David Marshall

You can knock it out either way. I use a plastic mallet or a hammer with a piece of wood. The axle is not attached to the freehub. I'll see if I have a loose one and I will post a picture.

If I am not mistaken that hub has sealed bearings on the ends and the freehub has internal pawls and is bolted to the hub. The large allen key shape in the axle is to hold the axle to let you undo the opposite end cap. You then have to knock the axle together with one bearing out and then remove the second bearing. The freehub can then be removed with the 12mm allan key (from the non drive side). Some hubs use 11mm from the drive side It is not worth removing the freehub unless you are going to replace it. It is difficult to get any lube in and they are "tight" from all the power pedalling that you do. Hold the axle while it is still in and spin the wheel in reverse to the normal direction. You will be able to feel the condition of the axle bearings. Spinning in the normal direction while holding the freehub will allow you to feel the freehub bearings.

Bit late to the party but here is my 2c. That is a 9 speed so any 9 speed crank with a English threaded bb will fit. You could even get away with an 8 or 10 speed crank. If you buy new the current 9 speed would be a Sora. Number one prize is an outboard bearing Shimano bb with a crank having a 24 mm axle. Cheapest (if new) would be a square taper bb with something like a Suntour square taper crank. Note the bbs come in a few axle lengths so you would need the right one. Steer clear of the splined type bbs (Octolink, ISIS drive etc) as they have specific lengths for different frame/crank combinations and as mentioned are scarce and expensive.

Wrong thread, shouldn't this be in "Dopers Suck"?

Try the threaded part of an old spoke. The hose is (usually) 2.1 mm and a 2mm spoke thread diameter is 2.3mm.

I just use whatever the kids break. I suppose the thicker the better as long as it fits freely into the grove. No tricks. As simple as in the pics.

Old steel guitar or piano string wrapped tightly around a bolt and then cut to size. Finding a pawl spring for most hubs is hell.

A good clean and lube if nothing visibly wrong with the pawls.

52/36 will work with a 28/11. Your rear derailleur would need to be medium cage to go bigger than 28. With the compact 50T you will change chain rings sooner than with a larger ring. Plus side is that your cassette will last longer. On the crank arm it will fit. Make sure the length is right.

I have pins and quick links. Kyalami area. Dave

Hand built with enough double butted spokes. We used to be able to get 36 hole parts and build up with 4 crosses for the big guys. Now unfortunately you have to special import these components.

These 11 speed FDs are a bit tricky to adjust. The newer 8000 series is more accommodating. Few, if any, bikes come into my workshop with both the high and low trims functioning properly. The Shimano dealers manual covers the set up (all 18 pages) so I will assume that yours is correctly mounted and just give you the hack here. The secret is in the cable tension which has to be tight - and I mean tight! This is hard to get right with the stupid 4mm cable pinch bolt and a short cable end so with the shifter in the lowest position place a 5mm hex key into the derailleur as in the picture. This allows you to attach the cable without excessive tension or stripping the bolt head and crunching the cable. Check that the derailleur moves in both the upper and lower trim positions and you are away.

Both those brake options will fit your budget and are reliable. You should be able to order through a bike shop. Servicing on any hydraulic brakes these days is limited to pad changing and bleeding - anything more than that involves replacing the unit.

11mm allen key - hens teeth! However 7/16 freely available.

You can get a cassette that will fit (as opposed to a screw on cluster that obviously won't). Sunrace ones are available.

That brand of disc is as good as any of the other cheap brands. They work well but don't last as long as some of the more expensive ones. The failure point on that disc is below the normal braking surface so as mentioned it's more likely to be a fitment issue that the material one. I have seen a disc shear in the middle of the braking surface before and have a collection of "near misses" that I keep for illustrative purposes. Use a caliper rather than a vernier to measure rotor thickness as the wear tends to be uneven and measure in a number of places.

From the one picture it looks like the BB could be square tapered. In any event whatever is in there needs to come out before you buy or fit a new one because the axle length needs to be measured. If the chainrings are shot you may as well buy a new crank and square tapered BB because it will be cheaper than a BB/chainring purchase. I would rather go square taper than ISIS/Octolink simply due to price and availability.

Don't waste your time. Build a wheel you can be proud of.

Yes. Look no further 😉

Be sure to measure the depth of the cup seat in the head tube as well as the diameter. Most are 9mm and the 44mm cups are usually 13mm deep so some reaming of the tube may be necessary. If you go this route I have a new headset (Token) if you are interested. I will have to dig it out to check the dimensions.

I was able to swap my DA 53/39 for an Ultegra 50/34. I don't think there were many 10 speed DA compacts around. If you buy a crank - new or second hand - get one that takes the new blades. 5 bolt chain rings are not that freely available and supply will only get worse.

I know that pub. Had the same carpet when I was over there in 1981.

If the thread is beyond recutting you can get threadless "repair BB's". I have used the Velo-orange one, which is great as the bearings are sealed and replaceable. Not sure if you can get anything other than square taper 'though.

Also check that the shock mounting hardware is all there and correctly installed.