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I swapped the grease in an old Shimano freehub and it started clicking like a new one
I had this 90s mountain bike come in with a freehub that was totally silent, just a dull whir when you coasted. The customer wanted it cleaned up, so I pulled the freehub body off, expecting to find the usual gritty mess. Instead, the old grease inside was just super thick and gummy, like cold honey. I cleaned everything with citrus degreaser, which took about 20 minutes of soaking and brushing, and packed it with a light coat of Phil Wood Tenacious Oil instead of my usual heavy grease. When I put the wheel back on and gave it a spin, it started making this loud, positive click with every pawl engagement, a sound I haven't heard from a hub that old in years. I guess the thick old grease was actually damping the pawl springs so much they couldn't snap back with any force. It taught me that sometimes the 'right' grease for the job isn't the thickest one, even for an old part. Has anyone else had a freehub get louder after a service, or is that usually a sign I did something wrong?
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black.amy1mo ago
Yeah, @palmer.zara is right about the grease.
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