Rear wheel is not rotating very freely

daniel_b

Hi guys,

not my commuter, but I have just bought a Frog 52 bike (20" wheels) for my little girl as a Christmas present, and whilst she currently rides an Isla bike, it will be too small for her buy then, or spring at latest, so she will be using this to get to school - either with me or my gf alongside here, or towing her.

Anyway, I got what I thought was a fairly good deal on said bike, but afterwards noticed that the rear wheel does not freewheel for very long - A new wheel and freehub is obviously going to make it not a bargain, so what should I be trying to do - take the wheel apart and replace the bearings?

Just to add, I have checked the obvious, such as the brake pads are not rubbing, and that the tyre\wheel is in true, and not rubbing the frame at all.

I've done pretty much every other area of a bike, aside from hydraulic disc brake bleeding, but this is one aspect I have never really delved into, at least not with any confidence.

Any advice, or guides, greatly appreciated.

As an aside, I only picked it up on Friday, and he gave me his card (Local business owner) and said to contact him if I had any issues, so if the collective think it will be too costly\troublesome, I could likely return it for the £125 I paid - they are £300 new, but I could get one new for £270.

Thanks

cougie

Is there resistance when you pedal ? If not I don't think it's noticeable for the rider.

slowbike

If it's a christmas pressie then you've got plenty of time to strip the rear wheel hub & bearings - it's probably just dry or got crud or both in ... a good clean always makes it better .... except when you forget how to put it back together or mislay a part ...

daniel_b

cougie wrote:

Is there resistance when you pedal ? If not I don't think it's noticeable for the rider.

Tbh I'm not sure, don't fancy having a go t riding it myself, though I suppose I could and probably should do, and she is currently too small to ride it, and it's a surprise of course.

Slowbike wrote:

If it's a christmas pressie then you've got plenty of time to strip the rear wheel hub & bearings - it's probably just dry or got crud or both in ... a good clean always makes it better .... except when you forget how to put it back together or mislay a part ...

This is true, I had better get looking at guides on how to do exactly that - my worry is not so much losing bits, but putting it back together incorrectly, and making it worse.
I'm guessing I could either replace the bearings completely, or just take them out, clean it all out, re grease, and return them to the, umm location.

fenix

Just picking the back wheel up and pedalling by hand should tell you if there's much wrong with it. I'd not expect a kids bike to freewheel as long as a bigger wheel.

keef66

Unless you have a natural talent for cackhanded spannering, it should be a fairly simple job to inspect the bearings and see if they need replacing (cartridge types) or cleaning, greasing and adjusting (cup and cone)

But TBH I wouldn't bother unless you can actually feel resistance when you turn the pedals. Wheels don't spin like they do on a bigger wheeled bike

daniel_b

Cheers chaps, will do some more investigating at the weekend, made more awkward as it all has to be surreptitious!

slowbike

Daniel B wrote:

cougie wrote:

Is there resistance when you pedal ? If not I don't think it's noticeable for the rider.

Tbh I'm not sure, don't fancy having a go t riding it myself, though I suppose I could and probably should do, and she is currently too small to ride it, and it's a surprise of course.

I ride an Isla Bienn 20 ... when riding with little slowbike - the bike is plenty strong enough - not sure I'd notice a partially siezed wheel though.