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canadian400ex
08-14-2001, 09:19 PM
I bent my axle last night during an obstacle course at a local exhibition. It isn't bent all that bad.. I can't feel it while i'm riding but you can see it wobbling a bit. Should I get it straightened or do I not worry 'bout it. It doesn't alter the handling at all but do you think it will be a problem...is it going to be any weaker...I don't want to damage my carrier or anything. Thanks for the info.
booneTRX
08-14-2001, 09:21 PM
iF YOU DO ANY JUMPING, I WOULD REPLACE IT. IF YOU DONT, THAN JUST HAVE IT STRAIGHTENED.
canadian400ex
08-14-2001, 09:25 PM
That sux. I race moto-x and also do a lot of jumping when I am just playing around!
Stevo
08-14-2001, 11:38 PM
Wow you must of hit it real hard. From what I know the stock ex axle is very strong. I would get a new stock one or a lonestar.
08-15-2001, 08:57 AM
I bent my axle (slightly) over a year ago. I have been riding it with this bend for over a year now. If I put the quad up on blocks and let the rear wheels spin, I can see the right tire ever so slightly shake. Wide open (67MPH) on a paved road, I dont feel it.
If mine were bent any more than this, I would either buy a new one or get it straightened immediately. If yours is bent any worse than mine, you WILL prematurely wear out your axle bearings if you dont fix it / replace it.
Good luck.
oynot400
08-15-2001, 09:12 AM
Mine is slightly bent also, it has been for a while. It will take out your bearings it did mine. I need to get a different axle I just have to find the money first. You should be able to ride for a while with it bent. Just don't put it off.
08-15-2001, 09:48 AM
If it's bent next to your carrier then your gonna cost yourself all kinds of headache and money,,if it's out toward your tire then it sounds like you'll be OK.
.
SNIPA
08-15-2001, 12:16 PM
My right rear wobbles a little. How can I know if it is the rim or the axle? Is there a easy way to find this out???
MOFO
08-15-2001, 12:22 PM
The easiest way that I would check would be to take the wheels off and then spin the axle while the quad is on blocks....if you see the axle move with no tires on...you have bent axle. If it is smooth and then shakes with the tires on...you have a bent rim...
Eric
AlaskaSpeed
08-15-2001, 12:38 PM
I have a perfectly straight stock axle if any of you want to make an offer on it. I had it on my quad for about 15 rides and it is in very good shape. I replaced it with a wider axle for racing. email me @ [email protected] if you are interested....JIM
canadian400ex
08-15-2001, 03:33 PM
I'm pretty sure it wont, but is the axle covered under warranty? Thanx for all the information fella's!
Leo
08-15-2001, 06:17 PM
I don't think your warranty will cover a bent axle caused by a collision :(
I'm going to move this thread over to the chassis forum.
Leo
canadian400ex
08-16-2001, 03:35 PM
My axle didn't bend do to a collision. I bent it by jumping and landing on flat ground. You're right though, it probably isn't covered under warranty.
Dave400ex
08-16-2001, 04:44 PM
The only things covered under the warranty are flaws by Honda. The axle would not be, I don`t think. I saw stock Honda axles were $205 in the new Dirtwheels. I would just buy a Durablue axle.
canadian400ex
08-16-2001, 08:16 PM
Yeah, I wont be buying a stock one. In Canada, they're $402.44. If I bent this one, I'll certainly bend another stock one! I went to the moto-x track tonight and it was ROUGH as I have ever seen it! I didn't make the axle any worse so I hope I'll be alright.
08-19-2001, 09:29 PM
You said you wre at an exhibition or something- (does that mean you are sponsored by anyone???) I would get a new durablue, definately.
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Changing out an ATV axle is a pretty routine job. All ATVs will need this done at some point in its life. With the rough terrain most riders take their quads on, there’s bound to be a bent axle problem sooner or later.
Sometimes you need to change the axle out because it got bent, sometimes people want to get a longer axle installed to widen the stance of their quad. Either way, the process is the same.
