I used an adjustable wrench.. the flats are very shallow and short.. I don't believe it was intended to sustain a lot of torque.. I googled all over and no sites show how to remove this cover.. I thought it was rubber so I can force it off, but it's freakin' soft aluminum..
On my new bike, the rear axle spins a bit rough so I want to read just the axle and maybe repack the grease.. It's a cassette freehub.. I assume once I take out the axle's the bearings and cones are the same like the freewheel styled hub on my older bikes?