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04-20-04, 06:08 AM
I've been enjoying riding my old Viscount for years, but I'm afraid I've been neglecting its innards. I"ve never taken it apart to clean and repack any of its bearings. Last night I decided to do so.
Please forgive my ignorance of the names of some of the names of the various parts.
On the rear wheel, I managed to remove the hollow axle shaft and one bearing, but I couldn't figure out how to remove the cassette and freewheel (?) assembly to access the other bearing. Since I couldn't remove it, what I did was squirt a bunch of carburator cleaner inside and clean it with various brushes, blew it all out with an air hose. I fashioned a plunger out of a 1/4" pipe nipple with a foam ear plug jammed in the end. I held my finger over one side of the shaft, used the plunger to force grease through the bearing I couldn't remove. I then sprayed a bunch of aerosol lithium grease into the freewheel and gave it a few spins.
OK, that's my way of getting the job done. So now I would very much like to know the right way to completely dissassemble it. And what kind of lubricants do you use and where? Also, when I took the axle out, I noticed the jamb nuts were barely hand tight. Is this correct, or is there a proper torque value?
And, I was unable to remove the front axle at all. I removed both sets of jamb nuts and tried pushing it out, then tapping with a mallet, but it wouldn't budge. What do I need to do? Is there a special puller for this? The bearings turn smoothly, but the thirty some odd year old grease is pretty stiff. I have applied some penetrating oil to it.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Please forgive my ignorance of the names of some of the names of the various parts.
On the rear wheel, I managed to remove the hollow axle shaft and one bearing, but I couldn't figure out how to remove the cassette and freewheel (?) assembly to access the other bearing. Since I couldn't remove it, what I did was squirt a bunch of carburator cleaner inside and clean it with various brushes, blew it all out with an air hose. I fashioned a plunger out of a 1/4" pipe nipple with a foam ear plug jammed in the end. I held my finger over one side of the shaft, used the plunger to force grease through the bearing I couldn't remove. I then sprayed a bunch of aerosol lithium grease into the freewheel and gave it a few spins.
OK, that's my way of getting the job done. So now I would very much like to know the right way to completely dissassemble it. And what kind of lubricants do you use and where? Also, when I took the axle out, I noticed the jamb nuts were barely hand tight. Is this correct, or is there a proper torque value?
And, I was unable to remove the front axle at all. I removed both sets of jamb nuts and tried pushing it out, then tapping with a mallet, but it wouldn't budge. What do I need to do? Is there a special puller for this? The bearings turn smoothly, but the thirty some odd year old grease is pretty stiff. I have applied some penetrating oil to it.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.