These steps are universal for any ATV cv joint axle change, but each quad is a little different. If you’re ever in doubt about one of the steps, it’s best to check your users manual. But first, lets go over the warning signs that your axle is actually bad and needs replacement.
The first thing to watch out for is a clicking or popping noise that you can hear while riding. This noise is most likely heard during tight corners or taking tight turns.
This is a fairly common noise to hear if your cv joint axle is wearing out and needs to be replaced.
Physically get done and look at the axle itself. If it looks bent or dinged up enough that you can see a curve in the axle, it probably needs to be replaced. Check the boots and cv joints for wear or breaks as well.
If you feel a vibration or shaking when riding, it could be your axle is bent. There are a number of other issues that would cause a shaky feeling though. If a shaking or wobbling while riding is your only warning sign and the axle doesn’t look bent, I would check out my Common Reasons An ATV Will Shake article before swapping out the axle.
Now lets look at the tools you need and the steps to take to change out your ATV axle.
You will also want to wear safety glasses and gloves when working on your ATV.
You may need a new cotter pin for the axle castle nut and penetrating oil and cleaner if the axle is stuck on there.
Lift the quad off the ground and place on jack stands or something very sturdy. You will be pulling on the lifted machine in later steps and don’t want it to tip.
Get the lug nuts off and remove the wheel. It is easier to loosen the lug nuts before jacking up the quad. You can put the lug nuts back on the hub after the wheel is off if you’re worried about loosing them.
You might have a plastic cap covering the castle nut that you will need to remove first. Take the cotter pin out of the castle nut and remove the castle nut. It’s ok if you have some one hold the brake down to prevent the axle from rotating while you take off the castle nut.
The brake caliper is usually held on by two bolts, remove those and pull the caliper off the rotor.
You don’t need to take the caliper apart any further than this. Simply zip tie it up out of the way and avoid letting it hang or putting strain on the brake line.
This is a good stage to check if you need to replace your wheel hub bearings. You will need to remove all the same parts and get to this point to do that job anyway, so why not if it needs it do it now.
If you try to rotate the hub bearing assembly and notice it wobbles or is grinding, check out my ATV Wheel Hub Bearing Replacement article to get more info about that. Now remove the hub.
This will allow you to move the A-Arms when you get to that step. Just remove the cotter pin if you have one and remove the bolt holding on the bottom of the shock. This is only required if you need to remove the bottom A-Arm bolt to move it out of the way, usually only need on front axle changes if you have to remove the tie rod ends from the steering knuckle.
To remove the bottom A-Arm bolt, simply take out the cotter pin if you have one and remove the nut holding it in place. You need to pull the bottom ball joint out of the steering knuckle in order to get the axle out.
To remove the steering tie rod end the same steps apply. Remove the cotter pin if there is one and remove the bolt. You may not need to do this step depending on your machine, and this is also only required on a front axle change.
The main goal here is to get the steering knuckle or rear knuckle off the axle.
To remove the axle from the differential you will need to play with it a bit. A lot of times these axles can stuck on there and you may need to use some penetrating oil to make it easier.
Just give it a swift quick jerk on the axle to pull it out. This step is easiest done when you lower the bottom A-Arm and raise the top A-Arm and steering knuckle out of the way. Now it’s time to install the new axle.
Get the new axle and line up the splines with the differential before pushing the new axle into place. It’s a good idea to grease up the splines on the the new axles before installing. Anti-seize grease will work just as well.
You may need to hit the end of the axle with a rubber hammer a couple times to get it seated in all the way properly. You should hear and feel it click into place nicely. You can give it a little tug to make sure it seated the right way.
This step is pretty straight forward, you want reinstall everything in the reverse order you took it apart. Get the steering knuckle or rear knuckle back on the axle, bolt the tie rod ends and A-Arms back together, and bolt put the lower shock bolt back on.
Now put the hub back on with the washer if there was one and the castle nut with a new cotter pin. Put the wheel back on and take the machine off the jack or jack stands.
With any maintenance efforts that involve removing the tie rod ends or anything to do with the steering, it’s a good idea to do an alignment afterwards.
