Hi,
I am refurbishing an old french tandem (prob. circa 1950) to bring to the Cirque and have a question about overhauling Maxi-Car hubs. The rear is less than smooth and I am hoping to improve it.
After dismantling the wheel, I cleaned the crud off the barrel and noticed that it was stamped CAR-MAXI. I had assumed it would read MAXI-CAR. Maybe they are all like that. It is a solid flange model with six hole red dustcaps. I was able to unscew the dust caps with no problems and remove the "labyrinth" seals (washers) on the non-drive side to reveal the angular bearing. I flushed it out but it is still not great.The drive side bearing seals, however, seem to be blocked by the axle spacer, which appears to be integral to the axle. Like it is just a thicker portion of the axle.
Do I need to press (or bash) the axle out from the non-drive side?
How are these hubs supposed to be overhauled?
Are there any adjustments that can be made to loosen them up?
Can the bearings be replaced? Who has 'em and how is it done?
This is not the first stumbling block I've hit fixing up this bike and I hope it is not going to be the last.
Working on old unfamiliar components is fun.
Paul Lee
Huntington, NY