MP has internal loud click noise

[mantares]

My new MP has a loud click inside the hub when it's running; once per turn. Actually the noise is a loud click, followed immediately by several close spaced noises more like a rubbing noise and these aren't as loud as the initial click. The entire noise spans perhaps 30 degrees of wheel rotation.

I assume I'm going to have to open the hub to find it. Looking at previous posts, I assume I just need to remove the several cover bolts and "remove" the cover. The remove the cover is the part I'm concerned about. To loosen it do I need to tap on the opposite axel, or?? Will I find something obviously wrong, or??

Michael Antares

[Bikemad]

I assume I just need to remove the several cover bolts and "remove" the cover. The remove the cover is the part I'm concerned about. To loosen it do I need to tap on the opposite axel, or?? Will I find something obviously wrong, or??

Michael, it certainly does sound like the cover needs to be removed to find out what's making the noise within.

Remove the nine fixing bolts and then give a smart tap on the end of the axle on the opposite side using a wooden or rubber mallet (or a block of wood and a hammer) to loosen the joint. The cover should then come off easily with a little bit of wiggling.
If it does not come off easily, a squirt of oil on the shaft/bearing and possibly some heat from a hair dryer to expand the cover slightly may help.

Keep us informed of what you find in there, (some pictures would be nice).

Good luck.


Alan
 

[GM Brazil]

It is also good to do some ink marking in the cover and motor so you can close the cover at the same position. Mostly there is no problem, but it is a good thing to do

[mantares]

Thanks for the advice. I'll proceed carefully and take some pictures to post here and let you know the outcome.

Michael

[mantares]

A preliminary report:

I opened one cover of the MP, couldn't get the other cover off that has the printed circuit board showing. I could find nothing that would explain the noise. I reassembled the motor thinking that perhaps the noise was the result of misalignment. Unfortunately the exact same sound was there after putting it back together. Next time I'll have to get the other cover off and see if there is anything obvious on that side. Very curious...BTW, the noise is identical with the motor power on or off.

Michael

[vapid2323]

A preliminary report:

I opened one cover of the MP, couldn't get the other cover off that has the printed circuit board showing. I could find nothing that would explain the noise. I reassembled the motor thinking that perhaps the noise was the result of misalignment. Unfortunately the exact same sound was there after putting it back together. Next time I'll have to get the other cover off and see if there is anything obvious on that side. Very curious...BTW, the noise is identical with the motor power on or off.

Michael

I have had something similar but I think it’s the spokes making the noise, do you think this might be what your hearing?
The sound I am hearing is almost like the spokes are adjusting under the weight and it only made the sound when I was riding.

[mantares]

In my case there are no spokes! I am using 20" rims and was told by my wheel builder (and he has built wheels for Lance Armstrong so he's quite knowledgeable!) that the spokes would be too short to be practicable.Sooo, I made four wooden separators that are screwed to the rim through the spoke holes and are screwed to the outer rim of the MP. It actually works quite well. With hindsight I would have purchased the GM hub motor/rim combination.

So, anyway, spokes are not the problem . It also does not sound like one of the magnets is rubbing or hitting--it's a very distinctive, sharp, clink sound, followed by a series of less defined sounds, like rubbing perhaps.

My next effort will be to get the other cover off and see what I can see...curiouser and curiouser...

Michael

[MonkeyMagic]

Hi Mantares

Might sound funny, but check your valve cap is not hitting your frame anywhere. I had to make a slight alignment adjustment on a smaller bike with my cast wheel as this was the case.

Hope it's something simple !

[Koga]

  IMHO racism is off topic and then some.

sorry, not much of a help to Mantares problem.

[Bernie]

I also thought it might be spokes (I have a 70Cm Rim) but when I took the wheel off I was surprised to find to find this noise-rattle was exactly the same rolling the wheel along the garage floor with Zero load. Obviously there's some junk inside the Pie casing. It seems to be quite a common fault. Apart from this annoyance my MP has done over 1,000 Klms since I got it and NEVER missed a beat. If it's this common, there has to be a fix.

Any clues?

[Bikemad]

Obviously there's some junk inside the Pie casing.
Any clues?

Check that all the spoke nipples are all still in their rightful places, if one has come loose, it could be rolling about inside the cavity of the double walled rim.
If the noise has been there since new, it could be an extra nipple that was accidentally lost inside the rim during assembly.

Alan
 

[e-lmer]

Alan;
He  is not using the rim or spokes, per his posting.

If you really mean the hub and not the rim, then
you may have something as simple as a lost screw
loose inside the pie and, if you can't open the other side,
may be a warranty issue.

I am a bit concerned about having wooden spokes.

I spent the extra to have a rim and spokes sent to
me after accidentally ordering the metric pie instead
of the 26 in.

My bike shop was unable to figure out the lacing pattern
(even tho they are very knowledgeable), but I was
able to reproduce the lacing pattern from the brochure.

When I took it back to have them true it (at a significant
savings. Yay!)

[Bikemad]

Alan;
He  is not using the rim or spokes, per his posting.

Although Michael (OP) was not using conventional spokes, I assumed Bernie's 700c wheel was.

Whilst rebuilding my Magic Pie with the modified spoke flange I managed to drop a nipple inside the rim, I therefore realise how easy this could happen on a construction line where you have a large box of nipples and wouldn't notice a single lost nipple.
Fortunately I noticed, because I only started with 36 nipples and ended up one short. I shook the wheel and heard the the missing nipple rattling and rolling about inside the hollow portion of the rim, until it eventually decided to surrender itself and finally dropped out.

If this nipple had remained unnoticed inside the rim, and the tyre and tube then fitted, it would be stuck rattling and rolling about for the rest of its life, as there would be no way of escape due to all the exit routes being blocked.

Alan
 

[trike]

Hi Michael,
I had a problem that sounds the same as yours. Take off the other side cover and check that the wiring is not hitting the cover(the side where the wires go in the axle).

[Thomas]

When I received the GM MP, I went to the local bike shop and picked-up a cheap 5 speed freewheel. The knocking I heard disappeared once I upgrade to a vintage suntour freewheel. What a difference it makes! The cheap freewheel clacked lots, like when there is slack and then you press the pedals there is a knock as the freewheel catches up.

I definitely thought the noise was in the MP at first. It may have been, but with the new freewheel all is quite.

Tom C