Nuts& Bolts

Neil Smith said:

Dear All,
I have finished putting back on mudguard and rack onto a bike that I had
dissemblied to put into a bike bag. For major parts, such as pedals, Bottom
Brakets etc. I would normal put in a dab of grease to avoid future problems.
Mudguards nuts & bolts tend to shake off so a put a spot of nail varnish on
them to stop this happening. Would a spot of grease on these parts result in
them shaing off?

No, grease won't cause them to shake loose and might even help prevent
it because the nut and bolt can be tightened a little more with grease.
However the main purpose of grease is to prevent seizure in those
bolts which need to be removed for servicing such as cranks, pedals,
etc. Bolts which are intended to remain in place are normally treated
with a little threadlocking compound. Loctite is the usual brand but
there are various grades and you need to choose an appropriate one.

--
Brian G
www.wetwo.co.uk

Brian G said:

Neil Smith said:

Dear All,
I have finished putting back on mudguard and rack onto a bike that I
had dissemblied to put into a bike bag. For major parts, such as
pedals, Bottom Brakets etc. I would normal put in a dab of grease to
avoid future problems. Mudguards nuts & bolts tend to shake off so a
put a spot of nail varnish on them to stop this happening. Would a
spot of grease on these parts result in them shaing off?

No, grease won't cause them to shake loose and might even help prevent
it because the nut and bolt can be tightened a little more with
grease.

I would agree, except tiny nuts & bolts like this can't be tightened very
much without wrecking them. I use blue Loctite or nyloc nuts for mudguards
and racks.

~PB

The trick I have found is not to put one nut on the bolt but two. This
also assumes that the bolt is put in 'inside out' ie it protudes out
from the forks. Put the mudguard stays on the bolt + washer then put
the first nut on and tighten, put the second nut on, hold the first
nut with a spanner and tighten second one. Cut off excess bolt with
hacksaw and tidy with a file.

archierob said:

The trick I have found is not to put one nut on the bolt but two. This
also assumes that the bolt is put in 'inside out' ie it protudes out
from the forks. Put the mudguard stays on the bolt + washer then put
the first nut on and tighten, put the second nut on, hold the first
nut with a spanner and tighten second one. Cut off excess bolt with
hacksaw and tidy with a file.

Or get nyloc nuts which are specially for the job.
Two nuts is perfectly good of course, but nylocs are a bit neater.
Or shakeproof washer would help - essentially a washer with a split in
it.
For those unfamiliar, they are steel nuts with a bit of deformable
plastic in them to stop them shaking loose.

Hywel