Rear end of bike making clicking sound - I need help diagnosing what may be causing it

[rudi-h]

On 8/24/2022 at 6:44 PM, droo said:

Also, Loctite. Aluminium fasteners being, as they are, prone to either stripping or galling at torque values high enough to achieve the right tension.

Loctite is an interesting one.  Loctite is not a bad product, but its application is very specific to certain types of joints and does not / should not be used as a rule.  It does act as a thread lubricant too, which means that using loctite is better than not using anything at all, but using a thread lubricant (grease, nickel slip, copper slip etc.) is still your best bet.  All the "prevent fasteners from loosening" technology out there, be it Loctite, Nord-Lock Washers, Spring washers, Nyloc nuts etc. are really just a safety net for when you have not done a good job of fastening the joint in the first place.

I.e., if you use an appropriate thread lubricant and torque any bolt (stainless, aluminium or steel) to the correct torque / tension, the joint will never go loose and any further measures are redundant / unnecessary.

Also, stainless steel and aluminium have a much higher tendency that steel to "cold weld" / seize compared to mid steel, which is why you never see stainless steel bushings.  I.e. when not lubricated, these materials cause a lot more galling under the same conditions compared to steel fasteners.  I would seriously question re-use of alloy / special fasteners, unless you can verify that everyone previously tightening that bolt has done a really good job of lubricating the threads before every use.

[MudLark]

49 minutes ago, rudi-h said:

 All the "prevent fasteners from loosening" technology out there, be it Loctite, Nord-Lock Washers, Spring washers, Nyloc nuts etc. are really just a safety net for when you have not done a good job of fastening the joint in the first place.

And for those of use who still work on things out the Ark, also safety wire!