Ok, me and a friend had a bicycle rental thing at the oceanfront this past summer and we bought may bikes but also my grandma let us use here schwinn bike. Its a females 4 speed and is new. Well the problem is, when i put any pressure on the pedals no matter what gear its in, it will slip really fast like the chain isnt on it, but the chain is on it, it doesnt make any noise like metal grinding or such. It seems that somthing needs to be tightened. Anyone know? Thanks.

 

sounds like the automatic chain tenshioners on the rear wheel hub assembly need some cleaning/lubricating. Also, check the chain for any links that have rusted together. Give the whole chain a good cleaning with wd40 and work each link joint up and down to make sure they move freely.

 

Could be that the cogs inside the rear gear hub are stickin'. I regreased a 10 speed once and used some grease that was a bit too thick, resulting in what you seem to have described. Had to take it all apart again and clean it out. That's about the only thing that could cause the pedals to turn, without the wheel turning.

 

BINGO - Give that man a seegar !!

That is it - guarranteeeed.

 

I have no idea how many thousands of miles I have ridden bicycles at this point, I was doing hundred mile rides way back in the seventies, and did a thirty for the fourth of july (God was I ever out of shape for it...)

I need a little information here though - is this four speed built like the old fashioned three speed hubs, with a hollow axle and a wire connected to a shift lever on it? Or is it a standard derailleur setup?

I have had chains stretch over time to the point where the gear teeth underlapped the chain spacing, which causes skipping of the chain when you are mashing the pedals.

Most troubles such as you described are attributable to mis-adjusted shift mechanisms. If it's like the old three speed hubs it's very possible that it's being kept between gears so that it free-spools on you!

Find the adjuster and tweak on it. At some point it should definately "lock in". If it doesn't, something in the hub is severely trashed.


~Wolfus

PS: (Now that I think some more) Take a hard look at the axle bearing and casing adjustments too. If they are really loose - the mechanism inside won't work because it can't engage. I wish I had a diagram to point out what I mean - but the shifter (if it's inside the hub) works a lot like a coaster brake and must be adjusted properly in order to do what it does.

PPS: Yes! I have taken all sorts of strange things apart and put them back together working better than they did when I started.
Most of the time, there are no extra pieces left over...

 

Since I really dont know too much about the mechanics of bikes, i found it on the internet. Here it is...

http://www.electricrecbikes.com/Crui...sic%20Four.htm

 

I didn't think of the internal shifting type. I never messed around with them too much. If it is that type, I'd say to do like Greywolf said and try tweakin' the adjuster.

Does anything happen when ya move the grip to try and shift it (while turning the pedals) ?

Ya could just rent it out as a "down hill only" bike

 

Check to see if the chain is stretched, or if the teeth on the chainring are worn.

 

Yep - it's an internal shifting coaster hub sort of like the original English three speeds.

Made by Shimano - they have a seven gear version of it.

Think of it as an automatic transmission for a bicycle...

Ergo:

No chianrings, no freehub, no deraileurs.

Check the cables and adjustments. I would love to take one apart, but if it looks like it's over your head find a good bike shop in your area and bring it in to have them look it over. Alternately - bring in the rear wheel and have them check the hub out.

I'll bet it isn't anything that can't be cured with a pair of cone wrenches some lube and some adjustments.

~Wolf

 

The mountain bike I have used to do that. Turned out that a few of the links were froze up. Threw on a new chain and works like charm.

 

Yeah - but that would rattle and skip.

This gripe doesn't - it just spins around, if I read it right.

I have torn an english three speed hub down before, and it was a lot simpler than it looked once I got at the guts of it. As a matter of fact - I restored that thing.

 

Woofie, you're just awesome, admit it. Stop bein' so damn shy

 

Err... Ummm...

Excuse me, I've been making too much noise.

*wanders off to the back of the garage*