Bike - rear wheel rubbing

[AHarvey]

Hi all,

I've got my hands on my old mountain bike and tbh, it's seen better days but I want it purely for taking the little one out and about.

I've stripped the handles, put fresh foam on them, oiled everything but the chain/gears do have a little surface rust.

I still need to tighten the actual handlebars because they moved slightly today and the brakes need an overhaul, they barely work on one side on the front is stuck on however I have a bigger issue... my rear wheel.

It is bolted in tight but i had to put a bit of pressure on to get up a bank with the little one the back and the tyre started rubbing the frame. The wheel looks straight and doesn't always rub but it does seem to have a lot of play in it. It does seem to rub under certain gearing where you need more force.

Any ideas? bearing maybe?

My bike maintenance knowledge is useless FYI but always willing to learn and have a go!

 

[[DOD]Asprilla]

Probably the wheel is flexing under weight / power.

It can happen if the spoke tension is low or it might just be a flexy rim. Neither of these May be a problem as the wheel could have been deliberately built like that since a flexy wheel provides a little more comfort than a stiff one (it's some think that's very noticeable on road bikes).

If it's happening now and again under a rare set of conditions then ignore it but if it's all the time then get a shop to look at it. It might be a case of tensioning the spokes, but if the wheel was built to flex then there will be nothing they can do; the rim May maverick have been designed to take higher tensions.