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A seized freehub body on a 90s MTB just ate my whole afternoon
Had a guy bring in an old Specialized Rockhopper last week, said the rear wheel wouldn't spin freely. Figured it was a simple bearing adjustment or maybe a sticky brake. Nope. The freehub body was completely seized, rusted solid from years of sitting. I tried every trick in the book, from soaking it in penetrating oil for an hour to gentle heat and careful leverage. What should have been a 20 minute job turned into a three and a half hour fight. I ended up having to carefully drill out the main axle to get enough force to break it loose without wrecking the hub shell. Ever run into a freehub that just refuses to let go? What's your last resort method when the normal stuff fails?
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milarodriguez7mo ago
Ugh, that's the worst! Honestly, I had the exact same thing happen on an old Trek last month. Tbh I soaked it in penetrating oil for two whole days and it still wouldn't budge. My last resort is usually a big bench vise and the longest breaker bar I own, but even that failed. I ended up having to cut the freehub body apart with a dremel, which felt like a total defeat. Those old seized ones are the absolute worst jobs in the shop.
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rosejackson6mo ago
Cutting it apart with a dremel sounds like a horror movie for bikes. @garcia.charles, you better hope your tools are feeling strong today...
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