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My Carerra Carbon road bike has been developing a creak over time which has got to the point where I can only ride the bike with headphones. I thought it was the press fit bottom bracket but after removing the bearings, checking them and putting them back in with threadlock bearing compound I decided it wasn't that.
I borrowed a friends bike and systematically swapped parts until the creak went away - by doing this I can confirm the creak is coming from the rear wheel!
The wheels are Superstar - not sure the exact ones. I removed the Shimano 105 cassette and discovered that the cogs were digging in to the Aluminum freehub body. Not uncommon but unlike my MTB cassettes the cogs here are individual and not on an aluminium carrier so more cogs were digging in. I greased everything and tightened the cassette back on, as I did so I heard a loud cracking noise. This lead me to believe that the noise was due to the cassette/freehub interface. This belief was further enhanced when, after loosening the lockring entirely and riding the bike the creak went away.
So I bought an Ultegra cassette mistakenly believing that the more expensive version would use an aluminium carrier like the MTB equivalent (I am more familiar with MTB stuff). It doesn't of course. It looks and behaves exactly the same as the 105 version. On reflection I suppose the cassette is too compact to have space for a carrier on most of its length - its only an 11-25.
Sorry about the long winded tale. But essentially what are my options now? Am I correct about the source of the creak being the cassette/freehub interface? Perhaps a steel freehub? But Im not sure if Superstar do them?
Sounds like a cracked freehub
Right - where would it crack though? Inside? I cant see anything externally?
If they are anything like the Hope alloy ones, anywhere. But normally along the inside angle of the concave bit the cassette slides onto.
cheers - Il whip it off and have a look 🙂
I had a creak that I couldn't diagnose for a while. Pedals changed, BB replaced but it narrowed down to the freehub as I suspected all along. Picked up a new Superstar Switch freehub when they had the 25% off everything and tadaah... the creak is gone.... Prob doesnt help but I suspect the creak was within the superstar freehub, either bearings or a crack.
have this on my fatty. creaking under power from freehub i think. the sram cassette is individual steel cogs and the alloy freehub is mullered. im gonna change the cassette to another 10 spd one and see if that solves it as some of the teeth are peened over at the tips as well.
is this always an issue with alloy freehub bodies? ive never had one before, only shimano hubs which over years have never given me any problems.
I have almost exactly the same situation, untraceable creak that is getting to be embarrassing, and more than a little worrying. A few weeks ago the group I was with reckoned it was coming from the rear wheel. I didn't want an alloy freehub (makes about as much sense as alloy chainrings IMO), but that's all that Superstar had when I was grabbing a 20% discount offer on wheels. The freehub has been slipping a bit too, so when the steel ones came back in stock recently, I grabbed one.
All great, until I tried to replace it. Apparently once the adapter caps are removed from the axle, the whole lot slides apart. Yeah, right. Drive side cap would not undo, and no amount of hammering on the non-drive side end of the axle would shift it. Emailed Superstar who suggested soaking in GT85/WD40 to see if that would free it. Ended up taking it to a local highly skilled and experienced mechanic, it took him a week of soaking it in penetrating oil to be able to drive the axle out.
Only got the wheel back today, I'll post back once I've ridden it as to whether it has solved the creak. I hope so, because otherwise the wheels seem well built and are solid and true after a year of abuse. Think I'll stick with Shimano hubs in future, though, they're great to work on.