How to make your Rolly wheels very quiet (Tutorial)

[Hamtastic]

So I love the rolly wheels I've been using for my 3-robo set up for their width and transparency. But I do not love the rattling sounds they make.

I have solved the issue of squeaking by applying vaseline to the axel after every wash, but the rattling remained an annoying factor when my heavier robo was dashing on the wheels with full force (she really has a "turbo-robo motor" in her :D)

So after some experimenting with various rubber washers and other things, I've finally found an easy solution today!

The rattling you might notice with your Rolly wheels comes from the back side of the wheel (flat circular ending of the axel shaft) hitting the yellow axel connector piece.

I used the soft part of a sticky velcro strip to place around the yellow axel base so that my wheels now hit fuzzy velcro hairs instead of hard plastic.

1. Use the soft side of a sticky velcro strip (not too thick, mine is ~1mm thick):
http://www.hamstercentral.com/community/attachments/diy-do-yourself-hamster-projects/6265d1318440110-how-make-your-rolly-wheels-very-quiet-tutorial-soft-velcro-sticky-strip.jpg

2. Cut off a rectangular piece:
http://www.hamstercentral.com/community/attachments/diy-do-yourself-hamster-projects/6266d1318440124-how-make-your-rolly-wheels-very-quiet-tutorial-velcro-rectangle.jpg

3. Bend in half and make a circular cut-out in the middle, then cut the result in half for splitting around the axel:
http://www.hamstercentral.com/community/attachments/diy-do-yourself-hamster-projects/6267d1318440131-how-make-your-rolly-wheels-very-quiet-tutorial-cut-hole-rectangle.jpg

4. Stick to the base of the axel:
http://www.hamstercentral.com/community/attachments/diy-do-yourself-hamster-projects/6268d1318440141-how-make-your-rolly-wheels-very-quiet-tutorial-stick-onto-base-axel.jpg

5. Quiet end result:
http://www.hamstercentral.com/community/attachments/diy-do-yourself-hamster-projects/6269d1318440148-how-make-your-rolly-wheels-very-quiet-tutorial-end-result.jpg

[DwarfNome]

Thanks for doing this tutorial, Hamtastic! I'm probably getting a Rolly wheel for Conrad and this will be healpful :) By the way, what would be the best option? to get a stand or attach it to the cage?

[emilyweb]

hehe Wowzers you have done the impossible ;)

[Hamtastic]

Well... Sadly this worked for about two days and then got rattly again. I have since wrapped thin thread around the yellow axel in a spiral, and that has helped.

[emilyweb]

awhh that's a super shame :(
I thought you'd found the key ti the universe........;)

[Hamtastic]

I'll make photos of the threading--that's been working okay. The wheels are a bit harder to turn now, but my robos manage fine.

[Hamtastic]

Ok, this is the latest thing I've done to make my mini Rollies quiet. So far it has helped to most out of everything I've tried, and there's practically no rattling sounds anymore. The loudest thing is actually hamster feet running against hard plastic :)

I'm going to switch to Karlie wooden wheels soon as I'm a light sleeper and that sound of running feet is enough in itself to wake me sometimes, but I'm very attached to the Rollies because of the width of their track--it allows my three robos to share the wheels and run in pairs frequently.

I used the thinnest thread I had and made a single spiral along the axel (tied in the beginning and also knotted on the back--I did back and forth spiral at first so I could tie the ends of the thread together, but that was too thick (double layer of threads where they criss-crossed made the wheels hard to turn). I use some vaseline on top of that.

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff446/stereotypical11/ThreadsilencerforRollyWheels.jpg

---
DwarfNome: I only put mine on stands, but I've found that in general attaching wheels to bars is noisier, as it makes the cage vibrate more than if you put your wheel stand on some bedding to dampen any vibrations/rattling. I used to have a barred cage and attached various wheels to it, but now prefer wheels on stands.

This is something I did for wheels in my old cage to dampen some vibrations (rubbery eraser). It only helped a bit...

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff446/stereotypical11/PushingtheWheel.jpg

[laura+marble]

i have just done the velcro stuff on mine, and behind the clip to stop it rubbing on the bars so it doesnt bang around, so faar so good, would upload pics but dont know how

[laura+marble]

looks like i spoke to soon, dam it! more complaints from my dad tonight then :( any other ideas? same as the green one above, attachs to the bars