DIY repair of Soviet bicycles

It may very well be that you have an old Soviet bicycle lying around on the mezzanine (in the closet, in the garage, in the country house, ...). It may also be that right now you are diligently paying interest on a loan for a new yacht and there is no excess cash left for a new bike. Or you are purely aesthetically pleasing to look at the bicycles of that era. In this case, you have an amazing opportunity to bring your old bicycle back to life and show off the streets of your hometown, the fields and villages of your home country on a unique machine!

As a rule, they are engaged in the revival of old bicycles of the HVZ (Kharkov Velo Plant) production: Sport-Highway, Start-Highway and Champion-Highway, Sputnik, Tourist, Champion, Starton. The revival and modernization of other bicycles or bicycles made in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine during the perestroika times is also possible, but it is of less interest due to the poorer quality of the “source material”. However, the only limitation is your desire.

First of all, since the bicycle has survived to this day since its release, for example, in the 60s of the 20th century, this already speaks of its durability. Modern bicycles with aluminum parts are lighter but also wear out significantly faster than their steel predecessors.

Further, the degree of modernization required depends on the condition of the particular bike and your desire to modernize it. The better the initial state, the less you need to change. In most cases, the wheels are completely changed - the technology does not stand still, and the rim is very susceptible to wear, hardly preserved in good condition. The greatest difficulties are caused by the carriage and shifters.

A correctly assembled carriage and connecting rods on the wedges do not loosen up, do not play, no matter what those who did not really use them say on the forums. Straight arms decide everything. But the carriage is one of the most worn out units, so it makes sense to replace it with a modern cartridge one. This is where the difficulty arises - the fact is that at different times different manufacturers made carriages of different diameters with different types of threads. It is not at all a fact that a modern cartridge can be installed without additional effort. It is often necessary to cut the thread with a special tap. Sometimes special adapters are made from a larger diameter to a smaller one.

Difficulties with shifters are as follows. These are sports bicycles or those close to them with a curved "ram" road handlebar. Mountain brake levers and shifters available in almost every store are not suitable. The most convenient way to use the combined road monoblocks is shifter + brake lever. But they are expensive, and usually they seek to update the bike with minimal investment. In addition, bicycles of those times were supplied with 3-5 stars, and now less than 7 is difficult to find. Hence the need to either unbend the frame, or select shifters for working with a ratchet for 5-6 stars, or come up with original combinations of popular components for mountain workers.

Sometimes, in addition to the frame, they weld on the couplings for attaching V-break brakes, bottle holders, mounts for additional switch cables. This is already a matter of taste / needs. For example, vibrake brakes are easier to find than suitable U-shaped tick brakes if family members have fallen into disrepair. If there is an opportunity and does not care too much about the appearance, then it is easier to weld the mounts than to look for cantilever brakes with long “legs” (the distance from the mount to the rim is more than 5 cm.).

The result of the neat upgrade looks very attractive (the grace of the thin steel frame and narrow wheels) and rolls better on the pavement than the MTB. Of course, the bike is not for competition - sports and extreme loads require a completely different technique. As a rule, such bicycles after recovery are closest to the class of tourist (touring, "touring") or road bikes for training (weight from about 11kg). However, variants of a city bike with a high seating position and a straight handlebar are also not uncommon.

These upgraded bicycles are often referred to as “crocodiles”. Why it is so difficult to say. Maybe the name came from the fact that HVZ bicycles, popular for modernization, were originally green. Or the first ones restored were so scary. A very plausible version is that this is how FIDO called any old-school bike modified by the owner to something unique (now it would be called a custom bike), later the name spread to all modernized bicycles.

It may seem that the restoration of old bicycles is exclusively domestic entertainment. Still, HVZ. but as you saw in a couple of links above, English-speaking countries are also busy reanimating old bikes and customizing.

In conclusion, a few examples of "crocodiles" describing the process of their modernization.

A very detailed description of the retrofit process for this bike from a professional workshop:

Description of the modernization and its discussion on the forum.

