badger_biker 

My Miyata 1000 has these hubs and I'm starting to detect a slight noise/roughness in the rear. Nothing major but I thought I'd try cleaning the bearings or replace the cartridge. It has the kind of cone shaped cover with notches for a special tool.

Does anyone have a picture of the tool? I've done some searching but came up empty. If I knew what it looked like I'd try to improvise or fabricate something similar.

Thanks -

Slash5

Just came up a few days ago. Might not be right one but:
https://www.bikeforums.net/bicycle-me...tery-tool.html

thumpism 

That's it. Here's mine. The flange on the end is about 11.5mm across at the widest point. Fits behind the inner side of the bearing to enable you to pull it out of the hub shell. To replicate it I'd use something like a 16d common nail and hold it with Vise-Grips. Slip that into the hub and tap on the wrench to move the bearing out. Might have to move the nail head around to various points on the bearing to pull it evenly.

JohnDThompson 

That's the tool for pulling the bearing, but does the OP mean the tool that removes the notched covers that set the pre-load on the bearing? If that's the case, the tool looks like this:

badger_biker 

That would be the one - thanks John! I've got to think that is fairly rare. I have a couple small single notched spanners that may work but having the three would be nice. Of course any replacement cartridges I install are going to outlive me so it will likely be a once in a lifetime operation :-)

JohnDThompson 

I suspect you could use a lockring pliers just as effectively. Here's an "Instrucables" page on how to make a set from a Channel-lock pliers:



DIY Lockring Pliers

unworthy1

nice instructable, but the writer thinks the only lockring you'd use this on is a fixed-gear (track) rear hub and those will be LH threading (true), but most people would also use it on bottom bracket lockrings (and the other notched rings one might encounter such as these Suntour "hub caps") which will be RH threading nearly every time.

dddd

I modified a not-so-rare Suntour cartridge bottom bracket spanner to use as a ring-turning tool for these very hubs.

The one end of my spanner had narrower-spaced square pegs for engaging the inside splines of either/both cup(s), while the other end has pegs spaced more widely for the lockring's exterior notches.
I used a vice to squeeze the narrower-end pegs a little closer together, hard to see, but voila, I had me a hub ring tool!

Prowler 

I was in a similar position to the OP: had one pair of wheels with Suntour sealed bearings and did not have the right tool. Really expected to never have another wheel set like this and hated to buy the exceedingly rare Suntour tool. So casting about in the shop I found a large washer - OD larger than that "nut" (or whatever it's called) and the ID smaller. So I took a saw and some files and knocked out everything that did not look like the tool I needed. See photos. I did focus on getting the teeth the same width and 90 deg apart so they would all engage at the same time- clockwise or anti-clockwise. Got pretty close.

I ground two flats on the OD so I could grip it with a Channellok pliers. One side of the teeth are smoothed over a bit more than the other - better engagement with the notches on the nut. I painted the 'top side' Blue Mink (these are the Raleigh's wheels) so I'd not forget to engage the 'bottom side' of the tool when in use. Works for me.

I'm sure this would come out better if I made a second one but this'll do.

dddd

Good job, looks like you could apply plenty of torque with that washer!

Prowler 

Thanks, and I'm not planning to work it too hard. It is just plain low carbon steel. Cannot expect too much. But I also see no reason to torque a hub's lock nuts too much anyway. Nothing going on to let them loosen in service.