1920s cone hubs

[mattsccm]

My project bike, a 1922 Watney, has cycle type cup and cone hubs.  I have never seen a cycle without locknuts but these seem not to have such things. The rear might just have them missing but the front most definitely just stays locked by doing up the wheel nuts in the fork.  Anyone reckon I should be looking for rear locknuts? I do need spacers on the rear axle so there is room for lock nuts.

[mini-me]

get some thin nuts on it for safety sake.

I think I used to know this bike, its a Red Barrel?

[Rex]

Thinking back to the dim and distant past when I used to be interested in push-bikes and these bikes had cup-and-cone hubs, even the most cheap and nasty bike had lock-nuts on the cones, and there were spanners made especially thin to lock and adjust the cones.
Maybe the front legs have just been pulled in by some mug previous owner leaving the locknuts out?
I'd fit them front and rear if I were you.

[cardan]

Lots of hubs - even good quality ones - from the early 1920s didn't use locknuts. I've done thousands of miles on bikes without them, with no problem.

Cheers

Leon

[iansoady]

I think my Sunbeam Model 10 didn't have lock nuts (at least on the front) but can't quite remember. It was Sunbeam's attempt at cheap and cheerful for the Depression years.

In fact a quick look at the spares list seems to confirm this.

[mattsccm]

Cheers.
Its a pain getting those cones just right and keeping them so without the lock nuts. Cycles are dead Easy but sadly the axles don't match.
Better find some nuts I reckon as there is room. Who is a good supplier of , I guess, cycle thread nuts?

[Rex]

Thinking back they're not a standard-size hex and are thin, so you really could use a mate with a lathe.
If a wheel never had them fitted and the spindle thread was flattened or damaged (as they often were given how many times the wheel had been in and out) wouldn't undoing the spindle nut cause the spindle to unwind from the opposing side cone?

[cardan]

British axles are usually cycle thread - either 26 or 20 tpi - try Nooky's Nuts either online or on ebay. Note that 20 tpi UNF nuts can be forced onto a 20 tpi BScy axle, but don't do it. Best to measure the thread first, as some axles have unusual threads - often 24 tpi.

Leon

[TGR90B]

I'm not saying a locknut isn't preferable, but if the wheel nuts hold the forks tight onto the cones there's little risk of movement.