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After an infuriating sweary morning in the garage on Sunday, I gave up trying to service my shimano xt sh-775 rear hub.
There was no play in it when I took it apart. Everything went back in, cleaned and greased. But for the life of me I cannot manage to find the sweet spot between crushing the life out of the bearings and having too much play.
The bearings aren't worn. But it seems to be a fraction of an Allen key turn - or if I do get it right, tightening the lock nut buggers it up again.
Any tips?
A very minimal amount of play on a cup and cone hub can disappear when the wheel is actually fitted in the frame/fork due to the clamping effect, you get the opposite of bolt stretch acting on the axle.
Tighten the freehub side lock nut, adjust the nd side untill a v small bit of play. Hold drive side in a vice. Hold nd cone with spanner so it dosnt turn as you tighten the lock nut. Give it a spin see how it goes. Too loose repeat with smaller free play. Too tight try more freeplay before tightening.
The best way is to compress the axle as happens when you tighten the QR when the wheel is back in the frame, and then adjust the lockouts. This saves the faffing with trying to find the sweetspot of the correct amount of float.
I use a QR and a few thick washers/steel plate to emulate the dropout on one side and the other side has a steel plate with a small hole that butts up against the end of the axle and the QR passes thru. Tighten the QR to normal amounts to compress the axle and bugger around with the locknut&cone on the small hole washer end. Simplest.
Also drill and tap the hub whilst its in bits and fit a grease nipple - never need to strip your hubs ever again.
I'll have Another crack. Thank you!
Solid advice above. There's definitely a knack to it! After you've done a few you get the feel for it then it's easy.
If you are using cheap cone spanners you will have an awful time trying to get the cones tight enough against the lock nut (the spanner usually bends first) so they don't undo further down the line.
Shimanos usually need locking off on the drive side first (you can do this with the axle out) then slide the whole shebang in and do the adjustments on the non-drive side, so you are only working on one side not two! I tighten it till it's too tight (bearings dragging) then wind back about an eighth/sixteenth of a turn and lock it off. Then check for excessive play by hand first then with the wheel in the bike. If not bang on undo the ND locknut against the tension of the ND cone spanner and do it again until it is, again you are only working with one side not both.
The infuriating thing is that Shimano have actually developed an infinitely better system that for some reason they aren't spreading across the ranges.
Check out the 'digital adjust' system on some of their higher end non-disc road wheelsets, you can adjust everything perfectly with two 5mm allen keys and your fingers.
Don't know why they don't promote it more and use it on more hubs, as to my mind it makes it the perfect bearing system.
Shimanos usually need locking off on the drive side first
^THIS if the drive side cone isnt [i]fully [/i]tight the drag from the bearings loosens the cone and drags it tighter as the wheel rotates. If you dont tighten the non drive side enough it harmlessly loosens a little.
my post from a few years ago.
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/grease-nipple-mod-for-shimano-cup-and-cone-hubs-never-rebuild-again