How do I take a bike wheel off and put it back on properly?

Taking a wheel out is the gateway to almost every other repair, and it is where two dangerous mistakes get made: closing a quick release as though it were a nut, and refitting a wheel that is not fully seated. Both are avoidable in ten seconds of checking.

Safety

What you'll need

• An Allen key or a thru axle lever, if your bike uses them (optional)
• A rag (optional)

Step by step

1. Shift onto the smallest rear sprocket first.It moves the derailleur outwards and gives the chain the most slack, which makes the wheel come out and go back with far less fighting.
2. Deal with the brake.On a rim brake, open the quick release on the caliper or unhook the straddle cable, so the pads clear the tyre. On a disc brake, nothing to do — but from now until the wheel is back, do not touch the lever.
3. Turn the bike upside down or use a stand.Upside down is fine on most bikes; put a rag or cardboard under the saddle and bar. Bikes with certain hydraulic brake designs are better not inverted, but for most people it is a non-issue over a few minutes.
4. Open the axle.A quick release: fold the lever fully open — the word 'open' is usually moulded into it — and unscrew the opposite nut a few turns if the fork has retention tabs. A thru axle: unscrew it fully and pull it out, keeping track of which side it came from.
5. Lift the frame off the wheel, not the wheel out of the frame.At the rear, pull the derailleur body backwards with one hand to swing the cage out of the way and lift the frame while the wheel stays put. It is far easier than trying to drag the wheel past the chain.
6. Note how the chain runs before it all falls slack.The chain sits above the smallest sprocket and through the derailleur cage in one specific path. A photo takes two seconds and saves a puzzle later.
7. Refit by putting the sprockets into the chain first.Rear wheel: drop the smallest sprocket into the loop of chain, then guide the axle into the dropouts while pulling the derailleur back. Front wheel: straight into the fork ends.
8. Make sure the wheel is fully home and straight.Push the axle firmly up into the top of the dropouts on both sides. Then sight along the wheel: the rim should be centred between the fork legs or the chainstays. A wheel sitting slightly out of place is the commonest cause of a disc brake suddenly rubbing.
9. Close the axle properly.Quick release: with the lever at ninety degrees, adjust the nut on the far side until the lever needs firm hand pressure through the last half of its travel. Then fold it closed against the fork or stay. It should leave an impression in your palm. Never spin the lever round to tighten it.
10. Position the lever where nothing can catch it.Tucked along the fork blade or the chainstay, pointing backwards, so a branch or a kerb cannot flip it open.
11. Reconnect the brake and test.Close the rim brake quick release. On a disc brake, pump the lever until it firms up. Then spin the wheel, check for rub, and squeeze both brakes hard before you get on.
12. Check the tightness once more.Lift the bike a few centimetres and drop it. Anything loose rattles. Then push down hard on the bar with the front brake on.

Tips

• Thru axles usually have a torque figure printed on them. Use it — they are threaded into the frame or fork.
• Learn to do this at home before you need to do it in the rain at the side of a road.
• Keep the quick release skewers greased lightly at the cam so they close smoothly and predictably.

Common mistakes

• Spinning a quick release lever round like a wing nut — A quick release clamps by cam action as the lever folds over, not by thread tension. Spun tight, it feels tight and provides a fraction of the clamping force, and the wheel can work loose in use.
• Closing the axle before checking the wheel is fully seated — A wheel sitting a millimetre out of the dropout is off-centre, rubs the brake, and on the rear puts the sprockets out of line with the derailleur. On the front it is a genuine safety issue.

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