Clean Your Freewheel
#51
Freewheel Medic
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: An Island on the Coast of GA!
Posts: 12,885
Bikes: Snazzy* Schwinns, Classy Cannondales & a Super Pro Aero Lotus (* Ed.)
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@BrewsterII and @Velo Mule thank you for the kind comments and endorsements.
A few more reasons for a proper service on an annual or as needed due to severe riding conditions basis:
A few more reasons for a proper service on an annual or as needed due to severe riding conditions basis:
- Cleaning the sprockets will extend their life, the chain's life, and the RD's pulley & wheel lives
- Removing and greasing the hub threads yearly helps prevent seizure and removal notch failure
- Wear on sprockets tends to occur on the hub side of the freewheel first. Removal allows better inspection
- Internal damage to pawls, springs and bearings, cannot be determined unless the two body halves are separated
- Grease the bearing races in the outer body and place bearings there
- The exception is the hub side bearings of Shimano 6 & 7 speed freewheels. In this case grease the inner body race and place bearings
- Place a drop of oil on the pivot points of the pawls and wipe the ratchet teeth of the outer body with oil prior to greasing and bearing placement
- The exception is many older 5 speed Regina such as the Corsa. The pawl pivot is a "peg" in a loose hole and it needs grease to hold in place
- Most Shimano, Suntour, Sachs and newer Regina freewheel body halves re-mate with no challenges
- However, older Regina, Maillard and Atom models require a certain degree of finesse with the pawls in order to mate the two body halves
- Most can be accomplished by tipping the outer body onto one pawl, while using the blade of a pocket knife to compress the other pawl interior of the ratchet teeth
- Some older Regina models with wire push springs require careful wrapping with floss tape to compress the pawls. The floss is not knotted and removed after re-mating
- Some older Cyclo models require magnets to hold the pawls in place for re-mating
- My preferred grease is Super Lube synthetic due to its very wide temperature range, water, and salt resistence
__________________
Bob
Enjoying the GA coast all year long!
Thanks for visiting my website: www.freewheelspa.com
Bob
Enjoying the GA coast all year long!
Thanks for visiting my website: www.freewheelspa.com
Last edited by pastorbobnlnh; 06-25-19 at 06:45 AM.
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