Discussion: there is also a link to large photographs of individual nodes.

Description and discussion on the forum:

Modernization towards a hybrid

Another all-terrain vehicle.

At first glance, it may seem that the rear and front hubs of a bicycle have a complex structure, and it is not an easy task to repair and service them yourself at home. But it is not so. Of course there are some design differences, but most of them are the same. Therefore, in this article we will touch upon such topics as: types and arrangement of bicycle wheel hubs, their disassembly / assembly, repair and maintenance, and also consider what, how and with what frequency they should be lubricated. We will try to present the material as briefly as possible in the form of detailed instructions, and in some moments we will add a video for clarity of disassembling the sleeve.

At the moment, there are several types of bicycle wheel hubs on the bicycle parts market: with free wheeling, without free wheeling (used on fix bikes), as well as with a built-in foot brake, with a built-in dynamo machine, and the so-called planetary bushes. There are two types of bearings that can be used in freewheel designs: cone-cup type (mainly from Shimano) and industrial bearings. Since free-wheeling hubs with integral brakes are the most popular, we will discuss their design below.

This type of bushing is one of the most common in comparison to the rest and is often used on road, mountain, road and other types of iron horses. It can be used on both the most budgetary bikes and professional bikes. An adherent of this design is Shimano, which produces exclusively bushings with loose bearings (well, planetary bushings). According to them, the cone has an advantage over the bushing on industrial bearings, namely, the best roll. It is difficult to say whether it is true or not, but this is not the purpose of this article. Next, consider the design of a typical tapered bushing.

As we can see, a bushing with cup-cone type bearings consists of: body, axle, cups, balls, anthers, flare nuts, washers, anthers, locknuts (and a drum if we consider the rear bushing).

The design of this type of bush is very similar to the previous one, except for the use of industrial bearings instead of loose balls. Because of this, it lacks components such as balls and flare nuts, and the bearing is a one-piece design. The advantages include the ease of assembly and disassembly, as well as the uselessness of adjusting the tightening of the cones. This type of hub can also be used on almost all types of bicycles.

This type of hub is mainly used on single-speed city bikes. Its main feature is the brake, which is installed inside its body and is activated by the movement of the pedals backward. Due to this, it is slightly larger and heavier than its competitors. Below we will give a picture with the design of this sleeve.

Bicycle planetary hubs are very similar to a small gearbox from a car and have a complex design and dense arrangement of parts. Inside this structure, there are many gears, with the help of which gears are shifted. Difficult to repair and maintain. Can often be used on city folding bicycles.

Bushings with a dynamo inside the body are, roughly speaking, a small generator from which you can power various electrical appliances on a bicycle. For example, it can be lighting lanterns. Basically, the dynamo is located inside the front hub of a city or road bike.

Before proceeding to disassembly, let's decide when to service the bicycle hubs. First of all, it should be noted that the service is periodic and forced.

It implies preventive measures for cleaning and lubricating all the hub assemblies of the bicycle in order to avoid their failure, thereby reducing the cost of purchasing new parts and problems with repairs. Many bicycle masters recommend replacing the bushing bearing grease every 5000 km, but as practice shows, a lot depends on the road surface on which you ride and the quality of the bushing itself (the anther design itself). Therefore, the need for maintenance may arise earlier.

If, while riding or checking the rotation of a bicycle wheel, you find backlash, extraneous noise and crackling inside the hub, or there is a difficult rotation of the wheel, then this may indicate several possible reasons:

• Incorrect tightening of the tapers (in the case of a taper-cup bearing).
• Lack of grease or heavy contamination.
• Failure of cups, balls or bushing cone (in the case of a cone-cup bearing).
• Failure of industrial bearings (in the case of a slip on a slip).

In this case, the wheel should be repaired and serviced as soon as possible. And what needs to be done for this we will consider below.

We will disassemble and replace the grease using the example of a sleeve with cone-cup bearings.

