[Gendy]

I picked up a new set up of Trail 245s last year and put them on my Hightower. I shortly started noticing a strange creaking noise, mostly while pedaling seated. I thought maybe it was my axle , cassette, bottom bracket, rear linkage... could not pin it down. I threw my stock 27.5s back on and the noise went away. I kind of forgot about it until i put the new i9s back on (now with ~100miles of light trail use) and quickly noticed the noise again. Visually, everything seems fine, all the spokes seem to have the appropriate tension. I tried to get a video to demonstrate the noise. I'm hoping an expert here can chime and help identify the creak. TIA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vzIOyskQt0 (starts at 15 seconds)

 

[jake2185]

That sounds like a spoke issue. Either there is rubbing or there is one or two with fairly low tension that is being compounded with rotation under load. Id let a an i9 dealer check the tension, especially if you have the proprietary i9 spokes.


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[PuddleDuck]

It's not possible to tell from the video

Does it do it in all gears?
Does it do it all of the time?
Is it once per revolution? Otherwise how often?

If the hub dimensions are slightly different to your old wheels...is the der hitting the spokes?

Is the der set up correctly?
Is the cassette tightened properly? Is the interface clean & greased?
Are you using the same cassette on both wheels? Is the cassette faulty?

You might want to call I9, they have GREAT customer service

 

[Gendy]

It's not possible to tell from the video

Does it do it in all gears?
Does it do it all of the time?
Is it once per revolution? Otherwise how often?

If the hub dimensions are slightly different to your old wheels...is the der hitting the spokes?

Is the der set up correctly?
Is the cassette tightened properly? Is the interface clean & greased?
Are you using the same cassette on both wheels? Is the cassette faulty?

You might want to call I9, they have GREAT customer service

It does do it all the gears, but is intermittent. Like the first 10 seconds of the video it was fine, then with really no change in pace or pedal pressure it started creaking. It seems rotational, just not all the time. I think it only happens when i'm pedaling, unless i just cant hear it while coasting.

I dont see anything rubbing - no rub marks. I did clean the hub interface really well, grease it, and torque it properly both times i installed the wheels. Same cassette/drivetrain when swapping to stock wheels, and no noise. Bike shifts great on both wheels. Thanks for response!

 

[Taildragger]

I9 are super people to work with, give them a call and maybe send the video.

 

[jake2185]

It does do it all the gears, but is intermittent. Like the first 10 seconds of the video it was fine, then with really no change in pace or pedal pressure it started creaking. It seems rotational, just not all the time. I think it only happens when i'm pedaling, unless i just cant hear it while coasting.

I dont see anything rubbing - no rub marks. I did clean the hub interface really well, grease it, and torque it properly both times i installed the wheels. Same cassette/drivetrain when swapping to stock wheels, and no noise. Bike shifts great on both wheels. Thanks for response!

Being i9s I doubt you could hear it while coasting. I would venture that it’s the contact between the spokes and the rim. Try a drop of oil at each spoke and see if that helps it disappear. If so, get them checked at a shop for proper tension.


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[Magsrgod]

If you pick up the back wheel and nose wheelie then smack it back down does it stop for a little while or a long while?

It's almost undoubtedly a spoke rubbing issue. Check for a slightly bent spoke, it could be from a stick or even dropping the chain behind the cassette. Sometimes there might not be anything visible or damaged and they just developed rub. Get a shop with a spoke tensioner to go through the wheel and check everything.

 

[Gendy]

Just to follow-up on this, i did end up contacting I9. They said they would service the hub if i shipped the wheel back. I boxed it up and went to ship it, only to find out it was going to be around $70 for ground shipping with NO insurance. I was disappointed to find out i'd have to spend so much on a nearly new wheel to find out what was wrong with it, and hopefully have it repaired at no additional charge. I reached back out to i9 and they only suggested trying a different carrier. (they were all the same price)

Then I ended up bringing it to a LBS who was an i9 dealer. They looked at the wheel closely, checked the spoke tension, and found nothing wrong. They asked me to bring in the bike, so they could ride it and hear the noise. After 2 days of riding the bike, the finally heard it. They still couldnt see anything wrong, so they tore the hub apart and cleaned it. Put it back together and thought it was good. I put ~30 miles on it last week, and agree, the noise seems to be gone. LBS charge was less than shipping, but somehow i'm still slightly frustrated. Currently looking for new wheels for my hardtail, and definitely crossing i9 off the list. <end whambulance>

 

[127.0.0.1]

crossing i9 off the list, wow, you really told them !



lol
i9 is one of, if not the best, spoke/hub and wheelset maker on the planet

stuff happens...it is better to troubleshoot and find root cause but you can slam i9 if you want too....

 

[Harold]

Is the cassette tightened properly? Is the interface clean & greased?
Are you using the same cassette on both wheels? Is the cassette faulty?)

