Sturmey Archer AW help needed!

[blink]

hey, i am working on this 1965 Raleigh Colt and the problem i am having with the hub is that when its freewheeling, the pedals want to move forward. there is drag.
any suggestions? on Sheldon's site it says to squirt light oil to clean it out good. i have done that a bit but it doesnt seem to be working so far.

thanks,
adam

 

[Wildcat]

A lot of the 3 speeds I've had needed a lot of light oil to free up all the old lube inside. Add a lot more oil and see if that loosens it up. Spin the wheel and shift gears while the bike is suspended, or upside down, to let the oil get into all the hub. Along with the oiling hole, oil the bearings on the sides. It might get messy, but cleanup will make the hub shine.

 

[deorman]

You can give it a serious hosing with some WD40 or PB Blaster while working it, then be sure to put some lubricating oil in it after it's working and has drained out some.

 

[greenephantom]

If lubing the hub doesn't work you can always loosen the cone adjustment slightly. The drive side cone is set up to only turn in quarter-turn increments, it has a special washer that locks it into place. The non-drive side cone is sometimes set up to turn quarter-turn, sometimes it's set up for fine adjustment. Try starting out with backing the non-drive side cone off just a fraction of a turn and see how it feels. (to back it off, first loosen the thin outer locknut, adjust the inner cone, tighten the locknut)

If you go too loose the wheel will rock back and forth, so check for play after adjustment.

Cheers, Geoff

 

[blink]

If lubing the hub doesn't work you can always loosen the cone adjustment slightly. The drive side cone is set up to only turn in quarter-turn increments, it has a special washer that locks it into place. The non-drive side cone is sometimes set up to turn quarter-turn, sometimes it's set up for fine adjustment. Try starting out with backing the non-drive side cone off just a fraction of a turn and see how it feels. (to back it off, first loosen the thin outer locknut, adjust the inner cone, tighten the locknut)

If you go too loose the wheel will rock back and forth, so check for play after adjustment.

Cheers, Geoff

Geoff,
i actually tried that and i just loosened it a little bit and also filled it with wd40 multiple times.
got it all working great now. glad i didnt have to take it apart.

thanks all!