How to Replace a Bicycle Front Wheel
- 1). Open the front brakes to give the front wheel enough clearance to pull free. There are many models of brakes; each features a mechanism that releases tension from the brakes, causing the brakes to pop open. It may be a small lever, or you may need to need pinch the brake arms and pull the cable free of the retaining clip.
- 2). Loosen the skewer--the skewer is a thin aluminum rod that runs through the axle at the middle of your wheel. The skewer, when properly tightened, keeps your wheel in place. Most skewers will have a lever that needs to be flipped open in order to loosen it. Hold the nut on the other end of the skewer when loosening it.
- 3). Pull the wheel free and insert the new or repaired wheel in its place. Be sure the axle of the new wheel fits firmly into the grooves, also called "drops," at the base of the fork.
- 4). Re-tighten the skewer. Close the brakes, either by closing the flip lever or placing the cable back into the retaining clip.
