Going home I had this problem

businessdit

Hi all,

I recently have started commuting to work by bike and its the best thing I have ever done! I am doing about 20 km per day now.

Going home I had this problem though: Everything was fine whilst I was riding and pedalling the bike, but whenever I was moving and stopped pedalling to rest or rotated the pedals counter clockwise whilst moving forward my chain went slack and gets tangled up.

I have the bike now in my kitchen upside down and the problem is still there...

Does this sound like I need a new chain?
Anyone have a similar problem/ advice?

Thank in advance!!

tomasrojo

Maybe your freewheel/freehub is seized up? The freewheel allows the rear wheel to move independently of the chain and sprockets so you don't need to pedal all the time.

It's not the chain anyway, as far as I can tell from what you've said.

petethedrummer

Yeah, it has happened to me when the freehub on my aksiums needed a clean and grease.

PurpleBee

could also be that the rear derailleur has been damaged. I have exactly the same problem, can't pedal backwards without it sticking because the drivetrain is no longer true

leeroybrown

As pointed about above it most likely sounds like your freehub is sticking. Some WD-40 might loosen it up temporarily but you'll probably need to clean and grease it properly if it's bad. Most people won't have the tools to do the full cleaning job directly to hand.

businessdit

Hi Thanks to all for the replies -

I put some newspaper down underneath the bike and spun the wheels whilst spraying some wd-40 in around the free wheel area and after doing that for about 30 seconds that's after solving the issue for now.

Happy to go to bed knowing I can have a safe and enjoyable cycle in the morning now!!

Much appreciated!

cdaly_

You'll need to oil the freewheel after this as the WD40 will strip out oil. Lay the bike down with the freewheel up. Spin the wheel by hand and dribble 3 in 1 oil or similar into the freewheel.

doozerie

Something else to beware of is that the WD40 might have gotten inside the hub if you were not careful about avoiding that and if so it may have dislodged grease on the hub bearings. Check it every couple of days for signs of roughness (you'll feel it if you take the wheel out of the frame, hold the ends of the axle in each hand, and spin the wheel - you might even hear it, if all of the grease has gone), and if you detect any roughness you'll have to regrease the hub and probably replace the bearings in the process. It's not a particularly difficult job, it's just fiddly and requires some specific tools which you may or may not have to hand.

Also, freehubs/freewheels wear out and although yours might be fine following your "cleaning out" and re-oiling of it, be cautious with it. Sometimes they fail by locking up, in which case you won't be able to freewheel and this can be a shock/dangerous if it occurs while cycling, sometimes they fail by freewheeling in both directions, which can be dangerous if you are putting pressure on the pedals at the time, sometimes they fail in a more innocuous way. A lightly used freehub/freewheel can often be sorted out with a regular clean and re-lubing, but if it has been very well used then the best bet is to replace it.