ATTENTION: When disassembling, clearly note the sequence for removing the bushing components and how they are installed. Also, parts on the left side cannot be installed on the right side and vice versa. The latter is because the balls, cups and cones rub against each other and will not fit well if you move them to the other side.

First, let's disassemble / assemble the front hub of the bike.

1. Remove the wheel from the bike, remove the eccentric from the hub axle and unscrew the disc brake rotor (if it is naturally present). This is to prevent grease from getting on the brake rotor and to simplify the disassembly procedure.
2. Remove the anthers on the right and left sides. To do this, carefully pry them with a minus screwdriver.

Next, we'll look at how to disassemble and lubricate the rear hub of a bicycle wheel.In principle, there is not much difference from the method for disassembling the front one (so you can read it first, there are moments that we did not repeat in the description for the back one), except for a few minor differences.

1. We remove the wheel, eccentric and dismantle the disc brake rotor (if any).
2. Remove the boot on the left side of the rear bushing with a screwdriver. There is no outer boot on the right side (where the cassette is).

If for any reason you need to remove the cassette, then this can be done literally immediately using a special tool.

Any heavy type of automotive bearing grease can be used to lubricate the bearings in the front and rear bushings of a bicycle. For example, Litol-24 or TsIFTIM-201,158 is a good fit. Of course, no one forbids you to buy specialized bicycle bearing greases, for example, from Shimano, which do an excellent job with their tasks. But to be honest, I did not notice much difference (except for the price).

But what you can not lubricate the bearings of the bushings on a bike: WD-40, motor oils for cars, oils for sewing machines, for lubricating bicycle chains and other liquid lubricants.

When working out its resource or premature breakdown of such parts as: axle, cone, bearing balls, and cups, they are replaced with new ones. And if there are no special problems with the first ones on this list, then with the cups it is not so simple. There are several problems. Firstly, buying new ones specifically for a specific sleeve is unlikely to work (unless you find the same used one). Therefore, you will either need to dance with a tambourine and order a cup from a turner, or look for a donor, knock them out and insert into the victim. Which does not always work out. There is another option. Knock out the cups from the bicycle wheel hub and put the industrial bearings in their place. But here, too, you need to clearly select everything in size and not everything can go as you would like. So if the cups break, you will most likely need to buy a new sleeve.

I would like to note that when replacing balls, you should change everything at once, and not several pieces.

In case of failure of industrial bearings, they also change without problems for new ones.

As for the rest, clean and lubricate the bushings in time, check them for backlash (if necessary, tighten as described above) and the bike bushings will serve you for a very long time.

After reading this article, you learned how to properly disassemble and repair the rear and front bushing of a bicycle with your own hands using the example of pictures and videos. What can be summed up? First of all, maintenance should be carried out periodically and in a timely manner: clean and lubricate, check for backlash and serviceability. In addition, we learned how to lubricate the bushing, and what not, and also learned its structure. Thank you for your attention and good luck with the repair!

One of the most practical and healthy means of transport is the bicycle. However, its maintenance can cost you a pretty penny if you do not know how to repair at least minor breakdowns.

In such cases, it is simply necessary to have such skills as attention to detail and accuracy, since they will help you to repair or disassemble any part, for example, the rear hub of a bicycle wheel.

One of the most important parts of a bicycle is its wheel. In particular, the rear wheel is much more loaded than the front wheel, since it is on it that the ratchet (freewheel mechanism) and the cassette (sprocket block) are installed. The wheel is the main focus when driving, so it is important to understand the design of its hub in order to be able to properly maintain it.

The hub is a wheel element, fixed to the bike frame, namely the drop points. This is the central part of the wheel that allows it to rotate freely.

The bushing consists of elements such as:

One of the reasons for dividing the rear hubs into varieties is their design. Depending on it, the rear bushings are divided into:

1. Without brake.
2. With built-in brakes.

It should be said that bushings that are not equipped with a braking mechanism are also divided into those without free play and with free play. With an integrated foot brake, the hubs are designed with free play. If we are talking about the version of the hub with a brake mechanism, then their main feature is that the pedals must be pressed in the opposite direction to stop the bike.

