Originally Posted by
fafnir
Thanks again everyone for the continued helpful advice. I am going to call the shop today and see if they have had any luck with the hub. If they haven't, I am going to take the bike back and tear down the hub and check the following in addition to what I have already done:
1. Check and see if somehow the axle got bent somehow, I wish I had checked this when I had the hub apart and before I brought it in to the shop
2. Degrease everything in the hub and then re-grease using SA103A if it is available at the shop, otherwise I will probably use 5w30 engine oil unless someone here tells me not to :-)
If you are looking inside and the hub is well greased up with clean SA103A, I doubt there is anything to be gained in solving the noise by clearing the original lube off. If it's lubed with the right stuff - and it is, it isn't that that's causing it.
Trying to describe a noise is rather difficult, It is a lower pitched clunking sound rather then the usual tingy high pitch normally heard from the pawls. if after doing the above I still have the issue I will record it and put it on youtube or something.
Clunking is definitely not right (as you knew of course). Only time I ever heard a rough grinding type noise was when the cable was maladjusted and at a certain setting that occured, but I think it came between second and third. If you can get third properly, it isn't that.
Just as a last ditch effort, try slackening the cable a bit more and see if that cures it. ..... I guess the mechanic would have done that, and I think you said he re-adjusted it.
I have a week off over Christmas and New Years with very little to do so I should have the time to track this down which to me is now more interesting then just giving up and replacing the hub internals. However if when I call the shop and they tell me that Brompton decided to warranty the hub you won't hear me complain. :-)
Well good luck either way