Freewheel advice for kids pedal pals bike

[Prolific99]

My son was gifted his first bike - a pedal pals bike from Argos with a single gear. Recently the rear wheel has stopped engaging when the pedals rotate. I've narrowed the problem down to the freewheel but neither of the removal tools I own fit and I can't find one anywhere that would. As far I can tell the manufacturer is "hero" but a Google search only brings up some vintage ones that are on eBay. There are two notches on the freewheel and the distance between them in 40mm. All of the removal tools I've found with 2 notches are at least 10mm smaller than this. I can't afford to replace the bike at the moment so I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

[rjb]

If you have access to a bench vise, clamp up two upstands using scrap steel or even tool handles or whatever you have to hand 40mm apart. Place wheel over pins and turn like a capstan.
As it a child's bike the freewheel may not be super tight so may also come free if hit with a hammer and drift.
If it has 2 small indentations in the face you my also be able to unscrew the central cone ( left hand thread so clockwise) which will enable you to dismantle it leaving the body which you may be able to remove with a stilson.
If you intend reusing it be prepared to catch a million ball bearings, pawls and springs.
Flushing the freewheel with light oil would be my first port of call before trying to remove it in case you could recover normal operation.

Unfortunately I can't see your photo. Try again using the add attachments in the tab below.

[Jdsk]

[Eyebrox]

Take it to a bike shop. They'll have the tools and the knowhow. Ask for a quote. If it costs more than you have pay it up. If it's a kids' bike they'll give it a proper safety check. I work in an independent bike shop and half the jobs we do are on kids' bikes. Minor adjustments we do free. It's good customer service which goes down well with parents. The youngsters too have become regulars over the years.

[thirdcrank]

As a granddad of some years standing, I feel able to teach grandmas to suck eggs.

Do you know the difference between a cassette and a freewheel? If you do, please accept my apologies. If you don't, the tool you need will be some version of a two-notch freewheel remover as illustrated here.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=tw ... RE&first=1

Armed with that information, you may be able to improvise something. Some forum members seem to have a range of removers and if there's one based near you, they may be able to help.

Otherwise, the information already posted is all good. As I look at your pic, somebody appears to have tried to disassemble the freewheel in situ.

[rjb]

Just to reiterate the two notches to remove it are the ones at 1 and 7 o'clock in your photo. The 2 pinholes at 11 and 5 oclock are for removing the central cone of the freewheel, (Left hand thread).

[slowster]

Photographs can be deceptive, but to my eye that looks much less than 40mm. Assuming the nut is the standard 15mm size for a rear hub, the outside diameter measurement of the notches looks more like 30mm, which appears to be what BMX freewheel tools are mostly designed for, e.g. https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/tools/iceto ... heel-tool/.

SJS sell various other two prong freewheel removers, including this one with an OD of 40mm - https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/tools/var-r ... eed-moped/, but I suspect the internal diameter of the VAR tool might be too large and cause problems.

[thirdcrank]

This isn't one of those tools which will be used repeatedly. I posted the pics as part of my explanation of removal. Otherwise, if the suggestions of oiling it or improvisation don't work, then IMO it's the decent local bike shop route. They'll have it off in seconds.

[Mike Sales]

If oil does not solve the problem I would knock off the faceplate as rjb suggests. A vice will hold the inner part and make removal easy. I would guess that a replacement single freewheel would cost less than a removal tool.

[Carlton green]

I’d lay the bike on its side and squirt WD40 into the gap between the rotating and fixed parts. There’s no guarantee of a cure but it’s cheap to do and freewheels locking up for want of oil is far from unheard of. It worked once and might well work again.

[rjb]

You may even find the internals only have a few balls.

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