My bike (Specialized Diverge E5 Comp) wasn’t ridden for almost a month due to illness and then holiday. I got back home after 2 weeks, it’s a beautiful day, wanted to take my bike out for a spin as I missed it like crazy when I noticed that free hub is not spinning freely.
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I had no issues with it on my last ride or really ever before.
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Last time I took the bike to mechanic to fix my broken spoke, the mechanic said that cassette wasn’t tightened properly. I wonder if that broke something? But since then I was on a couple of rides without any issues.
sdbrett on
Sounds horrible, but really hard to say what could be causing it from the video.
Pulling off the freehub might help diagnose what is going on, like worn / damaged pawls or ratchet teeth.
ColesSelfCheckout on
Dumb question I know, but there isn’t anything stuck behind it (between the cassette and the hub flange) is there? A twig, or a broken guard?
If not then yeah, you might need to take this apart and check the pawls/bearings. If you want to quickly determine whether they’re the problem without having to fully take it apart, try spraying some lube/penetrating oil into the gap between the hub and the freehub, let it work its way in and then give the freehub a few spins. See if the noise and crunchiness gets any better. If it does then you’ll know you need to take it apart and service it/replace it, as it’ll be a pawl/bearing issue.
Pure_Activity_8197 on
Sounds like one or more pawls in the free hub are seized. Could be a relatively easy fix. What brand/model rear hub do you have?
Quirky-Fix-1106 on
You’ve got a mix of normal sounding pawls and a thumping sound like there’s a spring missing. The whole cassette/freehub/end cap assembly should pull right off to confirm if that’s the case – just be careful because those springs have a mind of their own.
_kucho_ on
this is the sound that a freehub makes when it rubs against the pawls ring due to broken bearings.
7 Comments
My bike (Specialized Diverge E5 Comp) wasn’t ridden for almost a month due to illness and then holiday. I got back home after 2 weeks, it’s a beautiful day, wanted to take my bike out for a spin as I missed it like crazy when I noticed that free hub is not spinning freely.
​
I had no issues with it on my last ride or really ever before.
​
Last time I took the bike to mechanic to fix my broken spoke, the mechanic said that cassette wasn’t tightened properly. I wonder if that broke something? But since then I was on a couple of rides without any issues.
Sounds horrible, but really hard to say what could be causing it from the video.
Pulling off the freehub might help diagnose what is going on, like worn / damaged pawls or ratchet teeth.
Dumb question I know, but there isn’t anything stuck behind it (between the cassette and the hub flange) is there? A twig, or a broken guard?
If not then yeah, you might need to take this apart and check the pawls/bearings. If you want to quickly determine whether they’re the problem without having to fully take it apart, try spraying some lube/penetrating oil into the gap between the hub and the freehub, let it work its way in and then give the freehub a few spins. See if the noise and crunchiness gets any better. If it does then you’ll know you need to take it apart and service it/replace it, as it’ll be a pawl/bearing issue.
Sounds like one or more pawls in the free hub are seized. Could be a relatively easy fix. What brand/model rear hub do you have?
You’ve got a mix of normal sounding pawls and a thumping sound like there’s a spring missing. The whole cassette/freehub/end cap assembly should pull right off to confirm if that’s the case – just be careful because those springs have a mind of their own.
this is the sound that a freehub makes when it rubs against the pawls ring due to broken bearings.
Oof she cooked, not even wd40 can save her.