Pro C Nexus Hub clinking and clanking

JohnInStockie

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 10, 2006
1,048
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Stockport, SK7
Hi Guys,

Anyone had any wierd noises coming from the Nexus hub on the Kalkhoff? I got a puncture last week, and since then, although the gears are changing sweetly, theres a lot of clinking and clanging coming from the hub.

Anyone else have a clue what this could be?

Thanks

John
 

Schwinnfan

Pedelecer
Jan 6, 2009
32
0
Haydock
set up gears

Start by putting your bike in 4th gear, now look at the hub where the cable pulls a black plastic grommet . There is a clear window, align the two yellow marks using the adjustment at gear changer on the handlebars, that will narrow down your issue.
 

JohnInStockie

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 10, 2006
1,048
1
Stockport, SK7
Yep already done that, as I said the gear change is spot on. Any other ideas please?
 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,761
30,348
Dirt in the bearings can cause clicking and crackling sounds John. Was it wet/raining when you had the puncture and was the bike on it's side at any point where water and grit could have run into the end bearings?
.
 

tillson

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 29, 2008
5,249
3,197
I occasionally experience the symptoms that you describe. There doesn’t seem to be any pattern to it and it goes away after a while. It does sound awful when it does happen though. I’m not sure what’s going off in there but it doesn’t sound pretty!

I did have a problem with gear selection in extreme cold during the winter. I could not select a gear lower than 5th if the temperature dropped below about minus 4. I have noticed this same thing starting to happen in warmer conditions just recently. It is quite infrequent at the moment, so I can live with it.
 

rog_london

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 3, 2009
764
2
Harrow, Middlesex
I occasionally experience the symptoms that you describe. There doesn’t seem to be any pattern to it and it goes away after a while. It does sound awful when it does happen though. I’m not sure what’s going off in there but it doesn’t sound pretty!

I did have a problem with gear selection in extreme cold during the winter. I could not select a gear lower than 5th if the temperature dropped below about minus 4. I have noticed this same thing starting to happen in warmer conditions just recently. It is quite infrequent at the moment, so I can live with it.
This observation comes with no practical experience of this type of hub at all - but what springs to mind immediately if you have a problem when it's cold enough is that you have water in there and it's freezing, thereby jamming the linkages....

I also suspect that if there is water in there it might be causing rust and that would also give you problems even in warmer weather. A mix of oil/grease and rusty water is probably not good for those things, as I imagine it's rather like a large and complicated mechanical timepiece inside.

Back in the days of ye olde Sturmey Archer three-speed (as fitted to the local vicar's bike) the usual advice was that if you dismantled one, you would probably never get it reassembled again! I don't even want to think about disassembling a seven or eight speed hub.

Rog.
 

tillson

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 29, 2008
5,249
3,197
This observation comes with no practical experience of this type of hub at all - but what springs to mind immediately if you have a problem when it's cold enough is that you have water in there and it's freezing, thereby jamming the linkages....
This sounds plausible, but like you, I don’t know a great deal about the construction of these hub gears. I would be disappointed if water had found its way into the hub because I would have thought that it could be sealed better than that. I haven’t taken the bike anywhere but on public roads. I have used it in all weather conditions, but I hope it will cope with that. When I clean the bike, I always use a wet / damp cloth and never blast water at it.

Initially I thought the sticking might be “newness”, but after 2500 miles, I expect that it might be bedded in by now. The problem isn’t bad and I can live with it as long as it doesn’t get any worse.
 

keithhazel

Esteemed Pedelecer
Oct 1, 2007
997
0
Initially I thought the sticking might be “newness”, but after 2500 miles, I expect that it might be bedded in by now. The problem isn’t bad and I can live with it as long as it doesn’t get any worse.
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"living with it as long as it doesnt get worse" has a downfall to it, while its not getting worse is it causing any damage that when it causes it to "gets worse" is going to be costly ?... as its not an isolated problem as more then one of you has got it, it would be worth investing as much time as needed as "prevention is better then cure"...then when i win the lottery and have one of these fine machines i will know what to do when i hear it..:) :)
 

tillson

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 29, 2008
5,249
3,197
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"living with it as long as it doesnt get worse" has a downfall to it, while its not getting worse is it causing any damage that when it causes it to "gets worse" is going to be costly ?... as its not an isolated problem as more then one of you has got it, it would be worth investing as much time as needed as "prevention is better then cure"...then when i win the lottery and have one of these fine machines i will know what to do when i hear it..:) :)
It’s still under guarantee, I think. Unless the 2 year guarantee is only on the electrical bits for a Kalkhoff?

