Just realized I hit 312 cone adjustments last year and only 8 were actually needed

Linda Carr · 2026-10-29T12:20:03.986655+00:00

I keep a log of every bearing cone I touch on customer wheels, mostly out of habit from my first shop, and when I added up 2024 the number was 312. That's 312 wheels where I pulled the axle, cleaned, and re-greased a cone that was already running smooth. I checked a sample of 40 against my notes and only 8 had any real play or pitting worth the work, which means I've been selling roughly $3,000 of labor a year that did nothing but add wear risk to locknuts. The lesson is check for play and roughness on the bike first, not after the axle is already on the bench, since a smooth spin in hand tells you nothing about preload. How many of you are still doing full repacks on every tune-up out of habit, and did you ever put a number on it?

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Just realized I hit 312 cone adjustments last year and only 8 were actually needed | Bicycle Mechanics - Babble Community