And if this is something that I can fix without taking it to a shop. It's fine when normally cycling. When riding without pedaling the chain slacks. This started happening when the weather got colder (maybe there's a link?) Thanks in advance!
Hello, I was wondering what the possible cause of this/what part is the one being affected!
byu/Interstellar-Soul inbikewrench
by Interstellar-Soul
5 Comments
Sticky freewheel/cassette.
Look up park tools on identifying and servicing them.
I’m guessing the freewheel is bad or needs to be cleaned up and lubed.
You’ll have to remove the wheel and then the cassette to get to the freewheel. I’m sure there are dozens of YT videos for this. You may need so special tools, but if you’re doing maintenance regularly, they are worth it and not too expensive.
The problem is most likely the casette not spinning properly for some reason. The easiest fix is to remove the wheel and just change out the casette. You need a special tool for it though and there are different ones for different types of them, at least three different ones as far as I know, so maybe it will be cheaper to just let a shop do it.
You can probably fix it by taking it all apart and cleaning it because what is happening is water gets into the cassette and it freezes and the ice expands the parts. if its properly oiled and greased it doesnt happen. This is kinda specialized work though. There are guides on how to do it on youtube, and again, its different depending on what type you have.
But unfortunately, not easy fix for this. You could just get another wheel ofcourse.
While you can spend a lot of time to fix it correctly and might have to eventually. If you want to try something, lay the bike on its non drive side and drop a little penetrating oil, 3 in 1, kroil, or similar thin oil (Not WD-40 you will wash out any grease thats left) right into the seam of the freewheel where the center doesnt move and the outer does. They try to work in by spinning the wheel while still on its side.
This looks like seized jockey wheels. Push the cage forward and see if they spin freely.
You might be able to clean them up, but new ones aren’t expensive.