Need some advice on a sluggish, hard peddling schwinn

[Frankthetank]

My typhoon is pretty hard to peddle. I'll ride it around the block and it will have me tired out. I understand it's an old, steel single speed bike but I highly doubt that's the way it was meant to be. When I was redoing the bike, I took apart the rear hub and couldn't figure out how to put it back so I took it to a shop and had it fixed properly. Unfortunatley that didn't fix the problem. I re greased the crank bearings with car axle grease and nothing it's the same, sluggish. Any ideas?

 

[Wildcat]

A few ideas:

1st, Flip it over and have it rest on the handlebars ands seat. Spin the wheels to check their bearings. They shouldn't be wobbly and should spin freely. The front should spin for a few minutes, while the rear should last a minute or so. Adjust the cones until they have a little play, then tighten them a tiny bit at a time until the play is out and they spin freely. A tiny bit of play in the bearings is acceptable, a very little bit. Make sure they have lube to begin with. Align the wheels in the frame/forks right down the middle and recheck the rolling after tightening them down. I usually wind up going through the whole process a couple times to get them just right.

2nd, check the crank bearings the same way, rotate them back and forth, they should move easily and without any play in the bearings. They are notorious for having a lot of play when worn. Grease them also, and adjust the cone so there is almost no play.

3rd, adjust the chain tension so it doesn't bind, about an inch and a half of play up and down is ok, then turn the cranks and watch how the chain travels. See if it tightens up in spots or has any problems.

If all that is good, and the bike rolls great, maybe it's the gear ratio. It should have come new with a 19 tooth rear sprocket with a 46 tooth drive sprocket. If you need it easier to pedal, a 20 tooth on the rear and/or a 44 tooth drive sprocket may solve the problem.

 

[Frankthetank]

Thanks wildcat. I never thought to change out the crank bearings. I'm pretty sure it's the original set. Good advice, Thanks again.

 

[B607]

Check the pressure of your tires. If you're a full grown guy :wink: pump them up as much as they'll hold to lessen the rolling resistance. Low tire pressure can wear you out quicker than anything. If you want real easy pedalling, get some high pressure balloon tires like Bontrager Hanks. Your bike will roll like it's a lightweight road bike. Gary

 

[Meeba]

Be careful not to over inflate too much, or at 3:30 in the morning you will hear 2 loud bangs coming from the basement that shake your floor, and you go down to see what it was and do not realize till a few days later when you go for a ride what happened.

 

[user 135]

Be careful not to over inflate too much, or at 3:30 in the morning you will hear 2 loud bangs coming from the basement that shake your floor, and you go down to see what it was and do not realize till a few days later when you go for a ride what happened.

A coworkers' bike did that in my office......Sounded like a gunshot then I was looking for the Alien........turned out to be Slime and not green blood.