Drevj12

I'm 15 and I decided I want to start working on and collecting old bikes. My first buy was a mid 90's Mongoose Sycamore in electric purple that was sitting in a garage for years. I didn't even know it was purple until I cleaned it. 😂 The wheels were rusty and the tires were practically destroyed so I just switched them with the black wheels from a cheap Wal-Mart mountain bike I had in the garage. It's been going great and I love the thing, but the past couple days I've had this problem with the pedals not turning the wheel if the bikes been sitting still for more than a couple seconds. I have to start rolling the bike and then pedal frantically until the pedals start working properly. As much as my friends find it funny to watch me pedal "like a tweaking drug addict" until the bike actually starts moving, it's kind of scary waiting to cross the road and having a 50/50 chance of the bike going when you pedal it. The internet says it's probably a worn out freehub. So I was curious on if it mattered what brand or if I needed to buy a specific type of freehub to replace it? My research says there are different types and that Shimano uses a completely different system than most other brands. Also, is this a 45 minute backyard fix or should I go to a bike shop? Thank you for any information you can give me.

nfmisso

It is probably a worn out freewheel.

Look up "Sheldon Brown Glossary" to learn the difference. While you are there, read and understand the whole thing.

Wal-mart bikes don't come with freehubs.

If it is the freewheel, it is less than a five minute job once you have the wheel off, the required tools on hand and a replacement part.

Alternatively, you could try cleaning it out. First remove the freewheel, flush WD-40 spray (may take more than one can) then rinse with iso-propyl alcohol to remove the WD-40 residue, finally lubricate with a then oil such as Tri-Flo. It is less expensive to purchase a new freewheel.

AlexCyclistRoch

Why bother? The bike is cheap junk, and is probably not worth repairing. Wal-Mart bikes never are.

Drevj12

The bike isn't from Wal-Mart, as far as my knowledge goes. The wheels are just off of a cheap Wal-Mart bike. That being said, after getting this fixed, I'm going to save up to get a quality set of wheels. Even if my old Sycamore was a cheap Wal-Mart bike when they sold it in the 90's, at this point I've replaced enough stuff on it and grown to love it so much that I'll probably keep it until I've either had everything on the frame replaced with better parts or it just becomes a display of my very first project bike. Thanks for the input though.

Drevj12

Thank you for the information. I'll probably order the part and have it fixed by this weekend. At least until I can get a real set of quality wheels.

Wileyone 

Nice way to welcome a 15 Year old to the Forum.... We all had to start somewhere.

nfmisso

Make sure you also get the tools for the job. You will need to closely inspect what you have, and determine the tool needed. You will also need a very large wrench, possibly with a breaker bar.

Watch/read these:
https://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-...icle-section-1

Drevj12

Thanks for the support. People will be people. I enjoy my bike regardless.

JohninMT

I'm new in these parts as well, and I'm not a bike mechanic. Many years ago I spent a lot of time tearing down my first real bike (Schwinn Varsity), learning how to adjust and tweak cone hubs, cleaning freewheels, truing wheels that didn't need it, etc. By the time I upgraded the bike I had learned a lot about that bike and how to do things that needed to be done. You'll make mistakes - but more importantly you'll learn.

Even if you do replace the freewheel - mess around with the old one and see if you can get it going. the freewheel itself isn't worth a thing - but learning how something works and how to fix one is well worth it.

OTS 

@Drevj12

Welcome to the Forums.

Good questions..........all of them !

I like your style, wanting to learn, asking the questions and up to the challenge

xenologer

putting the walmart wheels on that bike is a Downgrade
as you can tell by the freewheel already failing.

if the original wheels are still true (round), then despite the rust (which you can probably clean up with some steel wool pads), I'd put them back on the bike.

Just swap the dead tires with the one's from the walmart bike, not the whole wheel.

Drevj12

Good idea. I've done a few things to it myself. But as I've been looking online I'm realizing there are some terms for pieces and parts I didn't even know existed, or that I've just not known the name of. When weather gets better around here I'll probably go out and start tinkering on more stuff just to see what I can learn. Thanks for the advice.

Drevj12

Honestly I didn't even think to try cleaning them with steel wool. It's kind of a curse that in the only person in my close family to really have any interest in mechanical work. I rely pretty heavily on forums and YouTube for this kind of advice. Thank you.

Drevj12

Thank you. It's great to see all the support to be found in these forums. I was kinda scared to be criticized for my young age and lack of prior mechanical experience but it seems like that's not a problem.

fietsbob

Unknown is how many mechanical problems have you solved already?

can you troubleshoot why the gas lawnmower wont work? replaced skateboard wheels?

Build your own quad copters , or other mechanical challenges?

Drevj12

So far, I've replaced the brake pads on my bike, the wheels, as I mentioned before, and adjusted the brakes. Not much mechanical knowledge. I'm really learning as I go using the internet because nobody in my family is interested in anything mechanical except me. So until I find that local mentor that always shows up in the movies, this forum and YouTube are my main sources. But I'm willing to try and fail and try again until I get it right. I'm determined to learn.

hueyhoolihan

IME, the freewheel (if that is, indeed, what it is) is probably just gunked up, as has probably already been mentioned. and just needs a thorough cleaning.

if you really want to do something that will expand your horizons, disassemble that freewheel. hint: the key is the ring in the center that may have an arrow embossed in it. it's usually a left handed thread. i removed my first one with a punch and my dad's hammer.

best done over a bucket. won't divulge any more. i don't want to spoil the surprise.