Bicycle Mechanics - Rear cog/cassette question? Help please...

Hello, long time rider, first time post!

Can you over tighten a cassette lock ring?

I installed a new cassette on a Ksyrium SL rear wheel yeserday that I just bought, and the free wheel seems tight? The wheel spins fine but when I turn the cranks backward it bogs down and doesn't want spin freely while reversing the crank spin. I had it on my workstand and when you spin the cranks backward the chain jams up in the front deraullier b/c the rear cogs spin in reverse too slow.

Any thoughts, I hope I'm not too confusing here....

Hello, long time rider, first time post!

Can you over tighten a cassette lock ring?

I installed a new cassette on a Ksyrium SL rear wheel yeserday that I just bought, and the free wheel seems tight? The wheel spins fine but when I turn the cranks backward it bogs down and doesn't want spin freely while reversing the crank spin. I had it on my workstand and when you spin the cranks backward the chain jams up in the front deraullier b/c the rear cogs spin in reverse too slow.

Any thoughts, I hope I'm not too confusing here....

Does the cassette bind when you spin it backwards off the bike? Your chain problem seems more of an RD binding issue based on your description. The lockring mates to the hub, I doubt you really could overtighten it too much aqnd even then it should have no effect on the hub spinning.

You need a special tool to tighten the lock ring.

Regarding pedaling backwards causing the chain to jamb up, sounds like your rear derailleur may need adjustment and/or your chain is worn and/or needs lubrication.

You cannot overtighten the cassette lockring and get the results you describe. The lockring and cassette ride on the freehub body and there is no relative motion between the lockring and cassette.

I'd assume if you did overtighten the lockring, the threads on it will strip.

Perhaps your freehub needs lubrication. I had a sticking freehub once and when coasting, it would not backspin and would drive the chain forward. Lubing it worked, but for me the long term solution was to replace the freehub body. Remove the wheel from the bike and see if the freehub spins easily.

What brand/model cassette and hub do you have?

thanks ya'll.

no it doesn't bind when I spin it off the bike, the cassette turns smoothly. I didn't think to check the RD and its setup. I have Bontrager Race wheels with a 10s Ultegra cassette on the bike as stock/training wheels that came with the bike. I bought a set of SL's slightly used to race on. I put a new Ultegra 10s cassette on the SL and then just threw it on the bike.
I didn't adjust the RD, I didn't think it would need it, I will put the wheel back on and re-adjust the derauiler.

I thought maybe that if you tighten the cassette down too much that it might somehow affect the free spinning of it.

What brand/model cassette and hub do you have?

Ksyrium SL with Ultegra 10s

[QUOTE=oldSkoolXC]I installed a new cassette on a Ksyrium SL rear wheel yeserday that I just bought, and the free wheel seems tight? The wheel spins fine but when I turn the cranks backward it bogs down and doesn't want spin freely while reversing the crank spin. I had it on my workstand and when you spin the cranks backward the chain jams up in the front deraillier b/c the rear cogs spin in reverse too slow.
[QUOTE]
Spinning the cranks backwards is not an intended mode of operation. There may be a bit more friction in the freewheel mechanism to to the stickyness of the grease but that shouldnt be a cause for worry.

Maybe if you checked the rear derailleur pulley, that's, that the problem. Just guessing,good luck.

no it doesn't bind when I spin it off the bike, the cassette turns smoothly.

RD is the answer then.

Don't adjust anything according to what your bike does when spinning the cranks backwards. The problem is you are spinning the crank backwards too fast, the bike is fine.

You are not supposed to spin the cranks backwards and none of the deraillers or the chain tensioner will work in reverse. If the bike works when pedaling forward don't do anything. This comes up every couple of months.
Do not make any adjustments based on what it does when you pedal backwards. The derailleurs only feed the chain in forward and the chain tensioner only works right in forward.

There is no indication anything is wrong at all. You are overcoming the chan tensioner by going backwards, stop doing it. Leave the bike alone.