With it being one of those intermittent type faults, it always makes it difficult to demonstrate the fault to the dealer. I don’t want to cast aspersion, but my experience of intermittent fault reporting to any manufacturer / retailer is nearly 100% no fault found!
 
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rog_london

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 3, 2009
764
2
Harrow, Middlesex
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"living with it as long as it doesnt get worse" has a downfall to it, while its not getting worse is it causing any damage that when it causes it to "gets worse" is going to be costly ?... as its not an isolated problem as more then one of you has got it, it would be worth investing as much time as needed as "prevention is better then cure"...then when i win the lottery and have one of these fine machines i will know what to do when i hear it..:) :)
I was thinking that, especially if there IS water in there. Seals have been known to pack up. I suppose what would happen next would probably depend on whether there was a warranty still available - if so, I'd probably be in touch with the dealer pretty smartly.

Failing that, I'd have to take a careful look, but your options might preclude the latter - in which case, hopefully someone on here might have more information. I'm thinking in terms of the fact that it ought to be possible to flush it out with suitable solvent without dismantling and then re-lubricate, either with oil, melted grease (difficult), or grease in a volatile solvent which would evaporate after a short while (and preferably before the unit was next used). If a seal has gone, though, the problem would obviously recur unless you avoided bad weather riding.

I'm sure that such an item which was noisy in the wrong way or otherwise malfunctioned would be on borrowed time without attention, and I understand these multi-speed hub gears cost an arm and a leg to replace. I also expect that even if it could be dismantled and successfully reassembled, any worn or damaged parts would mean replacement of the whole thing rather than repair, as components would probably be unavailable.

Rog.
 

Neil

Pedelecer
Mar 28, 2008
63
0
Chan too slack or long

Could the chain be too slack an its jumping off the back cog?
 

JohnInStockie

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 10, 2006
1,048
1
Stockport, SK7
Could the chain be too slack an its jumping off the back cog?
No Ive checked that thoroughly. Its very odd. It does sound like it coming from the hub, and its much worse under strain (i.e. hardly noticable when lifting the back of the bike and turning the pedals).
 

JohnInStockie

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 10, 2006
1,048
1
Stockport, SK7
Dirt in the bearings can cause clicking and crackling sounds John. Was it wet/raining when you had the puncture and was the bike on it's side at any point where water and grit could have run into the end bearings?
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Nope, a straight lift and roll every time. I did find that the lube and water made it hard going to put the cable back in. You have to push against the cog at the back until the cable reaches (sort of like a brake). Ended up with a bruised finger that was sore for a couple of days, but I put that down to the lube and water.

I think I am going to have to either take the bike into a bike shop, or back to 50C.

John
 

tillson

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 29, 2008
5,249
3,197
John, is the noise there all the time on every outing or is it intermittent? Also, is there a ring to the noises that you experience? Last one, how many miles have you done and what power setting do you usually use?

I'm just trying to establish if you and I are experiencing the same thing.

Thanks

Tom
 

JohnInStockie

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 10, 2006
1,048
1
Stockport, SK7
Its not noticable until you get some speed up Tom, and then you can hear it. It sounds like the springs in a wind up clock 'boinging'. Not sure how many miles, only maybe 1,000 (had a break over winter). I use all the settings depends on the conditions (e.g. almost home wind against me = full, downhill with wind behind = low)

I will use Full on almost every trip on some part (hills!)

I've just dropped it off at the local bike shop and he thinks that the spokes are the cause of it, saying the design - 24 spoke with cross and radial - was dumb. They felt alright to me, but what do I know.

Ive asked him to give it a full service anyway.

John