Coaster brake pedals backwards a tiny bit???

[dpjpandone]

Hey guys,

I just changed my rear cog from an 18 tooth to a 22 tooth to help with the hills... I took the opportunity to grease everything up real good inside the hub, and I am pretty positive I reassembled everything correctly, but I am getting a behavior that I'm not familiar with. When the bike is upside down (pedaling by hand) I pedal forward to get the wheel spinning, then pedal backward to engage the brake. the wheel stops spinning, but after it comes to a complete stop, I can pedal the wheel backward just a tiny bit (just a few inches, maybe 1/8 to 1/16 of a revolution) after the wheel goes backwards a tiny bit, it stops again. This is really weird and I have never experienced this. I made sure that the band that secures the arm to the chainstay is secured nice and tight.... what is the deal with this? Is this normal for a single speed coaster brake hub that's just been packed with grease? Is this something I should worry about? Maybe it always did this but I just didn't notice before?

I really appreciate your advice in this matter
~Jon

 

[deorman]

May help to know what type hub.

 

[dpjpandone]

May help to know what type hub.

Falcon CF-e10 is stamped on the arm. It's a pretty standard cheapo hub that pacific uses on a lot of their cheap cruisers.

BTW I just checked my wife's bike and my daughters bike, and this is definitely not normal behavior. What the heck went wrong? Too much grease?

Sheldon Brown says "Coaster brakes are intended to be pretty much packed with grease. There is no part of a coaster brake that can be harmed by grease, so be generous in applying it."

I just took it for a ride and it functions perfectly in every other regard... ...?

 

[deorman]

All I can think of that might cause that is the possibility that the shoes are not symetrical end-to-end and one or both is/are installed backwards, or the cheap sheet metal doodad is out of place or "tweaked".

 

[deorman]

Shimano diagram not 100% identical, but the basic design is similar.
Notice #8 in the diagram, shoe ends are different. #9, what I refer to as a "doodad" is not labeled separately, but is visible inside the end of the clutch assembly. It's supposed to interface with #6

 

[clamdigger]

I agree with deorman, that the problem is in the clutch & clutch spring, & platform. Pull the spring all the way out of the clutch body. Greez it. And push it all the way in until you feel it has seated. Also see http://www.troubleshooters.com/bicycles/1speed/1speed_overhaul.htm

 

[dpjpandone]

You guys are awesome for responding so quickly, where else in the world can you get immediate support at 1:00 in the morning...... I really appreciate that!

I disassembled the entire hub again, cleaned each and every piece, re-greased, and reassembled. I followed the exploded diagram, and a youtube video to double check my work as I went.

Unfortunately the same behavior is there. It is the most peculiar thing... I have never seen a coaster brake do this before. I double checked the spring to make sure it wasn't binding or something silly, everything is exactly as it should be.

I've had enough for tonight. I'm quite frustrated with the darn thing. It's all put back together and I plan on riding it A LOT this weekend. really happy to have the bigger cog on there, this will make slow rides uphill with my daughter much easier, so I'm just going to enjoy my bike instead of striving for perfection like I normally do with projects. I plan on upgrading to a 3 spd hub soon anyways, so it seems like a waste to get all bent out of shape over this. I probably never would have noticed during normal riding anyways...

Thank you both again for your help with this. Let me know if anyone has a 3 spd hub or wheelset you want to get rid of!

 

[Wildcat]

I've had that happen with worn out hubs, trying to get a little more life out of them when I was a kid. The part (no 9 in the diagram) seemed to hang up on the driver after hitting the brakes. A 3 speed w coaster brake sounds good, or a 2 speed coaster.

 

[horsefarmer]

Ride it a bit and see how it goes. After I re lubed my New Departure CB, it had this annoying habit of the pedals continuing to turn (like a fixie) instead of coasting - not all the time but after like a six mile ride. Took it apart, put it back together again - still did it. After maybe 4 rides it just stopped doing it. It works fine now.

 

[dpjpandone]

Maybe my spring is a little weak, or maybe something got worn because I rode it for about a month and it wasn't lubed very well from the store. I procrastinated on lubing it myself because I knew I was going to change the cog and I wanted to do it all at the same time. Lesson learned, NEVER RIDE A DEPARTMENT STORE BIKE WITHOUT A COMPLETE TEARDOWN AND CLEAN/LUBE/ADJUST FIRST!

Thanks again for all the comments guys. I rode it today and aside for this little issue everything else is working great. I have a feeling it may improve over time like horsefarmer said.

I did read this today which seems to contradict what sheldown brown said the following quote is from: http://www.troubleshooters.com/bicycles/1speed/1speed_overhaul.htm


"My bicycle repair philosophy is usually "there's no such thing as too much grease". After all, I can always wipe off the excess after assembly.
This philosophy is NOT appropriate for coaster brakes. Because the brake pads ride so close to the hub wall, excessive grease between the clutch and brake pads could actually push the brakepads lightly into the hub, creating drag. Excessive grease between the brake pads and hub wall could also create drag, and could also decrease braking effectiveness."
so perhaps I have a little too much grease... I'm just going to ride it for a while and see how it goes. I'll update you guys if there are any changes, and let you know what my final solution turns out to be.

Thanks
~Jon

 

[horsefarmer]

I don't fill coaster brakes full of grease, just pack the bearings and coat the internals with a nice layer of grease. Only exception is the brake discs on New Departure - just oil them.

 

[Wildcat]

It didn't do that with the 18 tooth cog? If so, I'd redo it one more time with less grease.

 

[dpjpandone]

It didn't do that with the 18 tooth cog? If so, I'd redo it one more time with less grease.

I'm not sure if it did or not, I never noticed it before. It's one of those things you would probably never notice during normal riding, because once I come to a stop I put my foot on the road. I only noticed it after I took it apart and put it back together and was testing it upside down.. I might try one more time tonight when my kid goes to bed. Thanks for the encouragement!

 

[deorman]

Reflecting on this post, I recall a few decades ago (Get offa my lawn!!) having a knurled barrel shaped shimano hub that one day decided to grab and actually push the pedal forward like a fixed gear after braking. If I recall, the clutch cone/hub interface was getting stuck and I wasn't ever able to get it to work right, even with different guts. Obviously not the same issue (hopefully ), point is that something may just be plumb wore out.

 

[dpjpandone]

So last night I took it apart again, cleaned all the grease off of every single part. re-lubed (packed the bearings heavy, but just lightly coated the other surfaces) and reassembled. The problem is still there, but it doesn't bother me enough to investigate this any further. I thin you are right. Something is worn out. It pedals and stops perfectly so I don't mind. I'm just going to ride it till I upgrade to a 3 spd and enjoy it! I rode to the store to get my wife some chocolate this morning and someone said "that's a really nice bicycle" that always makes me feel good. As I rode away I thought to myself "This IS a really nice bicycle"

Thanks for the help guys. I hope you all get some nice weather for riding where you live!