Bendix manual 2 speed rebuild

us56456712 · Mar 8, 2015

I rebuilt a Bendix manual 2 speed (cable operated and older than the more popular kickback models). Everything looked good when I disassembled it and put it in a parts washer and scrubbed it with a brass brush. The old grease had turned mostly solid. I found a site that has adjustment instructions and an exploded view. It seems like a simple hub but something seems wrong with it since the rebuild. It takes almost one back turn of the gear for the brake to catch. The gear side moves out when the gear is turned back to engage the brake and appears to stops when it hits the gear side dust cover. Perhaps the brake isn't even working right as I can still rotate the wheel, but it is stiffer than before the gear was turned back. It is not mounted on a bike, I have been fussing with it by hand to see if it looks right. The bearings do not get loose or tight when I do any of this. My Chinese and Japanese coaster brakes turn back about a quarter turn to engage and my Bendix Red Band a half turn. Is this normal for the 2 speed operation to turn back this much? If not, any ideas on where I messed up? The "How To" section of this forum has no info on this hub. I could find very little on it doing a net search. I have 2 of these hubs and one where some parts have been robed to complete the other two. I want to rebuild the other complete one but am reluctant until I figure this out. The brass brake shoes still had the manufactured groves so I don't think they are worn out. The inside of the hub is smooth. Thanks for any ideas.

us56456712 · Mar 9, 2015

I guess no one knows much about these hubs. I tried adjusting the axle and that seemed to help, some. It still has a big turn back to engage the brake, a little more than half a revolution. I think I am going to have to mount it on a bike and wait for a warm spell to melt off the street and dry it out. I don't want to get salt on it during the test ride. I am impatient, I want to rebuilt the other one and build up a wheel. Today I built a wheel using a used alloy rim, used spokes, used brass nipples and an old Bendix Red Band I have been saving for years. That gave me something to occupy my time but I really want to get the 2 speeds going, but I am not going to waste time on the second one if I can't get this one working. All bike repairs seem to fight me, old or new. Today I tried a stem riser on my road bike and it was too high so back to the drawing board on that project to.

Robertk · Apr 5, 2015

The mechanic at Memory Lane is knowledgeable. I had mine serviced for $45 recently. Nigh be worth a shot talking to him.

Wildcat · Apr 6, 2015

Here's the same diagram as you have probably.

Like you said, it looks fairly simple. For the braking to take a full turn means something isn't assembled just right or parts are well worn. If the brake pads look good, and there's no wear on the inside of the hub where the pads contact, I would try to reassemble it again. Where M-2, the drive gear, threads into the cone MS-3 and MS-6 I would be sure it's turned in to the cone as far as it can go. Or MS-16 bearing may not be seated just right or is backward.

I've rebuilt a lot of coasters, and sometimes everything doesn't mesh up exactly or part was reversed. Many times I've reassembled them and they work fine, but I never saw what what was wrong in the first place.

B607 · Apr 9, 2015

The adjustable cone that is on the axle in the above pic has a lead insert in it to keep it from moving. The cone has to be adjusted exactly right to get it to shift. I messed up one of these hubs by removing the cone. Gary

Monark52 · Jul 27, 2017

I know this is an old post but part of the problem is that it's not mounted on the bike. By hand, make sure the sprocket is turned all the way forward and then mount it in the bike as you normally would WITHOUT turning the sprocket backwards. The brakes should work fine now because the grooved part at the end of the axle is now tight against the rear dropout preventing it from turning.
Red and yellow band two speeds will do the same thing if not mounted in the bike.

us56456712 · Aug 23, 2017

I have now rebuilt 2 of these and my friend rebuilt his and they all have a big back pedal for breaking, which gets worse in low gear. Poor breaking power, hard to adjust and fragile. This may be why they didn't make it for very long. I had a lot of fun with one on one of my klunkers, even raced xc with it, but it finally blew out last summer. I am now running a shimano e110. Much better coaster hub, but I wish it was a 2 speed.