Hi chaps,

My relatively new bike has a clicking/cracking noise from the front end, so the stem/steerer interface area.

It clicks when pumping the front end, and now does it over rough ground.

I’ve nipped up the headset, which seemed to help initially, but the clicking came back.

Has anyone come across this?

My initial thoughts were steerer creaking issues, or dirt in the headset/cups. Possibly movement in the headset spacers….

I hate noisey bikes!

Cheers

Ricks

They wouldn’t be BOS forks by any chance.

Nope, RS Pikes. But sounds exactly like my mates Capra did with the Bos forks.

Sounds like a creaking steerer / CSU. Unfortunately it seems to be a common problem with RS forks. I’ve had two sets of Rebas go like that (replaced under warranty).

If you can, try the forks on another bike, and / or try and compress them when taken off the bike.

Clasp your hand around the headset, apply front brake and rock the bike back and forth to check for play.

My Pikes have had a top-out clunk from day one.

turn bike upside down,
take out front wheel
stand on ends of bars to hold them fixed
grab bottoms of fork lowers and try to rotate in the way they do when steering,
if that makes the noise it’s the CSU as devash said

can’t remember where i read that way to test (probably on here) but it worked for me. took a lot of chasing to find it as it sounded like BB or linkage bearings, the way it resonated through frame.

uppers of sektors replaced under warranty by RS (via bike24 where i bought them)
was very happy as a numpty mate had scratched stantion!

Something to try and I know it sounds off but it took me months to diagnose the issue. Do you have cable ties holding the brake and gear cables together? it could be that rubbing along the cable outers. The other thing to try and it’s a slight possiblity is that the gear/brake cable ferrules might be rubbing in the stays. a lil spray of gt85 should do it.

Clasp your hand around the headset, apply front brake and rock the bike back and forth to check for play.

My Pikes have had a top-out clunk from day one.

Yeah, I have the standard issue top-out clunk. I can hear the difference between the stanchions on the dry bushes, and this click.

you have cable ties holding the brake and gear cables together? it could be that rubbing along the cable outers. The other thing to try and it’s a slight possiblity is that the gear/brake cable ferrules might be rubbing in the stays. a lil spray of gt85 should do it.

Not the ferrules, and not the cables touching. It’s a different pitch to the sound of cables touching.

Does lean me towards it being a creaking CSU. Is it just the csu Fisher replace? Wouldn’t mind them just getting rid of the dual air, and getting back to a solo air fork.

Well, twisting the legs when upside down the fork cracks like a good Un.

Doesn’t sound like the csu, sounds like the bushings in the air leg, or something else in the air leg.

Could be just the stem clamped too tightly or unevenly around the bars. My Genesis SS does this and I run it rigid so it ain’t the forks (I hope!). Whip it off and maybe put some copper slip on the inside of the clamp. Could be the bolts also. Keeps coming back on mine so I sort of tune out from it now.

Cheers Si,

It’s 100% the fork, see above post. Traced it down to the *damper* leg. Sounds like it’s something by the wiper seal, but given how sound travels, could easily be the stanchion/crown interface.

Had similar before and it’s been the lower crown race or lower bearing race. Even on qUite new bikes. Clean and new grease.

Might not be tHat but quite common as that part gets lots of spray and water can collect there.

Can sound like it’s coming from further down the fork

Greasing bearing seats and checking the bearing hasn’t rusted is usually my first port of call, worst case is it’s 15 quid for a new set of bearings.

That tiny dry metal to dry metal movement in the bottom cup/seat reverberates through the whole frame. You’d have to tighten the headset to destruction to stop it.

Only other thing i have had is grit in the brake caliper behind the pad so the creaking occurred on braking. Worth cleaning them up as well as cables and headset bearings. It does sound like the fork though from your description.

Headset?

Well, twisting the legs when upside down the fork cracks like a good Un.

It will be the CSU then.
Just drop the lowers off and try the same thing if you need convincing.

Have you tried taking the forks off and clamping them into a vice then twisting them. That would eliminate other possibilities outwith the forks like your carbon frame de-laminating internally…………….;)

I did think about doing that! When I get back I’ll strip the fork down, clean and regrease everything, just to get 100% but it’s pretty clearly coming from one side of the fork, you can’t feel it in to air side, but you can on the damper side.