’ll come back to you tomorrow - thanks.

 

[ColinJ]

I’m really sorry but I don’t understand what this means.

QR = quick release
TA = 'thru' axle

I think it is unlikely that the bottom bracket is to blame. The only times mine have played up have resulted in clunks and wobbles rather than mysterious friction!

Hi - this idea of the bearings does sound a possibility because when I had a broken spindle once, the feeling (of the resistance) was very similar.

One of the people I found online talking about 'mysterious friction' found that his rear axle/spindle was bent and causing friction in the bearings.

 

[Martinsnos]

QR = quick release
TA = 'thru' axle

I think it is unlikely that the bottom bracket is to blame. The only times mine have played up have resulted in clunks and wobbles rather than mysterious friction!


One of the people I found online talking about 'mysterious friction' found that his rear axle/spindle was bent and causing friction in the bearings.

Okay brilliant, thank you for coming back.

 

[silva]

Some years ago, in order to increase # railways they made a bridges overspan longer, but at one side they couldn't compensate with a longer slope due to that side ending up on another way as a T.
When riding up that quite steeper part It felt just like that: as something tightening up. The first time, I stopped above the bridge, to check if something was wrong with the rear wheel.

 

[Martinsnos]

So with the rear wheel held off the ground and hand force applied to the pedals, the wheel spins like 'forever', right?
Same for the front: spin it by hand?
The rear dropouts are vertical, so the wheel cannot 'pull' sideways.
Make/model of crankset please (which will reveal BB type)? One the left side (easier to see) are there 20 little slots in the side of the bottom bracket?
With the chain unshipped, how well do the cranks spin?

Firstly, thank you very much for getting me to check things. I’m not mechanically minded (at all) and got some ‘self-worth’ from testing these simple things this morning.
Wheel spins…however, some slight ‘wobble’ (really nothing to write home about) and loads of clearance everywhere (I’m not clever enough to check brake clearance). Did that thing where grip wheel and try and flex - no movement (I think this covers the dropouts?).
Front spins.
Crankset pic. (Excuse dirt - not had time to clean yet)
Spins without chain.
I’m wondering if it is the overtightened quick-release theory - or, does the fact it spins (pretty well) write that one off?

Thank you very much.

 

[silva]

about brake "clearance", sometimes things change alot when weight / force is put on them.
again 1 example: I rode about a year with a split rim, inner cracked across all spokle holes, outer start to crack at one side.
the bike upside down on the ground, spinning wheel, everywhere clearance.
ride with it, a repeating noise at wheel frequency.
and not always, periods of months nothing, then sudden back.
but I started to notice it came back after replacing an inner / flipping an outer tyre. To do so, you have to deflate and put back pressure, and that return to full pressure, brought the noise back.
what happened: under load, that rim sidewall was pushed outwards and clearances dropped enough to make contact.
when riding uphill, more weight gets on the rear wheel, more force, more tyre deformation, so on..

 

[Ajax Bay]

OK
You have a BSA threaded square taper cartridge bottom bracket.
Try forcing the pedal end of the crank sideways and back - to test whether the BB is allowing play it shouldn't. If it is, then when you put power on uphill this may cause (you to sense) additional friction/resistance.
[Replacing a BB is an easy quick job and BBs cost less than £20.]
Others can focus on how the rear wheel bearings (which is what you're testing by trying push the tyre sideways) might cause this sensation.

 

[Martinsnos]

about brake "clearance", sometimes things change alot when weight / force is put on them.
again 1 example: I rode about a year with a split rim, inner cracked across all spokle holes, outer start to crack at one side.
the bike upside down on the ground, spinning wheel, everywhere clearance.
ride with it, a repeating noise at wheel frequency.
and not always, periods of months nothing, then sudden back.
but I started to notice it came back after replacing an inner / flipping an outer tyre. To do so, you have to deflate and put back pressure, and that return to full pressure, brought the noise back.
what happened: under load, that rim sidewall was pushed outwards and clearances dropped enough to make contact.
when riding uphill, more weight gets on the rear wheel, more force, more tyre deformation, so on..

Those sort of intermittent issues are the most annoying.

From the help here, I’m going to try doing the quick release less tight and see what that does.

 

[Martinsnos]

OK
You have a BSA threaded square taper cartridge bottom bracket.
Try forcing the pedal end of the crank sideways and back - to test whether the BB is allowing play it shouldn't. If it is, then when you put power on uphill this may cause (you to sense) additional friction/resistance.
[Replacing a BB is an easy quick job and BBs cost less than £20.]
Others can focus on how the rear wheel bearings (which is what you're testing by trying push the tyre sideways) might cause this sensation.

I forgot to say I ‘rocked’ the pedal stems, no give.

Thanks for all your help. I’m going to try looser quick release and see how that works out.

Thank you very much for all your help.

 

[ColinJ]

I’m going to try looser quick release and see how that works out.

My troublesome quick release was way too tight. It took an awful lot of effort to open or close it. Obviously, you can go too far the other way though. I forgot to adjust a quick release when distracted by a phone call when putting a rear wheel back in the bike a few months ago and the wheel subsequently pulled over on a steep climb.

If you struggle to open or close a quick release, it is too tight. If you can do it easily with one finger, that is probably too loose.

 

[a.twiddler]

It's certainly possible to ride many miles with a cracked quick release axle only held in place by the tension of the quick release skewer. It functions fine until you put a load on it like climbing a steep hill when it pulls to one side, making the climb seem harder, yet when you look at it, without the load, everything seems normal. It's only when you come to take the wheel off that you find out about it. I had this happen a couple of times in the days of screw on free wheels. It was very mysterious at the time. It turned out that the rear triangle had been slightly distorted in an accident which only came to light when I had the frame refurbished. I've never broken an axle since I've been riding with freehubs, which have wider bearing spacing to better cope with the load.