Hi guys

I've been coming to this board for a while now, mainly to this section.
Great place you've here.

I want to upgrade the freewheel on my sigle speed bike,
but the one i have is one of those cheap chinese ones,
so it doesn't have the holes to insert an extractor.

Any idea on how i can remove this?



p.s. - Search gave me 40 pages of threads, sorry if this has been asked before (probably has)!

Thanks
Miguel

Turn it over I suspect the removing part is on the other side. If your bike looks like that someone before you put it the freewheel on backwards. Roger

I don't know of a way other than disassembling the freewheel. Use a strong drift punch or a junk screwdriver whose tip can fit into the two holes. You need to work clockwise, as it is a reverse/left-hand thread. A few whacks on each hole should loosen it so that you can remove the top piece. Make sure you have something underneath to catch the tiny ball bearings. Take out the pawls and springs and then clamp the remainder of the derailleur body in a vise, grab the rim and turn counter-clockwise.

aren''t those two holes at 3 and 9 o'clock for the removal tool?

May have to destroy it to remve it. Here are instructions from the Park Tool web site.
https://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-...uctive-removal

Nope, those unscrew the outer bearing cone of the freewheel.

I've seen these cheap freewheels before, they genuinely don't have notches for a removal tool!

I remove them as per the Park Tools link above.

Hey thanks for all the reply's

That park tool link seems gold, gonna give it a try.

i don't doubt those who predict a destructive removal on that freewheel, but it boggles the mind to assume an even irresponsible engineer would design such a thing. the only that comes quickly to mind is that the bikes those freewheels (bmx most likely) were likely to be mounted on were, in turn, disposable. and then again if the freewheel wheel is cheap enough, tt makes no difference if it destroyed on removal, i guess.

its a $10 (retail) chinese freewheel, aimed mostly at the disposable BMX bike market.

Not on These they just take the freewheel apart as said above you need to desable the freewheel and remove it destructo style.

Last time I had to deal with one of those at work; I just used a dremel to grind removal notches into it. Then proceed as normal.

The freewheel itself is proof bikes are being manufactured that are literally disposable.

The assumption is that these freewheels will outlast the wheel and never need service.

There are 2 alternatives for removal, neither of which is practical. You can use a punch and drive off the cover, disassemble the freewheel and then use a pipe wrench, band wrench or vise to remove the inner body. That means you'll have to rebuild it, but then again, didn't you want to service it anyway?

Or you can use a large vise across the sprockets, applying enough pressure to ovalize the outer body and jam the freewheel. Then the wheel turns to the left to remove it. (wear protective glasses, sometimes the bodies shatter)

Actually here in Lisbon, these are bought for under 2€ (about 2,5$).

You can indeed thread a freewheel on backwards on the hub. But since it would "freewheel" while pedaling, one would reverse it immediately. So... if the bike pedals normally, it ain't on backwards.

Well, screwing it on in the first place would be tricky since it would freewheel in your hand rather than thread on the hub. Besides, the cone ring is visible in the photo, so I think it's safe to assume it was not on backwards.
I have run into these in the past as well. My destructive removal technique is to tack a few welds around it between the cog and body.
(It's important to hook the ground to the cog, you don't want the current flowing through the bearing.)
Once welded into a solid lump, a chainwhip will take it off.

Speaking as one who just recently experienced the awesome power of using thermal expansion to remove and install cartridge bearings into some hubs, (aluminum hub, steel bearings, so torch the hub and freeze the bearings) I'd just like to remind you that you can sometimes make these things shockingly easier by heating/cooling the appropriate bits before you get around to pouring on the elbow grease.

Assuming an aluminum hub and some abundant freezer space, I dremel some good, square grooves into the freewheel to hold your punch, then freeze the hub for a half hour and torch the free wheel until it is just about too hot to touch.

I swear, it made pulling and pressing those cartridge bearings a real pleasure; hopefully, it could help you.

think that is a guess/assumption .. how many have you seen and assembled like that?

not an intentional "aimed" part.. where I have seen them in the Build Carton kit for
3 wheel 1 speed Upright bikes. without a coaster brake. (brake is on the fork in front.)

Freewheels made for putting on adult Trikes that I have seen , don't have a removal notch.
they screw onto a piece that fits onto the part, that has a Keyway that engages
thru a piece of key stock, to a slot in the axle, to drive 1 wheel..
the whole assembly comes off but not apart, there-after.
since there are no spokes behind it it really does not need to be removed, separately.

If you have one of those , It is the Wrong Part for screwing directly onto a wheel.
return/exchange it for one that does have removal notches ,

or anticipate tearing it apart, to grab the core in a bench vise, and unscrewing the wheel,
after discarding the bearing balls and pawls..

BTW by 'Upgrade' , consider White Industries Freewheels , for their superior bearings, seals,
and faster engaging Pawl designs for observed Trials and Polo riders..
though, they will set you back about $100.
https://www.whiteind.com/singlespeedg...reewheels.html

Thanks m8.

Hopefully one day i can buy me some of those.
For now the sturmey archer ones will have to do the trick.

Don't blame the engineers for what the bean-counting management tells them to design.

OP, if your gearing isn't quite what you want, you can always go to a bigger or smaller chainring, too. (Unless the crankset is a bargain basement part as well...)

Just hope you wrote first and didn't already screw that on, Mig,
and tighten it up by riding the bike.. .

I've that mounted for quite some time now.
Tomorrow gonna try to take it out using the method in that park tool link.

I have managed to get those type of freewheels off a hub.
put a sharp edged drift, or flat screwdriver blade, into one of those 2 holes, then tap it round anti clockwise. This will get the freewheel to unscrew, and the freewheel wont come to bits. It could be reused too.
some freewheels are marked with an arrow, beside those 2 holes. thats the direction to remove the cone face bit. You drift it the other way to remove the complete freewheel
I used to work at a bike shop. I had to take freewheels off of newly unboxed BMX bike shaped objects, as the springs wouldnt engage the pawls in the ratchet grooves.

If nothing else, I've gotten these off before by welding them 'fixed', then using a chain whip. If you have the equipment handy it's quick and easy.