southpawboston

I'd like to rebuild / re-lube a Shimano freehub on a hub that's not laced up. Obviously this presents a challenge as I can't think of a convenient way of counter-torquing the hub against the 10mm hex wrench needed to remove the freehub body. What's a fairly quick and safe way of securing the hub to a solid surface to allow the freehub to be removed? I suppose I could just lace up just a few spokes into an old rim, like 3 spokes per flange, and not even tension them. But I don't have a spare rim I'm willing to potentially destroy by doing that.

Any easier / alternative methods?

fietsbob

Do It a Lot? you could make a jig with steel pins sticking up, in the same arrangement as the spoke holes in the flange..

in a block of Hardwood that you clamp in the bench vise.

jimc101

Some ideas here CTC Forum ? View topic - Removing freehub from an unbuilt hub?, like the strap wrench one.

southpawboston

I might do this, using a block of wood that can be clamped horizontally in a vice. Large hole in the center of the block to allow the bearing race section of the hub body to pass through; hub flange will rest flat on block. The pins would simply be old spokes. What's the minimum # of spokes required to prevent too much stress around the spoke holes? 4? 8?

fietsbob

...although the axle is removed , before you can get the 10mm hex wrench into the sleeve nut to loosen it , to separate the freehub driver.


I have not needed one .. I'd say every other one .. perhaps a block that splits around the hub shell so it clamps it at the same time.

the holes in the drive side flange, engaged . shape and thickness could be such that fitting the halves ,

then tightening the vise jaws could really secure the pins too..

FBinNY 

Get a 10mm hex key socket wrench bit. Bring a beer (or coffee) to your favorite auto mechanic. Give him the hub and tool, and ask him to pop it off with his impact wrench. The inertia of the hub is enough that the lock nut will loosen before the hub twists in his hand.

southpawboston

That goes without saying, Bob. C'mon, man, you don't need to state the obvious with me... Whether or not the axle is installed, the flange cannot sit flat on a block because the axle housing that holds the bearing race extends perpendicular to the flange. I really don't know how better to describe that.

southpawboston

Ha, Excellent!!! I did that once with a stubborn BB. No matter how much torque I applied, even with a cheater bar, I couldn't get it to budge. One SECOND with the impact wrench at the garage and it unthreaded as if it hadn't ever been tightened. That garage is right down the street from me, too. Will try!

BradH

In the last couple months I've used a pin spanner in the spoke holes to remove freehubs two times. I think it was this one.

Park Tool Co. » SPA-6 : Adjustable Spanner : Crank Tools

fietsbob

at least if the pin breaks. trying , you can fix the tool .

throwing the hubshell away? things are much simpler ..

AnkleWork

Maybe you should form a committee to study the problem.

mconlonx

Any reason not to run a 2-4 spokes through NDS holes opposite each other and clamp the spokes in a vice?

Wilfred Laurier

Slide a cassette onto the freehub body (no need even to put on a lockring) and keep the cassette from turning with a chain whip while loosening the bolt with the big allen key.

Wilfred Laurier

How would this work? The only way I can think of is that the top spoke would be in tension, but the trick would rely on the bottom spoke resisting compression, which spokes can't really do.

mconlonx

Pick two spoke holes on opposite sides of the NDS hub flange, thread spokes into those four holes from the hub interior side of the flange so you have four spokes in groups of two 180deg apart. If you're holding it by the DS flange, you now have spokes hanging down from the NDS flange. Clamp those in a vice as close as you can without crushing the NDS axle stub, even better if axle stub is resting on the top of the vice jaws, grab the hub with off hand for stability, start torquing freehub off with 10mm hex wrench in other hand.

Will the spokes do a good enough job preventing hub rotation to torque off the freehub without damaging the hub?

fietsbob

Only time will tell .. a bunch of junk spokes all clamped in the bench vise seems another bodge worth trying ..

southpawboston

My committee search chairman, Haywood Zhubugoff, will give you a call.

fietsbob

I think he works for Click and Clack Too ..

AnkleWork

No need. Direct action would have solved the problem quicker than you could start the thread.

southpawboston

Not true. As a result of committee due diligence, I now have a list of ideas to pursue, each of which should give results much faster than if I had attempted direct action myself.

Ironically, trolling posts like yours do nothing at all to save anyone time or energy.

AnkleWork

You received a definitive answer in the second response, so no need to add anything. I'm just curious if you're ever going to do anything with it.

ThermionicScott 

The easiest/simplest way is just to flush the FH body without separating it from the hub shell.

Hold the hub somewhat level, but with the FH end pointing up a little, drip some of your favorite medium-weight oil behind the dust shield, spin the FH body, drip in some more, spin it again, etc, and eventually the bearings/pawls will quiet down and dirty oil will emerge from the back end of the FH body (much like oiling a freewheel). Even if you don't manage to flush out every last piece of grit, the internals will have a nice protective film of oil until you do build the hub into a wheel. It's what I do with every used rear hub I get.

seedsbelize 

I've done this several times with great success.

jwarner

Run your belt around the hub body (forming a self-closing loop though the buckle -- umm, I would take it off first). This should hold it well enough to get the job done.

reptilezs

impact *** or lace it with 4-8 spokes to a junk rim