Bicycle rear hub repair

Rear hub failure is one of the major problems that bike owners face. There is nothing surprising in this, because no matter how carefully the owner takes care of his “iron friend”, the rear hub will still be the most loaded part of the bike. In addition, bushing bearings are often clogged with dirt and corroded.

To independently overhaul and repair the rear hub of a bicycle, you must have the appropriate knowledge and skills. Below we will talk about how to fix a broken rear hub without resorting to the services of specialized service centers.

The most common rear hub failure on a bike is a loose or tight cone. The first case is signaled by a noticeable wheel play, and the second by the crunch of the bearings and the severity of the stroke. If both problems occur, troubleshooting should begin immediately.

Precautionary measures

For the manufacture of many components of the rear hub of a bicycle, hardened chromium-molybdenum alloys or case-hardened steel are used, which are more brittle. Therefore, we advise you to carefully work with such parts and to use eye protection without fail. When disassembling this part of the bike, we recommend applying the least possible effort, and before the first repair, practice on an inexpensive or unnecessary hub.

Preparatory process

To carry out the repair of the rear hub, it is necessary, first of all, to remove the rear wheel from your "iron friend". Mountain bikes or speed bikes often use eccentric clips to secure it, which can be removed without the use of keys. In entry-level bikes, most often the wheels are screwed on with two nuts that will need to be untwisted.

To eliminate backlash or tighten the cone, several keys will be required. Most often, a 17 mm open-end wrench and a 15 mm cone wrench are needed.

Troubleshooting process:

1. loosen the locknut
2. tighten or loosen the flare nut to the required value so that the wheel turns easily under the weight of the nipple or reflector,
3. tighten the locknut.

Sometimes, due to the installation of low-quality parts, the rear axle of the bicycle hub may bend or break. To solve this problem, you should completely replace the axle with a new, better one. To facilitate this task, you need to remove the ratchet.