I thought it sounded an awful lot like cassette creak. Hard to tell, but looks like a SRAM drivetrain. The xd interface is known to creak if it's not clean/greased appropriately. micro spline will creak if you don't install the cassette with the little plastic washer. All of them will creak if not tightened enough.

Creaks are a biatch. The shop did what's pretty much standard creak troubleshooting. If nothing else works, take it apart, clean/lube, and put it back together.

None of it is I9's fault. Not their fault that shipping a wheelset costs what it does, either. Hint: you can find boxes, probably at a shop, that are meant to pack up wheels for minimal shipping costs.

 

[HEMIjer]

did you try the USPO (aka post office fro shipping as oppose to a UPS or FedEX, generally much cheaper for a single wheel.

i9 has amazing customer service and bike items sometimes get small noises doesn't mean anything is wrong with them. That being said understand your general concern with a high quality high price wheelset However your small issue is resolved you have a great wheelset why go look for another?

 

[MSU Alum]

Is the cassette tightened properly? Is the interface clean & greased?
Are you using the same cassette on both wheels? Is the cassette faulty?

This has been the issue for me in the past when I've heard creaking. Removed, cleaned, re-tightened....noise gone.

 

[Gendy]

crossing i9 off the list, wow, you really told them !



lol
i9 is one of, if not the best, spoke/hub and wheelset maker on the planet

stuff happens...it is better to troubleshoot and find root cause but you can slam i9 if you want too....

Maybe, maybe not. I just wanted to follow up with a thread i started and share my experience, and the end result. Perhaps it could be useful knowledge in the future, rather than another thread that shows up in a search with no resolution. I'm not here to bash anybody. I hesitated posting for a few days, because i anticipated responses exactly like yours. I'm glad both you and I9 agree to not worry about my future business.

However your small issue is resolved you have a great wheelset why go look for another?

Yes it is resolved, great. These i24s probably werent the ideal size, but i'm a noob. I'd like to go wider in the future. But in the mean time i need new wheels for my stache, my girlfriend wants to upgrade, and i'm looking to build a fatbike for the winter.

 

[127.0.0.1]

wait before you go at least take a peek inside the villains underground lair


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_PEFaqeeAU


[video=youtube;x_PEFaqeeAU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_PEFaqeeAU[/video]

 

[Gendy]

wait before you go at least take a peek inside the villains underground lair


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_PEFaqeeAU


[video=youtube;[URL="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_PEFaqeeAU"]x_PEFaqeeAU[/URL]]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_PEFaqeeAU[/video]

Thanks for your contributions on this subject!

 

[PuddleDuck]

Hi Gendy, given that I9 were willing to service the hub at its cost, have you considered asking I9 to pay for the cost of having the LBS I9 dealer troubleshoot and service the hub, or asking I9 to contribute to the cost?

Good on you for admitting that you're a noob. If you're unlucky, and/or if you have high expectations, you'll come to realise that I9's customer service is exceptional, and also that the customer service you've received from the LBS I9 dealer was exceptional.

The "customer experience" that one received in the cycling industry is far patchier than ideal...hence why you'll have noticed that every response to your "resolution" post is questioning your decision. If one receives helpful service from a shop or supplier, then they are to be held on to tightly. It's not ideal, but it's reality.

If you want examples of a company not doing the right thing by consumers (continuing to sell a bad design over a 3+ year period), then look at the search results from this search string. It will blow your mind.
site:forums.mtbr.com guide lever stuck

Best wishes for your riding and ongoing experiences :thumbsup:

 

[Gendy]

Hi Puddleduck,
Yes i did reach out to i9 after the fact and asked if they were willing to contribute to the troubleshooting cost, which they declined. That was in addition to me asking the LBS to reach out to i9, and vice versa before the service was performed. Oh well. Like i said, wasn't trying to put the company down, just share my experience and the resolution to the saga. I was very appreciative of the LBS's efforts. If the wheels had 500 miles of thrashing, i would have gladly purchased some tools, watched some youtube and went on with it. I just wondered if what i was experiencing was common, hence the thread. The LBS said it certainly wasn't uncommon with i9 wheels, but apparently thats not the vibe here - ok. Every now and again, its useful for me to have an experience like this, thinking a warranty could be useful. I'll go back to searching the web and DIY in the future.
Thanks for the well wishes!

 

[GigaMike76]

I had the exact same issue with my i9 rear hub. It ended up being the freehub bearings. I reached out to i9 at the time and they sent me new bearings and the spacer that goes between them. I have actually seen this issue on a few i9 hubs.

 

[wideawakejake]

Squeak fix = bike stand + work bench + simple tools ÷ take **** apart × clean x lube (CORE LEARNING)

 

[Gman086]

I9's are notorious for cracked freehubs; happened to mine and I chased that same creak for months until I spotted it. Get out a magnifying glass and go over yours thoroughly; it's very easy to miss, trust me. That's the price you pay for wanting "light" these days.

Have FUN!

G MAN