sticking cassette

tom adams said:

I have a sticking cassette (I think it is a cassette, not a freewheel,
has a hump on hub) on my old 10 speed (Performance brand). The
problem just started. It starts catching at low RPMs.

What do you mean "catching at low RPM's"? The cassette and freewheel
mechanisms only come into play when you are coasting. If it's jumping
or popping under high torque/low RPM use, there's several other things
to consider, like the age and relative wear of the chain and cogs.

Quoted message said:

I can find some old post on sticking freewheels. For them it looks
like you remove it, soak it in solvent, dry it, oil it. If that does
not work then you get a new one.

I have not removed a cassette, so I guess I will have to learn. Looks
like a need a chain whip, can't just put the tool in a vise and turn it
by gripping the wheel? I did the vise thing with freewheels recently.

Nope. The lockring for the cassette is fixed to the freely-rotating
part of the mechanism. In order to keep this from rotating, you use a
chain whip. I've used a screwdriver to do the same, but that's the
shadetree-mechanic method. The Park site:
http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=48 covers both cassette
and freewheel removal in detail.

Quoted message said:

I might just take it to the bike shop, there is a Performance shop
pretty near me. They might fix it for the price of a rear hub
overhaul, I guess.

If I need a new one, where should I get it, how much will it cost?
Might just spring for a new bike if it is too much.

Fiddlesticks. At very worst, the most you should pay for is a
replacement rear wheel.

Jeff

JeffWills said:

tom adams said:

I have a sticking cassette (I think it is a cassette, not a freewheel,
has a hump on hub) on my old 10 speed (Performance brand). The
problem just started. It starts catching at low RPMs.

What do you mean "catching at low RPM's"?

Catching at low back wheel RPMs when I am coasting. Now I realize that
"Low RPMs" sounds like low cadence, sorry. And, I think it sticks
when I am going down hill coasting, so I guess its more high RPMs of
the back wheel when in use.

I wonder if it is safe to ride. I have about a 1.5 mile commute to my
vanpool in some traffic.
If it seized up going down hill then the pedals would want to turn at
15-20 mph. Instant track bike.

Quoted message said:

The cassette and freewheel
mechanisms only come into play when you are coasting. If it's jumping
or popping under high torque/low RPM use, there's several other things
to consider, like the age and relative wear of the chain and cogs.

Quoted message said:

I can find some old post on sticking freewheels. For them it looks
like you remove it, soak it in solvent, dry it, oil it. If that does
not work then you get a new one.

I have not removed a cassette, so I guess I will have to learn. Looks
like a need a chain whip, can't just put the tool in a vise and turn it
by gripping the wheel? I did the vise thing with freewheels recently.

Nope. The lockring for the cassette is fixed to the freely-rotating
part of the mechanism. In order to keep this from rotating, you use a
chain whip. I've used a screwdriver to do the same, but that's the
shadetree-mechanic method. The Park site:
http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=48 covers both cassette
and freewheel removal in detail.

Thanks for the info!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I might just take it to the bike shop, there is a Performance shop
pretty near me. They might fix it for the price of a rear hub
overhaul, I guess.

If I need a new one, where should I get it, how much will it cost?
Might just spring for a new bike if it is too much.

Fiddlesticks. At very worst, the most you should pay for is a
replacement rear wheel.

Yeah, well the bike was probably worth $125 or so with a functional
cassette. I am not sure how much lower the cassette is.

I have 5 gears in the back, 2 in the front. But I guess they did 5
gear cassettes?

Quoted message said:

Jeff

tom adams said:

Yeah, well the bike was probably worth $125 or so with a functional
cassette. I am not sure how much lower the cassette is.

I have 5 gears in the back, 2 in the front. But I guess they did 5
gear cassettes?

Take a look at www.sheldonbrown.com ,
http://sheldonbrown.com/free-k7.html in particular for information on
determining if you have a freewheel or a casette.

If it's five speeds on the rear you probably have a freewheel.

---
Sean Cunningham

tom adams said:

Catching at low back wheel RPMs when I am coasting. Now I realize that
"Low RPMs" sounds like low cadence, sorry. And, I think it sticks
when I am going down hill coasting, so I guess its more high RPMs of
the back wheel when in use.

The ratcheting mechanism in a freehub/cassette design is located in the
hub. So if you really have cassette then the problem lies in the hub.
Have you tried just spraying some low-viscosity lubricant into the
ratchet mechanism while spinning the cassette/freewheel? Tri-Flow or
even WD-40 should help loosen things up. That can be done without any
disassembly of the wheel.

Quoted message said:

Yeah, well the bike was probably worth $125 or so with a functional
cassette. I am not sure how much lower the cassette is.

Recently bought a 6-spd freewheel and a 7-spd cassette for a little
under $20 each. Haven't shopped for a 5-speed for awhile.

Quoted message said:

I have 5 gears in the back, 2 in the front. But I guess they did 5
gear cassettes?

