http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Topic: The not-so-free 'freehub' en Wed, 13 May 2026 05:44:43 +0000 http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=14216#post-177929 Thu, 15 Jan 2015 13:07:31 +0000 Cycle Service 177929@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Worth noting that if the wheel's been sat inactive for a while it might sort itself out with use. Grease and gunk in the freehub seems to solidify sometimes while it's sat then free off with movement. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=14216#post-177877 Wed, 14 Jan 2015 21:35:12 +0000 Mandopicker101 177877@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>All - thanks for your advice. </p> <p>If not solved, the problem is apparently much lessened. </p> <p>I mounted up at lunchtime ready to gingerly ride my new '9-speed fixie'...but the freehub seemed to have regained its liberty again and was behaving. Mostly. By the time I rode home, it was about 90% fine. </p> <p>I've just spent half an hour cleaning the rear wheel and cassette, removing a fair old amount of accumulated muck I missed in the gloom last night. It now looks pretty shiny and spins well. </p> <p>I'm going to run it by the LBS - failure within a year doesn't seem great.</p> <p>Trip to LBS is on the cards as my previous Mach 1 rear wheel had freehub problems... </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=14216#post-177828 Wed, 14 Jan 2015 14:24:03 +0000 Arellcat 177828@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Many winters ago I temporarily rescued a Shimano Deore LX freehub by removing the cassette and gently heating the rotor body (and thus the grease inside) with a blowtorch. But yes, they're relatively easily replaceable if you remove the axle and then remove the 10mm fixing bolt (standard right-hand thread).</p> <p>Ease of disassembly is why I like Hope freehubs. Pull off the right-hand axle spacer, and crack the rotor body off the hub body complete with pawls. No tools needed. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=14216#post-177814 Wed, 14 Jan 2015 13:33:05 +0000 steveo 177814@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>When my trek freehub died I tried using car engine oil to replace the gunk and act as as lube but it did't really work. In the end the LBS ordered me a replacement.</p> <p>Shimano Freehubs are cheap and easy to replace so they don't bother with any maintenance regime, I expect most manufacturers have a similar perspective. See if you can get a replacement quickly, might be worth checking if its shimano compatible. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=14216#post-177788 Wed, 14 Jan 2015 11:58:24 +0000 Mandopicker101 177788@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Before doing anything potentially harmful, I thought I'd canvass opinion from the CCE hivemind. </p> <p>I have a problem with my rear wheel, a Mach 1 CFX that's about 1 year old. I got this purely because LBS swapped my other rear wheel (Mach1 Omega) as a warranty failure. The wheel is fitted with a fairly new 9 speed cassette on it. I cleaned the drivetrain last night and pay it regular attention.</p> <p>The problem I'm having is that this morning I don't seem to be able to freewheel. Bike rides smoothly, shifts nicely, no grindy-grindy noises. However, stop pedalling and I'm getting a ton of chain-suck.</p> <p>I nipped into a bike shop near work and he reckoned the freehub pawls are clogged with grime etc and blasting it with PTFE lube might work. Otherwise its disassembly time (and as I lack the tools, this might be tricky). He duly squirted a good blast of lube into the cassette and it improved (a little).</p> <p>However....having previously read here that PTFE Lubricants = Death (to bicycle parts), I thought that for once it might be worth pausing for thought before doing anything rash.</p> <p>Grateful for advice... </p>