New Rad Owner

AJ5258

New Member
I recently received my new Rover. I’ve put about 50 miles on it so far and overall I’m very satisfied. One minor problem.....There Is a high pitched squeal/squeak coming from the front wheel. It’s not the brakes. I’ve eliminated them as the source. The sound is mainly evident when I’m pedaling but not always. It comes and goes. It’s becoming more constant however. Any suggestions? Thanks very much!
 
Congrats on your Rover!

I don't recall any noises from the front wheel on mine but there were some odd noises from the back that I could never quite pin down. They went away after a while. You could take my approach and hope it goes away. Try to pin it down though -- it's hard to help without better info. Maybe check the tension on the spokes.

TT
 
It's possible your front axle bearings were assembled dry I suppose. That might be worth checking out.

Oh wait, you said it was doing this more often while pedaling?

Have you looked at your spokes to see if some of them aren't really loose? That's a known issue with Rad, and loose spoke can cause some pretty unusual noises - front and rear.
 
I've had issues with the brake rotor not being true and wobbles a bit between the pads. I have 3 Rad Power Bikes and they all had spokes tq at all levels causing pinging to popping sound. On one of my bikes, the rotor makes a high pitch ringing/pinging sound when you flick it; but, the other ebikes make a solid thud sound. I would also check to see if the sound goes away with the throttle only use, any sound pedaling with PAS 0, any sound when coasting (level/down hill), does the sound go away if you pump the front brakes (re-align pads if they touching a pingy out of true rotor), try riding with front suspension in lock compared to open position, try adjusting the tension on the front suspension, and any difference with light compared to heavy pedaling.
 
Thanks to all for some areas to check. I’m going to make a list of all the ideas and see if I can narrow it down a bit more. I’ll post my results and maybe it will sound familiar to someone and help me pinpoint the problem. I’m no expert when it comes to bike repairs so it could very well be something pretty simple . Thanks!
 
Had that sound and it was the rear brake rotor. Once I backed the pads off the disk one click via the adjustment on the brake itself , the random squeal/squeak noise was eliminated. When the bike was brand new there was no noise and it started developing at the 50 mile mark, and became more prevalent.
 
On my Rhino I developed a really annoying rubbing sound that would come and go. There is a rubber cover on the front spindle that will turn slightly as the wheel rotates, more of a dust cover I guess. Gently lifting the edge I put a small bit of lube in there and...silence.
 
How can you hear anything over the fat tire noise? I just had a test ride on most of the RAD line last weekend and the Rover's tires were so LOUD! :oops:
 
How can you hear anything over the fat tire noise? I just had a test ride on most of the RAD line last weekend and the Rover's tires were so LOUD! :oops:
That's a fair question. Certain road surfaces seem to generate more tyre noise and/ or certain noises from the bike which are higher pitched catch the ear particularly if there is no other road traffic noises around.
 
The standard tires can be very noisy at higher speeds on pavement. Handling can also feel a little wobbly on tight turns at high speeds. Both issues are from the small and spaced out knobs on the tires. Switching out my tires for Vee8 fixed both issues.
 
To "AJ5258": I had the exact same problem, and after nearly dissecting the front wheel and brake unit called Rad customer service. They told me to put a bit of oil on the rubber spacer on both sides. Very little, because you don't want it slopping around and getting on the brake rotor. It solved the problem. I would never have found this on my own!! I use a needle pointed bench oiler to do the job.
 
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