I don't remember any. In general freewheels went from 5-7 speed and
cassettes started at 7-speed although I think I saw some 6-speed ones.

peter said:

tom adams said:

Catching at low back wheel RPMs when I am coasting. Now I realize that
"Low RPMs" sounds like low cadence, sorry. And, I think it sticks
when I am going down hill coasting, so I guess its more high RPMs of
the back wheel when in use.

The ratcheting mechanism in a freehub/cassette design is located in the
hub. So if you really have cassette then the problem lies in the hub.
Have you tried just spraying some low-viscosity lubricant into the
ratchet mechanism while spinning the cassette/freewheel? Tri-Flow or
even WD-40 should help loosen things up. That can be done without any
disassembly of the wheel.

Do you mean at the axle in front of the small gear, or should I also
put WD-40 in the
area behind the big gear?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Yeah, well the bike was probably worth $125 or so with a functional
cassette. I am not sure how much lower the cassette is.

Recently bought a 6-spd freewheel and a 7-spd cassette for a little
under $20 each. Haven't shopped for a 5-speed for awhile.

Quoted message said:

I have 5 gears in the back, 2 in the front. But I guess they did 5
gear cassettes?

I don't remember any. In general freewheels went from 5-7 speed and
cassettes started at 7-speed although I think I saw some 6-speed ones.

The hub has that bump that you see on the Sheldon Brown site. And I
there seem to be splines visible in front of the small gear and behind
the big gear. But he does imply that 5 speed cassettes are uncommon
at least.

I have not even taken the wheel off yet. Might try some WD-40 and see
if that works.

tom adams said:

I have a sticking cassette (I think it is a cassette, not a freewheel,
has a hump on hub) on my old 10 speed (Performance brand). The
problem just started. It starts catching at low RPMs.

I can find some old post on sticking freewheels. For them it looks
like you remove it, soak it in solvent, dry it, oil it. If that does
not work then you get a new one.

I have not removed a cassette, so I guess I will have to learn. Looks
like a need a chain whip, can't just put the tool in a vise and turn it
by gripping the wheel? I did the vise thing with freewheels recently.

I might just take it to the bike shop, there is a Performance shop
pretty near me. They might fix it for the price of a rear hub
overhaul, I guess.

If I need a new one, where should I get it, how much will it cost?
Might just spring for a new bike if it is too much.

Make sure you have nothing caught between the spokes and the
freewheel/cassette. Spoke protectors are notorious for causing this problem.

tom adams said:

peter said:

tom adams said:

Catching at low back wheel RPMs when I am coasting. Now I realize that
"Low RPMs" sounds like low cadence, sorry. And, I think it sticks
when I am going down hill coasting, so I guess its more high RPMs of
the back wheel when in use.

The ratcheting mechanism in a freehub/cassette design is located in the
hub. So if you really have cassette then the problem lies in the hub.
Have you tried just spraying some low-viscosity lubricant into the
ratchet mechanism while spinning the cassette/freewheel? Tri-Flow or
even WD-40 should help loosen things up. That can be done without any
disassembly of the wheel.

Do you mean at the axle in front of the small gear, or should I also
put WD-40 in the
area behind the big gear?

Near the axle in front of the small gear. Spray some lubricant into
the gap between the part that rotates and the part that stays fixed
with the axle while you spin the freewheel/cassette. Also, as
mentioned by Peter C., make sure you don't have anything stuck behind
the cassette/freewheel like a cracked spoke protector that might be
preventing free rotation.

"tom adams" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

peter said:

tom adams said:

Catching at low back wheel RPMs when I am coasting. Now I realize

that

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

"Low RPMs" sounds like low cadence, sorry. And, I think it

sticks

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

when I am going down hill coasting, so I guess its more high RPMs

of

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

the back wheel when in use.

The ratcheting mechanism in a freehub/cassette design is located in

the

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

hub. So if you really have cassette then the problem lies in the

hub.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Have you tried just spraying some low-viscosity lubricant into the
ratchet mechanism while spinning the cassette/freewheel? Tri-Flow

or

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

even WD-40 should help loosen things up. That can be done without

any

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

disassembly of the wheel.

Do you mean at the axle in front of the small gear, or should I also
put WD-40 in the
area behind the big gear?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Yeah, well the bike was probably worth $125 or so with a

functional

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

cassette. I am not sure how much lower the cassette is.

Recently bought a 6-spd freewheel and a 7-spd cassette for a little
under $20 each. Haven't shopped for a 5-speed for awhile.

Quoted message said:

I have 5 gears in the back, 2 in the front. But I guess they did

5

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

gear cassettes?

I don't remember any. In general freewheels went from 5-7 speed and
cassettes started at 7-speed although I think I saw some 6-speed

ones.

Quoted message said:

The hub has that bump that you see on the Sheldon Brown site. And I
there seem to be splines visible in front of the small gear and behind
the big gear. But he does imply that 5 speed cassettes are uncommon
at least.

I have not even taken the wheel off yet. Might try some WD-40 and see
if that works.

Here's a couple of web sites with instructions:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/tech/fix/?id=howfix_freehub

http://www.cyclingnews.com/tech/fix/?id=cogs

http://www.execulink.com/~dtierney/wmc/faq.htm#DQ1

Chas.