Especially if you were installing a longer axle to widen the stance of your ATV.
An alignment may not so crucial if you really only ride at lower speeds, but not getting one done can cause your tires to wear unevenly and cause extra wear to other parts of your machine.
To do an ATV alignment check out my How To Do An ATV Alignment article for the step by step process on how to get it done the right way.
That’s it! Those are the steps to replace the axle on your ATV. If you don’t know where to start the search for the replacement axle, I would try your local ATV parts store or Look At ATV Axles on Amazon. You can usually find the parts cheaper online, just make sure you get the right part for your make and model.
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Contents
At the same time, insufficient attention is paid to such an important component as the wheel hub. nine0003 There are two types of hubs, front and rear. The front is simpler and is not subjected to the same loads as the rear, especially if the bike has a fork with a shock absorber. The rear hub is used to transmit torque from the pedals to the rear wheel, the dynamic characteristics of the bike depend on it, so we will talk about it further.
Bicycle hubs differ in the material they are made of and their internal design. They usually consist of an axle, a hub with flanges to which the spokes are attached, and bearings. There are the following types of bushings for the rear wheel:
Rear cassette hub Novatec d042sb-ss
The first two types are the most common, and planetary ones remain rather exotic, although they are quite often used in city bikes.
Ratchet hubs are cheaper, but less reliable and considered obsolete, so a cassette option is better.
JOY TECH 434 Ratchet Rear Hub
An important factor to consider when choosing a hub is the type of bearings fitted to it. Bulk ball bearings remain the most common type, but industrial bearings in cartridges are more reliable. nine0003
In the first case, flare nuts are attached to the bicycle axle, which press the balls to the cups, which are structurally part of the body of the hub itself.
Units with such bearings are easy to maintain and repair, but they quickly become clogged.
Industrial bearing R8RS rear hub KT-155
In products on industrial bearings, the balls in the cassette are pressed directly into the hub. They are great for a sport bike as they have more efficiency and better mud protection. Another advantage of bushings on industrial bearings is that they do not require adjustment of the axial clearance and frequent lubrication, but they are quite difficult to disassemble. nine0003
Typically, the hub housing is the wheel hub. It has flanges on which spokes are attached, and due to the presence of a set of sprockets on the rear wheel, the spokes are slightly shorter on one side. For bushings with loose bearings, the inner surface has paths along which the balls move.
The rear axle of a bicycle is a threaded rod rigidly fixed in dropouts, which does not transmit torque, but at the same time bears the main load when the bicycle is moving.
It is usually made of steel, titanium or aluminum alloy and is an integral structural element of the hub. nine0003
Depending on the type of fastening, the axles can be hollow or solid. The hollow ones are used in conjunction with eccentric tie-downs to make it easier to install and remove the wheel. Such axles have greater rigidity and less weight.
Eccentric clamps
Another way to fasten the wheel is to fix its axle in the frame stays with special nuts. For a frame with horizontal dropouts, an axle with nuts is more suitable because of the more reliable and durable wheel mounting.
Rear hub axle Quando KT-262R 175mm with nuts
Some models of mountain bikes and cyclocross bikes use through axles (thru axle), one of the ends of which is threaded. These axles are part of the frame design and are usually supplied with the frame.
The thickness of the rear axle depends on the type of bike, and its length is determined by the distance between the dropouts of the frame stays.
In some models of bushings, the diameter can be changed using special adapters. Typically, the following axes are used (the first number is the diameter, and the second is the length):
High End extreme sport bikes can use special thicker axles for increased strength. nine0003
The rear wheel mechanism of a bicycle needs periodic maintenance and repair, and often inexperienced cyclists have problems disassembling and assembling it. However, this is a fairly simple operation, and after a little practice it ceases to cause difficulties. The main thing is to choose the right tool and be patient. You should also show maximum accuracy, otherwise a small part or a ball that has rolled somewhere can cause serious problems, and it will be impossible to assemble the mechanism correctly. If you are not confident in your actions, then you can even record the process on video so that during reassembly it is clear where this or that element should be installed. nine0003
Rear hub and its components
All conventional hubs are designed to be disassembled from the opposite side of the sprockets, i.e. from the left. Consider the sequence of actions when disassembling the product on bulk bearings, since this design is the most common:
After dismantling the cassette, you need to remove the brake disc on the left side of the hub (if disc brakes are installed). The scheme for disassembling the bushing on industrial bearings is even simpler, the only difficulty is removing the cassettes with balls, since they are quite tightly pressed into the hub.
