Question on great resistance in cycling

[marlboro123]

Hi,

I just found out this wonderful A-Bike forum yesterday and I think this is a great place to find out some answers to my questions with the help from the experienced A-Bike owners here

My A-Bike is giving me great resistance when paddling, compares to my friend's A-Bike

So, I turned my bike up-side-down to check on the back wheel
The back wheel is definitely not smooth as and it gives some unfriendly noise (not the normal chain sound) when I roll the wheel slowly using my hand, it feels like something is stopping the wheel to turn smoothly

I was thinking the brake pad was the culprit but it wasn't... not sure if there is something wrong "inside the box"

Am a newbie to A-Bike world, sorry if I have got you confused

p/s: my A-Bike is not genuine, but I am trying my luck if I can get any help from the experts here

[Stevbike]

Hello and welcome to the forum. It is great that you joined!

As far as the resistance on the drive wheel goes, check out the brake pad to see if is too tight. If it is you can loosen it up a bit but too much seeing you need effective brakes still. Otherwise it could be the bearings. They should be working running smoothly but they could be defective. They should be a standard type of bearing that can be replaced by going to a bike shop. I am not too sure the type they use but I think it uses a type found on a scooter wheels or it could be a skate board type bearing. You will have to take the bike apart to see what type it is if that is the problem. Hopefully you can find the problem enjoy your bike, even it is a copy of the original. They are a fun bike to ride!

stevbike

[marlboro123]

thanks steve...

have been suspecting is the brake pad's fault and already did some adjustment on it but the problem seems persist... will try dismantling the whole rear brake pad (once i have the right tools) and see how it goes before tearing the bike apart

once again, thanks...

[Stevbike]

thanks steve...

have been suspecting is the brake pad's fault and already did some adjustment on it but the problem seems persist... will try dismantling the whole rear brake pad (once i have the right tools) and see how it goes before tearing the bike apart

once again, thanks...

All you have to do to test out the rear wheel is to loosen up brake cable until the brake is no longer in contact with the brake drum. Themm spin the wheel. It should turn freely. If it does not do this, the bearing are at fault. I will look at my bike to see how hard it is to do this. The front wheel is very easy to get to the bairings, the rear drive wheel wil be much more of a challenge.

By the way, what wheel; size does your bike use, the smaller original version or the 8" wheel? just interested in knowing.

stevbike

[marlboro123]

yesterday went for a short ride and things seems to got worse after the ride

now that there is a 'krak' sound on even slight movement on the rear wheel, as slight as 1 to 2 cm kind of movement... so, if the wheel turns 1 full cycle, it will be 'krak-krak-krak-krak-krak-krak-krak-krak.....'

i believe you are right, the bearings must have been "bye-bye !!"

mine is 8" wheel, and yours ?
how long have you been using your bike ?

btw, there is another irritating sound comes out every time my right foot applies strength onto the right-side pedal, the sound sounds like the common/normal 'gggrraaaakkkk...' sound to old bicycle... any experience ?

[Stevbike]

My bike is going to be 1 year old in Nov. and has 363 km on it to date. It uses the solid type 8" (7.5" measured) tire.

Take care in taking the bike apart. The 8 small fastners have small nuts that can be lost fast if thet fall on the ground. There is are two plastic extensions on the rear tubes ends. These are needed for the upper tube to fold into the frame. I removed these and it locked up the frame when I folded it. I had to take the bike apart again to get these parts put back in so it works properly. Not make my mistake of forgeting to putting these back in when putting the rear back into one piece.

Before going to these lengths to repair the bike, see if the place you bought the bike from will take it back if it is still new. as long as there is little wear on the bike and the original packaging is all there along with the bill for it, they should replace thew bike with one that is better running condition. If they can not do this, start looking at taking the current bike you own apart. The other sound you said you have is coming the fat the rear tire needs a bit of adjusting on the second part of the chain drive. Just loosen the four bolts on each side of drive whell and pull the wheel down a bit. Then retighten the bolts. I had to do this as well. I will look at my bike and see just how hard it is to get into the rear bearings.

stevbike

[Stevbike]

I looked at my A-bike today and found out that rear wheel bearings are placed in the rear plastic frame section just by the place where the rear bolt that holds the tire into place. They are not in the wheel assembly.

Inside view drivertain.JPG (240.89 KiB) Viewed 19076 times

When take the rear drive section apart, it will look like my picture I attached. Look inside the ends of the bolt attachment points to see the bearings. I do not know what type of bearing is used but it should!? be standard type used in either a scooter or skateboard. Once these are replaced you should have smooth running rear tire!

stevbike

[rongood]

Marlboro123's problem sure does sound like bearings. When everything is adjusted right, the rear wheel should spin very freely and smoothly when the bike is off the ground. It also is true that Stevbike's A-bicycle is not a real A-bike, which he knows, so the parts are not exactly the same as on a real A-bike and may not be interchangeable. If you are ever ready to get a new model, i can assure you that the newest version of the A-bike Plus is a big improvement.

Depending on what version bike you have, replacing the bearings can require opening up the crank case and removing the wheel to get at the screws that hold the bearing housing. On the new A-bike, the screws are accessible from outside the bike and thus swapping the bearings for a new set is much easier.

[Stevbike]

Thanks for that info. His bike is also a copy so I am hoping that his is somthing like mine. I just hope that the bearings used are based on some form of standard type that can be bought from a bike shop. If not, the bike may become useless fast. I wish the person good luck on fixing his bike.

stevbike