Novatec freehub dragging

[Broadside]

I have got some Superstar Icon wheels which i think are re-branded Novatec hubs. The wheels have about 7,000 miles on them and have been faultless until now.

The front catridge bearings seized so have been replaced and all is good again. The rear bearings then started screeching so i have replaced them and they are now fine too.

One problem remains though, the freehub quite often will not freewheel so the chain goes slack, and rolling the rear wherl forward while it’s off the ground makes the pedals rotate. I removed the freehub, removed and cleaned pawls and spring, rotated the freehub bearings and they are silky smooth. Upon refitting to the bike the freehub works as expected until i do up the retaining caps on the end of the axle, as soon as it is tightened the freehub gets stiff and then will not rotate. Am i doing somethhing wrong, should the end caps not be tightened? Or is the freehub knackered in some way and needs to be replaced? I’ve got the replacement bearings for it but heard it is a very fiddly and difficult job. Any conments of ideas welcome

 

[iluvmybike]

Have you made sure that the seal round the freehub body has been seated properly when you put it all back together. If it not then it can cause that exact problem

 

[Broadside]

Thanks for the pointer, is this the seal that’s about 5mm thick? I didn't remove that but will check if i can push it on a bit more.

The freehub got draggy before i dismantled the wheel which is why i bought the replacement freehub bearings. so i wonder if that seal dislodged a while ago. I will have a look at home his evening.

 

[iluvmybike]

Its the one that fits around the freehub body when you have put that back - it needs pressing well home to locate it - even pressure all round so it doesn't twist

 

[Broadside]

I’m at a bit of a loss with this. I have tried seating the large rubber/plastic seal both ways round but the problem still happens.

I have tried fitting the freehub without the seal and when tightening the axle end cap the same thing happens, so i dont think thats the problem. From what i can tell the axle end cap when tightened is pressing against the thick rubber seal on the freehub. The only way i can make it work is by making the end cap finger tight, almost loose then it works fine but that doesnt seem right. I suppose i could loctite it in place.

 

[iluvmybike]

If the seal is in place right then it could be that you have missed a spacer or washer or got it in wrong place when you did the bearings - have a look at the attached tech doc it may help: https://issuu.com/novatectaiwan/docs/novatec_basic_manual_-_road_rear_3in1_hubs

 

[Broadside]

Thanks for that tech doc link, i was searching for it last night but couldn’t find it.

I think the thick rubber oil seal has moved within the freehub so when i do up the end cap it pushes on it. I tried pulling it out with some pliers last night but didnt want to apply too much force, i think i will get a bit more tough with it this evening.

 

[Broadside]

Following some more investigation this evening I think the free hub needs to be replaced.

The axle end cap is not fouling the free hub rubber seal, it seems that when the end cap is tightened it is putting load on the internal freehub bearings and I think this is causing the stiffness. When there is no side load on the bearings I can rotate them smoothly by hand.

This problem existed for a few hundred miles before I took it all apart so I’m pretty sure everything is back together properly and it’s not down to the way I have reassembled. The only way to prove it is to put a new freehub body on but for the meantime I have done it up finger tight and put a dab of thread lock on the axle end cap to stop it from working loose. If it does work loose then I will buy a new freehub.

Thanks for the pointers and tech doc info, much appreciated @iluvmybike

 

[fossyant]

The end caps on my formula through hubs are just pressed on. It may be that they only need to be finger tight and the pre-load taken when doing up the quick release. I assume cartridge bearings.

Try and download a service guide.

The hardest thing about my hubs was getting the end caps off. They are supposed to pop off.

 

[Broadside]

Thanks @fossyant maybe that is it. Thinking back when i took it all apart there was a decent blob of threadlock on the axle end. I will see how it goes and if it is all holding in place. These are cartridge bearing hubs, so you're right that when it all gets tightened up in to the frame that does a certain amount of work to keep everything in place without the need for lots of over tightening, well that’s how I understand it anyway.

@iluvmybike sent me a link to tech docs but i haven't found any service guides that indicate what sort of torque to apply. There are lots of YouTube videos but they just seem to show things being done up hand tight and no mention of thread lock to keep things in place.

 

[Broadside]

An update for anyone that is interested. I tried using Loctite but it eventually worked loose on a 50 mile ride at the weekend so I got in touch with Superstar Components and while they were diagnosing and getting me to take photos I thought I would try a washer that I was *sure* came off the NDS and move it to the inboard side of the freehub on the drive side.

This simple thing has fixed it, I have done it all up nice and tight (about 5nm), it's all nice and snug and everything is spinning freely. Note to self to write down or take photos or what came out from where when undoing it all. The washer in question fell on the floor while dismantling so I ended up guessing where it should be placed and got it wrong, but happily it is now sorted :-)

Thanks to all who tried to help out.