Unanswered Cassette and hub fell off!

[DaiGaled]

Hi guys, Whilst taking my back wheel off my 2018 levo to inspect a creaking noise (that I was getting under load), my cassette and freehub fell off completely. One of the pawls has come off too. Is this a job I could attempt myself (with the right tools) or do I need to get an expert repair? Thanks in advance

 

[Simon_t]

There is nothing to hold it on. I also noticed this (and it was a bit of a pain) whilst changing out a rear tyre.
If you can find the pawl, just wind the cassette and freehub back in whilst turning it in a direction that makes the pawls lie flat (you may have to hold the pawls down with your fingers until the are inside the freehub outer).

Simon

 

[DaiGaled]

There is nothing to hold it on. I also noticed this (and it was a bit of a pain) whilst changing out a rear tyre.
If you can find the pawl, just wind the cassette and freehub back in whilst turning it in a direction that makes the pawls lie flat (you may have to hold the pawls down with your fingers until the are inside the freehub outer).

Simon

Thanks for the reply. I’ll try and find the little blighter and give that a go.

 

[friartuckshop]

damn it shouldnt just fall off, must be something else going on there

 

[DaiGaled]

damn it shouldnt just fall off, must be something else going on there

That’s what I thought (even with my limited knowledge)!

 

[steve_sordy]

That is a serious failure!

It happened to me on an 11-week old Whyte T130 C RS. I took similar pictures and could not see what was holding it on, or even what was transmitting the drive to the wheel except friction. I rang up the workshop of the LBS (Rutland Cycles) and spoke to the technician there. He too was puzzled and I texted him the pics.

I checked the dropout alignment (spot on). Checked the Maxle diameter, (fine, not tapered). Checked whether the cassette was properly secured (yes).

Eventually he told me that the hub axle had sheared and the sheared faces had been polished by rubbing together so that they looked like machined surfaces.

The bike went back and when I collected it I was told that the alloy hub axle had been replaced by a steel one. They had a complete steel hub axle available because it was fitted to the cheaper models.

This was the full program of work, so make sure that yours gets similar treatment.
The complete freehub was replaced and all bearings, seals, pawls springs etc. The hub axle is now steel (painted black). The Maxle was also replaced and was reset to give the correct clamping force. That took less than a week, including ordering parts and waiting for delivery.

Poor show by Whyte, but great service from Rutland Cycles. I have had no further problems with the back end of the bike.

 

[Kernow]

It needs taking apart slowly and tracing what’s iether broken or come undone . I would say the piece you can see in the middle of the cassette should thread onto the end of the axle to keep the freehub in place .simits iether come undone or the axle has broken
Bearing failure in some freehubs can cause this to happen , hope and Whyte as mentioned above are 2 freehubs hubs I’ve seen it happen to

 

[Yroc]

I bought a 2017 levo used, and this is how the hub has always been, I didn't even question if it were normal or not. It's been fine for the couple hundred miles that have been put on it. I just figured that the axle just pulled everything together (which is does) and that was how it was supposed to work.

Does it really need to be fixed? The pawels that drive the axle are connected to the cassette, so I understand how it still works and drives fine. Only issue would be alignment and rigidity, which could cause the pawels to drive at an angle, but again, the axle should hold all this correctly when tightened.

....I did have a pawel fail in this hub (this is how I discovered that cassette just falls off), so this could be an indicator that things are not straight and may cause further pawel failure or hub damage, either way, I guess the hub is garbage, so I'll just use it till it fails again....

 

[Rusty]

I am not familiar with that particular hub but a few years back purchased a spare wheelset for one of my bikes and when changing wheels one day had the cassette slide off. Took me a long time to figure out that there was a wire ring missing. Did not really do anything but stop the freewheel body from sliding off. When installed on the bike it wasn't an issue but I did make a ring to replace the missing one.
With many brands the freewheel body is held on by a locking nut. If you google "specialized rear hub exploded view" you should get a better idea.

 

[outerlimits]

Your hub axle has snapped
I done the same to my 2018 Levo and it was replaced under warranty a few months ago.
The Roval wheels have a lifetime warranty, including the hubs.