According to the method of fixing, the bushings can be fixed on two nuts, which is much cheaper, or they can be fixed with an eccentric. The second method is more expensive, but much more convenient, since the nuts must be removed with a wrench, and in order to remove the wheel on the eccentric, it is enough to squeeze its handle. It only takes a couple of seconds.

The material of manufacture also matters. Bushings are:

1. Aluminum (lightweight and non-corrosive).
2. Steel (strong but heavy and highly corrosive).

The bushings also differ in the size of the axle, the standards are different - from 9mm to 15mm. Keep in mind that the larger the sleeve, the heavier it is.

For the correct operation of the wheel and its main parts, incl. bushings, it must be kept in good condition at all times. It needs lubrication, and its body needs to be tightened periodically. In addition, replacing the bearing balls and adjusting the pads on the brake sleeve will not interfere.

Rear hub service is essential as in cases where this does not occur, the entire wheel may need to be repaired. Therefore, it is best to take care of your bike in the long run. It should be noted that servicing the rear hub is not much more difficult than servicing the front hub.

It is necessary to carry out maintenance in such cases:

1. If you hear body noise when the bike is moving or wobbling.
2. Backlash.
3. If the bearings crunch.
4. Poor rolling dynamics.

If you do not pay attention to the above signs of "illness" of your bike and use it for a long time if they are present, it can quickly fail.

Repair, in turn, will be much more expensive than simple wheel maintenance, which you can do yourself. Therefore, at the beginning of each season, check the wheel for play and that the bearings are not too tight.

Before proceeding with the disassembly of the case, it is necessary to clean the workplace, since it is very important to carry out all stages very carefully and with utmost care.

First, remove the cassette from the axle using a puller and a whip. Then we open the circlip and remove the washers and bearings. In order not to get confused in the details, it is important to remember the original location of the washers and bearings.

After lubrication, the bushing must be reassembled. To properly assemble the rear hub, you must adhere to the following rules:

1. We insert the axis so as not to confuse which side is the right side of the axis, which is fixed tightly. The axis is adjusted with the left cone.
2. Next, put the left cone on the axle until it stops.
3. We put on the washers.
4. We screw on the lock nut.
5. We adjust the bearings.

1. Checking the workplace. We clean the workplace of unnecessary tools, things that are not useful to you.
2. Remove the retaining ring.
3. Remove the hub axle. First, remove all the parts that are on the opposite side of the stars.

Most often, the repair of the rear wheel hub is necessary either with backlash or when tightening the cone. So, step by step instructions:

1. Checking the workplace. We clean the workplace of unnecessary tools, things that are not useful to you.
2. Loosen the lock nut with a wrench.
3. Loosen or tighten the flare nut.
4. Tighten the locknut into place.

If the cause of the breakdown is a malfunction or breakdown of any part, then you should simply replace it using the following recommendations:

1. After checking the workplace, remove the retaining ring.
2. Remove the hub axle. First, remove all the parts that are on the opposite side of the stars.
3. We check the details for a malfunction.
4. We replace the broken part.
5. We put all the parts in place, tighten the flare nuts and the locknut.

Bicycle wheel breakage occurs for various reasons. There can be a large number of them.

The main ones are:

1. Insufficient or no bushing maintenance.
2. Loose bushing (backlash).
3. Poor bushing parts.
4. Wear.
5. Padding the cone.

Thus, to ensure the long service life of your bike, you should devote a certain amount of time to it. The basis of a bike's long-term service is maintenance. You can do this yourself, with your own hands. The main thing in this is to observe safety precautions and carefully approach the matter, since every detail is important in the sleeve mechanism.

To service the bushing, it is necessary to remove all parts, lubricate, first removing all old grease. And then carefully re-install all parts in the reverse order. In this case, you should carefully consider the tightening of the locknuts and flare nut, so as not to overtighten them. In addition, there are different types of rear bushings.