mokofoko

Need some help... discovered my freehub body has seized just 1 day into the Michigan coronavirus lockdown, so I can't take it to my LBS even if I wanted to. Unless I can get this figured out, I guess I won't be riding anytime soon!

2006-ish era Mavic freehub on Mavic Ksyrium SSC SL rims... I noticed the freehub had seized up (last used 2 months ago--worked fine). I used a 5mm allen on the drive side, spun off the non-drive cap (no cone wrench needed), then used a 10mm allen in the non-driveside and pulled out the axle (parts pictured reassembled). At this point, I believe the freehub should pull right off. Well, it doesn't. Won't spin left or right at all, but does pull in/out about 1mm before catching on something. Are the pawls jammed up, or maybe the sealed bearing cartridge on the driveside is somehow locked on the freehub body? Any ideas on how best to get this freehub body off without destroying something? Spray liberal amounts of degreaser inside the driveside area? I can't think of a clamping method to get a good hold on the freehub body without potentially damaging it...

TIA



driveside is on the left


non-drive

mokofoko

Uploaded images, but I keep getting an error about not being able to add urls (I attached them?) until I hit 10 posts...

mokofoko

Well, this is a pointless post, but hopefully I'll now be able to add photos.

Edit: thanks to post# 10, I was able to add photos from my album.

woodcraft

Your doing it right- pull & rotate to retract the pawls. When it goes out 1mm its hitting the pawls in the open position. Won't hurt anything if you pull hard, except possibly losing a spring.

I just did one of these a few days ago (mineral oil), but have another set so took that apart to make sure I had it right.

Don't miss the washer between the axle and the inside of the freehub when you put it back together.

mokofoko

Thanks for confirming I'm on the right track. Appreciate any and all feedback.

Unfortunately, the freehub body is utterly seized and won't shift counterclockwise even a smidge, so twist&pull isn't an option. I'm not weak, but I just can't get a good grip. I presume that I should first attempt to free the body slightly, even at the cost of bearing damage, etc. Try and spray the internals with degreaser first and let it sit? Put the cassette back on, set the chainwhip, and tap it with a mallet lightly in the counter-clockwise direction until it budges, then try to pull it off? I've also had the idea of screwing a cassette cap back in place with a large washer inside, then putting the axle back in from the non-driveside, and giving it a good smack to hopefully tap the body out (might damage the cassette cap though).

And yes, I see that little washer shifting around in there.

Thoughts?

woodcraft

If it moves in & out, it's not seized, so that leaves the pawls stuck/broken.

Putting the cassette back on & working it with a chainwhip sounds like a good next step. I would try force in alternating directions before using the hammer.

Another set up would be to clamp a (sacrificial) cassette in a vice, and work the rim back and forth.


If that doesn't work, you could just consider it your new multi speed fixed gear rig.

Mad Honk 

I had one at my co-op a few months back but it had bad spoke holes on the rim. No replacements for the rim so it likely is still hanging on a hook there. The free hub was OK though. You might contact Bloomington Bicycle Project (they have a web presence) and see if they can ship it to you. Smiles, MH

mokofoko

Thanks so much for the suggestions! Before I saw this I ended up trying out my cassette cap idea... stuck a quarter inside to block off the whole. Stuck a park allen wrench inside and gave it a few whacks. The body eventually popped out. Looks like the nylon bushing busted and got mangled in there. Pawls appear fine. With the bushing removed, everything seems to work just fine... I'm going to order a replacement bushing and seal kit for $13 and hopefully that will be the end of it. Mavics are super-easy to pull apart, otherwise I'd take the opportunity to service the sealed bearing cartridges too All 3 cartridges seem fine. Everything seems fine--just that bloody bushing. In the course of my research, I'd seen people complaining about the bushings wearing out quickly, so I guess I'll just have to watch out for that in the future.

mokofoko

Thanks, I'll give them a look in the offchance that my issue isn't resolved with the replacement of the nylon bushing.

jgwilliams

Yes, very frustrating that. I have a pair dating from 2002 which were still perfect when someone rear-ended me. Mavic can't supply a replacement rim so they are now dead. . The freehub bushes on that needed replacing and I was on the verge of ordering a new hub when it happened. The hub fitting is still the same now, nearly 20 years later, apparently.

woodcraft

That's great. Can you post a pic of the bushing? I've never seen that. Usually the cat-fight wail announces the need for service.

mokofoko

Certainly. Took additional photos so others could see what I did in case they end up in a similar situation.

mokofoko

The first thing I did was spray some wd40 into the freehub body grooves and allowed that to work in a bit. It still wasn't budging much (zero side-to-side play), so I took the cassette cap and placed a quarter inside to block it off. Sticking an extended allen wrench through the non-driveside (and taking special care to lineup and go THROUGH the washer between hub and body), I gave it some light taps. A few pounds of pressure was all it took, but there's no way I could have freed it pulling by hand.

No clear indication beforehand that a failure was imminent, though I don't recall if there was any cassette play. Didn't note any rattling.

Ordered a replacement bushing on ebay for $13 which is on its way. After taking measurements of the body with my digicalipers, I had to get an oversized washer due to prior wear... I'm guessing the bushing simply broke up when I tried to use it the other day, as I can detect no other signs of damage. Pawls and springs look/work fine. Body seems fine otherwise. Decided against servicing the 3x sealed bearing cartridges in the rear since they all spin equally smooth. At some point I'll just take care of all of them in both wheels--and at that time if I detect any play in the cassette I'll consider just paying the $50ish cost of getting a hubdoctor pro bushing (metal rather than nylon).

woodcraft

Thanks.

Weird that that prevented rotation but allowed in/out movement.

mokofoko

Movement was extremely minimal. I was barely able to wiggle it in/out, about 1mm.