Broken axle

Broke my second axle in 6 years today. Did a search of this group and
find I'm not the first person to break a axle, and presumeably wont be
the last.

What worries me is what to do if it happens in the middle of Woop Woop.
Can easily carry a spare axle, but getting the cassette off (one of
those screw on types) in the bush is a bit of a poser.

How do other people cope with cassette removal without the convenience
of all the worshop paraphenalia?

Is there a more obliging cassette on the market?

TIA


Owen

"Owen" writes:

Broke my second axle in 6 years today. Did a search of this group and
find I'm not the first person to break a axle, and presumeably wont be
the last.

What worries me is what to do if it happens in the middle of Woop Woop.
Can easily carry a spare axle, but getting the cassette off (one of
those screw on types) in the bush is a bit of a poser.

How do other people cope with cassette removal without the convenience
of all the worshop paraphenalia?

Is there a more obliging cassette on the market?

I don't know, but I've been trying to get the freewheel off my main
bike yesterday and today, and it just won't budge. That's with at
least 60kg of force on the end of a 25cm spanner, too. Looks like it's
down to the LBS to find someone with more muscle power ;-)

David


--

David Trudgett
http://www.zeta.org.au/~wpower/

Patriotism is a pernicious, psychopathic form of idiocy.

-- George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

There is a greater propensity for axles to snap on the old screw on cluster
type hubs than the newer cassette / free-hub type. This is due to a
relatively long 'cantilevered' section of unsupported axle between the drive
side bearing and the point where it is locked into the frame dropout. The
equivalent span of axle on cassette type hubs is much shorter with a
consequent reduction in the frequency of broken axles.

Solution (if you are on old style hubs)? Upgrade to a cassette / free-hub
arrangement.

"Owen" wrote in message
oups.com...
Broke my second axle in 6 years today. Did a search of this group and
find I'm not the first person to break a axle, and presumeably wont be
the last.

What worries me is what to do if it happens in the middle of Woop Woop.
Can easily carry a spare axle, but getting the cassette off (one of
those screw on types) in the bush is a bit of a poser.

How do other people cope with cassette removal without the convenience
of all the worshop paraphenalia?

Is there a more obliging cassette on the market?

TIA


Owen

Owen wrote:

Broke my second axle in 6 years today. Did a search of this group and
find I'm not the first person to break a axle, and presumeably wont be
the last.

What worries me is what to do if it happens in the middle of Woop Woop.
Can easily carry a spare axle, but getting the cassette off (one of
those screw on types) in the bush is a bit of a poser.

How do other people cope with cassette removal without the convenience
of all the worshop paraphenalia?

Is there a more obliging cassette on the market?


The screw-on freewheel type hubs are prone to break as the bearing
support is so far inboard of the dropouts. I broke 2 in 18 months, but
that was probably because me and my backpack weighed in excess of 100kg
and I tended to (and still do) ride hard.

I wouldn't get too worried about it. The 2 I broke both broke inboard
of the bearing race, so it should be a fairly simple case of
transferring the bearing race, spacers and locknuts onto the RHS of the
axle shaft, slide the axle into the hub and adjust from the LHS.

The broken axles I had only seemed to become a problem (ie, I only
noticed them) when I removed the wheel to repair a puncture. What found
was that in an emergency I was able to keep going by re-aligning the two
halves of the axle and tightening the quick release up Real Tight™, and
riding gently home.

--
BrettS

"Owen" wrote in message
oups.com...
Broke my second axle in 6 years today. Did a search of this group and
find I'm not the first person to break a axle, and presumeably wont be
the last.

What worries me is what to do if it happens in the middle of Woop Woop.
Can easily carry a spare axle, but getting the cassette off (one of
those screw on types) in the bush is a bit of a poser.

Do you have QR axles or solid axle with nuts? This is really only a problem
with nutted axles - you won't be able to ride at all, the wheel will push
onto the brake. With QR axles the compression of the QR will keep the axle
in place for a fair while. I once had a broken axle and only discovered it
when I pulled the wheel off to service the hub. No idea how long it had been
broken.

How do other people cope with cassette removal without the convenience
of all the worshop paraphenalia?

Is there a more obliging cassette on the market?

As others have posted, freewheel hubs are prone to this type of break, so
upgrade to a cassette-style freehub.

As for getting the cluster off in the bush, it can be done. Twenty years ago
I was touring in WA, 30 kms north of Bunbury and broke a spoke, the 2nd or
3rd in a week so decided the whole wheel needed retightening. I had to get
the cluster of anyhow to fix the spoke, so I got out the cluster tool I was
carrying, fitted it with a six inch shifter on it, and placed the tyre hard
aginst a tree trunk to brace it. Then with a large brick I'd found, I began
to bash down on the end of the shifter. I wasn't too confident of success (I
was touring with a wide-range triple crankset - puts a lot of torque on the
cluster) but it was better than nothing. Surprisingly after only a short
series of solid hits the cluster came off. In the next hour I then proceeded
t loosen off and retighten the wheel. So just be sure to carry the right
cluster tool, available from your local bike shop (LBS) and a shifter of
some sort.

