Wild Stuck Powertube

[Gyre]

Well, looks like the “stuck powertube” issue is now plaguing me. The battery was difficult to install last time and now when I turn the key instead of dropping freely into the latch, it only drops a few millimeters before holding fast.

A little digging shows this is not a rare problem but proven remedies seem hard to come by. Has anyone figured out how to extract a stuck battery without going to destructive means?

 

[Cb750stu]

I've had a few issues with battery fitment , when I first got the bike fitted perfect no issues with install or removing battery , after a few rides the battery would go in but the cover was a horrible fit ,
Emailed shop I purchased bike from they suggested pushing cables that run down the downtube down towards center of downtube which does work with the cover fitment,

My battery goes in no problem but when removing it I do have to push down on the actual battery latch and pull the battery out it's a tight fitment, I do get full rotation with the key but the battery only drop's enough to get the tips of my fingers to activate the battery mechanism , I have had to get a screwdriver with electrical tape on the end to save scratching/damaging anything to kinda lever it out which did work but really shouldn't be having to do that ,

Will the battery move in the way at all ?? Maybe push on the battery and try the key ??
Regards

 

[Gyre]

Will the battery move in the way at all ?? Maybe push on the battery and try the key ??
Regards

It drops down maybe a little over 5mm and then stops. I can’t see if some part of the latch is still engaged, though I can feel the main part of the latch retracting.

The key is almost scraping the edge of the keyhole. I don’t remember it being quite that off-center before but I don’t know if that’s a causal factor or if my frustration is messing with me.

 

[Pigin]

I don’t understand why it has to be such a tight fit. I have noticed that of occasions after a ride the key barrel has jiggled round a bit and despite thinking the key was all the way in it wasn’t.

Have you fully removed the battery cover? Try pushing the bottom of the battery in as you try to unlock it.

 

[Mteam]

On the battery itself there is a secondary latch that you press to release the battery fully once you have released it from the key operated latch.

It's a little plastic latch that you press in towards the battery with your finger.

 

[Gyre]

On the battery itself there is a secondary latch that you press to release the battery fully once you have released it from the key operated latch.

It's a little plastic latch that you press in towards the battery with your finger.

If I'm understanding you right, that wasn't the issue. Normally when I turn the key the battery freely drops into the secondary latch, and then I use my finger to release the latch once I have a good hold on the battery. Something was creating a lot of friction and preventing the battery from dropping into that second latch.

I did get it out now. I riffed off of @Cb750stu 's method to emergency release it by using a plastic tire lever between the battery and lockwork to pull it down. That worked with minimum fuss.

I have a bunch of cotton swabs meant for cleaning mechanical things that I use to deal with cleaning and lubing sticky brake pistons. I dripped some Tri-Flow (PTFE) on the swabs and lightly lubed the battery side catches and lockwork catches. Since I had recently run a new brake line behind the plastic battery compartment shroud, I tucked the hoses and cables up behind the shroud as far as I could just in case they were somehow pushing the shroud into the battery and causing friction.

I don't know if this friction was coming from the shroud or from the lockwork, but the good news is that I tried several times and now the battery seems to be working very freely again in both directions. I'll just need to keep an eye on the shroud in the future and check to make sure the lock interface points are clean and lubed just enough to work freely. Hopefully this will be of service to someone else in the future.

Thanks for all the replies everyone.

 

[Mteam]

If I'm understanding you right, that wasn't the issue. Normally when I turn the key the battery freely drops into the secondary latch, and then I use my finger to release the latch once I have a good hold on the battery. Something was creating a lot of friction and preventing the battery from dropping into that second latch.

I did get it out now. I riffed off of @Cb750stu 's method to emergency release it by using a plastic tire lever between the battery and lockwork to pull it down. That worked with minimum fuss.

I have a bunch of cotton swabs meant for cleaning mechanical things that I use to deal with cleaning and lubing sticky brake pistons. I dripped some Tri-Flow (PTFE) on the swabs and lightly lubed the battery side catches and lockwork catches. Since I had recently run a new brake line behind the plastic battery compartment shroud, I tucked the hoses and cables up behind the shroud as far as I could just in case they were somehow pushing the shroud into the battery and causing friction.

I don't know if this friction was coming from the shroud or from the lockwork, but the good news is that I tried several times and now the battery seems to be working very freely again in both directions. I'll just need to keep an eye on the shroud in the future and check to make sure the lock interface points are clean and lubed just enough to work freely. Hopefully this will be of service to someone else in the future.

Thanks for all the replies everyone.

Yeah I did mean that secondary latch, good you got it out in the end.

They can get a bit sticky, but usually a bit of wiggling and bumping will free it.

The next thing to seize up is the lock barrel, mine is incredibly sticky, and requires the key to be pushed inwards towards the lock whilst simultaneously turning the key.

 

[Funkeydunk]

This is a bit of an old thread, but as I have an Orb Wild team, and the battery is stuck, I’ve taken it to the LBS, who in turn first tried to fob me off with ” yeah some of them stick but it’s fine”, after I asserted my customer rights, the mechanic still can’t fix it, they can get it out but when the pop it back it gets stuck again. They’re now holding onto the bike to contact Orbea.

anyone had this issue fixed under warrant?

 

[jordang98]

I had this happen to me on my Wild H10 and it was a nightmare. I tried pulling (nearly breaking all my fingernails), wiggling the battery and putting gt85 in lock barrel etc and none of that worked for me.

How I resolved it - for me I got a flat headed screwdriver and wrapped a bit of electrical tape round it to stop any scratching. Once the battery has dropped as much as it can I pressed down on the tab with the screwdriver while leavering up against the top of the battery and then BOOM it popped out

(go easy when doing this to not break anything)

I hope this helps someone that got as frustrated as I did!

 

[Riptide88]

Just had this exact problem on my wild. I took it to the dealer and he got it out for me and now its all good for now....

 

[jordang98]

Just had this exact problem on my wild. I took it to the dealer and he got it out for me and now its all good for now....

How did they resolve it? Does it now work fine when you turn the key? I put mine back in and it’s still not dropping properly on your lock do you feel tension the whole way round turning the key? Mine only engages the lock when I turn it about 180degs (I don’t know what is normal as I bought it pre-owned) thinking it could need a new locking barrel

 

[Riptide88]

Sorry but the tech took it to the back and fixed it so im not sure what he did but yeah shes all good now. Ill try mine this weekend to see how the lock tension feels. If i remember right though it didn't feel like there was tension the whole way, it was near the end of the turn that it the tension kicked in. Ill confirm though.

 

[jordang98]

That’s great

Sorry but the tech took it to the back and fixed it so im not sure what he did but yeah shes all good now. Ill try mine this weekend to see how the lock tension feels. If i remember right though it didn't feel like there was tension the whole way, it was near the end of the turn that it the tension kicked in. Ill confirm though.

,

Sorry but the tech took it to the back and fixed it so im not sure what he did but yeah shes all good now. Ill try mine this weekend to see how the lock tension feels. If i remember right though it didn't feel like there was tension the whole way, it was near the end of the turn that it the tension kicked in. Ill confirm though.

That’s great, thank you!