Here's how!
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The SS and Race High Flange cassette hub is slightly different to overhaul than its lighter younger brother, the Mini Race Cassette Hub, but they aren’t significantly more difficult.
As always, it’s easier to overhaul your hubs on a workbench with proper tools than it is to do it in a parking lot with a rock and a monkey wrench to assist you.
These are all the parts:
A. Axle studs 3/8 or 14mm studs, 7/8″ locknut
B. Non-drive side spacer
C. Drive side spacer
D. Hub Bearings (2)
E. Hub Shims* (2)
F. Driver Shim (1 or 2)**
G. Driver/Cog assembly
H. Aluminum Center Axle
I. Hub Shell
*Hub Shims may or may not be present. If your hub had them when you took it apart the first time, then you should continue to use them. If your hub doesn’t have hub shims, and does not have side to side play, then you don’t need shims.
**Driver shims serve to space the driver away from the hub body. It is very important that you do not lose these, as you will damage your hub without them. Again, if your hub had one when you took it apart, you should continue to run one. If it had two, run two. Now that you can see what you’re dealing with, let's get started. The SS cassette hub has two axle studs that thread into the aluminium centre axle.
Step 1
You’ll need two wrenches or a wrench and a vice to hold the opposite locknut/stud.
Step 2
Remove the drive side locknut/stud and the drive side spacer, and thread the drive side locknut/stud back into the axle three turns or so. Remove the hub from the vice, if you’re using one.
Step 3
Hold the hub in one hand, and hit the drive side axle stud with a rubber mallet or hammer to slide the axle out the opposite side of the hub.
Step 4
Don’t hit it too hard, you just have to loosen the non-drive side bearing so that it will slide out.
Step 5
Once you’ve done this, remove the drive side locknut again, and the axle should slide out, leaving the non-drive side bearing and axle stud attached to the centre axle. Now you can remove the driver easily and replace the springs and pawls if you need to.
Step 6
Slide the axle back through the hub and the bearing that remains in the hub. Hit the axle with the hammer to remove the remaining bearing. Now you can clean all the dirt, grease, oil and debris from the parts of your hub.
Step 7
Now you should have roughly the same number of parts as in the picture above. What I like to do is put the parts down on the workbench in a line in the order I remove them so it’s easy to remember the order they go back together. In this case, from the right to the left, we have the drive side axle stud, the drive side spacer, the driver, the driver shim(s), and the remainder of the hub. Take care not to lose the driver shim(s) that are behind the driver in front of the hub bearings.
If you’re replacing hub bearings, then you would remove the axle assembly from the hub body, and tighten the wrench flats on the axle into your vice or wrench.
Step 8
Remove the non-drive side axle stud/locknut, and slide off the non-drive side cone spacer and old bearing.
Step 9
To remove the hub bearing from the drive side, thread one of the studs into the drive side of the axle, finger tight, and place the drive side of the hub shell down on a flat, sturdy surface. Insert the non-drive side of the axle into the back-side of the drive side bearing, and give it a few strokes with your hammer to pop the drive side bearing out. Remove the axle stud from the centre axle.
Step 10
You’re now ready to replace the bearings. Start on the non-drive side, and slide on a hub shim, if needed, and then the new bearing. Replace the non-drive side cone spacer, and if you have some Loctite, place a couple of drops on the threads of the non-drive side axle stud/locknut, and tighten it down completely. If you don’t have the Loctite, you can use touch up paint or fingernail polish as alternatives. It’s not going to hurt anything if you don’t use anything either, but then you’ll need to remember to check and make sure your axle studs are tight from time to time.
Step 11
Insert the axle assembly into the hub shell from the non-drive side. Slide a hub shim, if necessary, and a hub bearing onto the drive side.
Step 12
Next, slide the driver spacer next to the drive side hub bearing, followed by the driver, and place the hub on the driver on a flat, sturdy surface. Make sure that the pawls are completely inserted in the hub shell by spinning the driver - it should sound like it does when you backpedal, obviously. Make sure the bearings are sitting flat in the hub shell, and gently hit the axle stud on the non-drive side, which should begin to press the bearings into the hub shell.
Step 13
You do not have to press them in all the way with the hammer, we’ll finish pressing them in by tightening the axle studs. Slide the drive side spacer onto the axle next to the cassette, and thread on the drive side locknut/axle stud. Again, a drop or two of Loctite or a substitute is a good idea, but not absolutely needed.
Step 14
Continue tightening down the axle studs. Make certain that the pawls of the driver are fully inserted into the hub shell, so that they aren’t crushed. Once the locknuts/axle studs are tight, spin the axle. It should spin smoothly, without notches or grinding. If you feel any grinding or notches, tap the non-drive side axle with your hammer, and spin the axle again. This will reseat the bearings, and should free everything up.
You’ve done it! Congratulations!