The cartridge will have to be taken out with a special tool or knocked out with hammer blows on the axis, but this must be done very carefully so as not to damage the flange.
Sometimes you have to disassemble the drum itself, on which the cassette with stars is attached. In this case, you will need a special puller with slots. But such a need arises extremely rarely, and in this case it is still better to contact the workshop. nine0003
Maintenance of the rear hubs consists of removing the old grease, cleaning the parts of dirt, checking their integrity and applying new grease. It is necessary to thoroughly rinse not only the bearings and the inner surface of the hub, but also the threads on the nuts and the axle, as sand is often stuffed into it. When twisted, it collects on the surface of the cone, which can cause crunching and even damage to the balls. For this, gasoline, thinner or special detergents are usually used. After cleaning, apply lubricant to all moving parts. nine0003
The bushing is assembled in reverse order. If the details are not lost, then everything will pass without any difficulty.
When installing the wheel in dropouts, you should pay attention to one important point: the axle with the hub must fit into them quite tightly. If there is a gap, spacer washers should be inserted. Otherwise, the feathers will tighten and bend when the wheel is fixed, which can lead to permanent stresses in the feathers and, in the end, to the destruction of the structure. nine0003
If the hub locknuts are not tightened enough, the rear axle will vibrate against the bearings during wheel rotation. As a result, cavities appear on the paths of the cones, and the balls are deformed. If the backlash is not eliminated in time, then chips form on the cones and the inner surface of the bushing. In especially neglected cases, the balls can even jump out of the tracks and start rotating inside the hub, grinding off the axle and destroying the hub, then you have to replace the entire assembly and re-spoke the wheel.
nine0003
To avoid play, the cones must be set correctly. To do this, gradually tighten the flare nut, trying to find a state in which the wheel rotates freely without beating. When the correct position is found, secure the cone with a locknut. When locking the cone, the axle often starts to rotate, and the correct position is lost, so you can clamp the right end of the axle in a vise.
This situation is the reverse of the previous situation: the flare nuts are too tight, which causes excessive friction in the hub, and the wheel rolls off. In this case, adjustment of the cones is also required, and all actions are similar to those described above. nine0003
Another common problem is the distortion of the axle or violation of its integrity, caused by poor-quality materials used in their manufacture, or the design features of the sleeve itself. Such failures are mainly characteristic of ratchet bushings, since their thrust bearings are too far from the axle attachment point in the dropouts of the frame stays.
As a result, there is too much leverage, and when the load increases, the axle becomes unusable. nine0003
Broken bicycle rear axle
Unfortunately, if the axle is broken or bent, you will have to put in a new one, as they cannot be repaired. The good news is that axles are inexpensive and easy to replace. Please note that manufacturers use different threads, and cones may vary in size and fullness. Therefore, when going to the store, it is better to take them with you so as not to make a mistake when buying a replacement and choose the product that fits your hub. nine0003
Noises, squeaks and crunches indicate that your hub needs to be serviced. And this should be done as soon as possible, otherwise everything can end very badly. First you need to disassemble the sleeve, change the lubricant and check the parts for defects. Damaged components must be replaced. If after all this the problem persists, then you should consult a specialist.
It is possible that it arose due to the poor quality of the sleeve itself, and a new one will have to be installed. nine0003
The rear hub of a bicycle is a very important and often underestimated element of a bicycle, and its axle is subjected to increased loads. Sand, dirt, microscopic debris and dust have abrasive properties that destroy metal. Mechanical rear wheel failures require expensive repairs or even replacement of the entire assembly, so timely and proper hub maintenance will significantly extend the life of your bike and help you avoid unnecessary expenses.
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