Cheers
Peter

On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 20:01:06 +1100, David Trudgett wrote:

I don't know, but I've been trying to get the freewheel off my main bike
yesterday and today, and it just won't budge. That's with at least 60kg of
force on the end of a 25cm spanner, too. Looks like it's down to the LBS
to find someone with more muscle power ;-)

That's where a rattle gun is a good thing. The load isn't particularly
high, but you get a very rapid re-application. It's like having a whole
army of miniature hammer men.

If you don't have access to a rattle gun, see if you can set up an
arrangement where you can tap the spanner repeatedly. Note that this may
not be good for your spanner.

--
Dave Hughes |
The family that chooses words with care together is the family that
avoids needless violence and gunplay together, is our motto.

On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 00:41:50 -0800, Owen wrote:

What worries me is what to do if it happens in the middle of Woop Woop.
Can easily carry a spare axle, but getting the cassette off (one of
those screw on types) in the bush is a bit of a poser.

Upgrade to cassette hubs. The bearing is outboard, so you're less likely
to break the axle in the first place. With a couple of cone spanners and
a fairly relaxed attitude to perfection, you should be able to pull the
broken bits out, thread the cones onto the drive side, slot the axle
through, then adjust from the LH side.

That's assuming you can't ride out on the busted axle anyway.
http://www.svana.org/sjh/rides/mont04/
(near the end)

--
Dave Hughes |
The family that chooses words with care together is the family that
avoids needless violence and gunplay together, is our motto.

Owen wrote:
Broke my second axle in 6 years today. Did a search of this group and
find I'm not the first person to break a axle, and presumeably wont be
the last.

What worries me is what to do if it happens in the middle of Woop Woop.
Can easily carry a spare axle, but getting the cassette off (one of
those screw on types) in the bush is a bit of a poser.

How do other people cope with cassette removal without the convenience
of all the worshop paraphenalia?

Cassette? Do you mean cluster?
Had my cluster remover brzer on a bar between the seat stay and chain
stay. Don't forget to drill a hole in the bar for the axle when you need
to use it.

Peter Signorini wrote:

As for getting the cluster off in the bush, it can be done. Twenty years ago
I was touring in WA, 30 kms north of Bunbury and broke a spoke, the 2nd or
3rd in a week so decided the whole wheel needed retightening. I had to get
the cluster of anyhow to fix the spoke, so I got out the cluster tool I was
carrying, fitted it with a six inch shifter on it, and placed the tyre hard
aginst a tree trunk to brace it. Then with a large brick I'd found, I began
to bash down on the end of the shifter. I wasn't too confident of success (I
was touring with a wide-range triple crankset - puts a lot of torque on the
cluster) but it was better than nothing.

The trick to this is to remove the cluster every 6 months, regrease the
thread and then put it back on. Tends to be easier to remove than one
that has been on for a few years.

Surprisingly after only a short
series of solid hits the cluster came off. In the next hour I then proceeded
t loosen off and retighten the wheel. So just be sure to carry the right
cluster tool, available from your local bike shop (LBS) and a shifter of
some sort.

There is a cluster remover tool that fits onto the head of some cluster
removers and allows you to use the frame (hint- at the joints) as a
lever. Saves carrying a shifter. Looks like a lump of metal with two
stubby horns and a wide groove in the other side.

However, if you do carry a shifter, make sure the shifter will open wide
enough to fit your cluster remover. (been there done that).

Hint, ye olde F spanner is really good value.

Last hint, take out your seat and seat post and stick handle of shifter
down the seat tube.

"Terry Collins" wrote:

The trick to this is to remove the cluster every 6 months, regrease the
thread and then put it back on. Tends to be easier to remove than one
that has been on for a few years.

Yes, that is what I used to do back then, which probably enabled me to do
the job with such a short spanner. Granny gears are real good at jamming any
cluster on rock solid.

There is a cluster remover tool that fits onto the head of some cluster
removers and allows you to use the frame (hint- at the joints) as a
lever. Saves carrying a shifter. Looks like a lump of metal with two
stubby horns and a wide groove in the other side.

Are you talking about the Hypercracker? Now no longer available as it can
damage frame tubing. But there are some similar tools to do the same job,
removing the cluster/cassette lockring without a chain whip or big shifter.
See these:

http://www.jastein.com/Tools_for_Wheels.htm
http://www.adamk.ca/custom_bits.htm for the Lifu 09C2 lckring tool that I
have.

However, if you do carry a shifter, make sure the shifter will open wide
enough to fit your cluster remover. (been there done that).

Hint, ye olde F spanner is really good value.

That's right! I didn't have a six-inch shifter, I'd forgotten I used to
carry a small flat-faced monkey wrench on tour. The jaws would open wider
than a shifter of the same length.

Last hint, take out your seat and seat post and stick handle of shifter
down the seat tube.

You mean the seat post, I think?

Lots of good ideas to solve a roadside problem that I haven't had for years
now. Stainless steel spokes are so much better than the old plated spokes,
and freehubs make for no broken axles. It's all good.

Cheers
Peter