Rear wheel axle stuck

Just tried to remove my rear wheel so I could make sure that there is some grease on the axle but it won’t budge.

i removed it at the weekend to give the drive train a good clean

Pretty sure I didn’t over tighten it although I didn’t use a torque wrench (note to self to get one – recommendations please) – any suggestions

Thanks

Well, if you removed it at the weekend it’s not seized in the usual way.

Is it spinning at all? Was it hard to tighten? perhaps it’s cross threaded, although in my experience this would result in not being able to tighten it.

Are you definitely turning it the right way??

What sort of axle is it?

Pics and a better explanation please

It’s a 2022 Stumpjumper which I bought new in July.

Roval DT Swiss 370, Ratchet LN, SRAM XD driver body, 12mm thru-axle, 148mm spacing, 28h

Has it got the RWS lever-thingy?

Those can be a problem at the lever end

The other possibility is a stripped thread caused by over-tightening (10-15Nm max). Push the axle out while loosening it

Not sure what the RWS thingy is but using a long handled hex key and some brute force I have undone it.

No grease but lots of water in there so I have cleaned, dried, greased and replaced.

I have ordered a torque wrench so will check it when that arrives tomorrow.

Interestingly the front axle is noted as being 9Nm while the rear says 25Nm. I fully expected the rear to be more but 25Nm? I will check again with my glasses on before I tighten using the torque wrench

If I have stripped the thread would it be the axle thread or the frame?

Timba, just checked on “Google” and no it doesn’t have an RWS lever

Looks like it is 25Nm

If its the same as all the Specialized rear axles we have its an allen key to unbolt it. Is the head not turning. If you had it out at the weekend I cant see how it can have seized on the hub bearings.

Looking at that picture ours all come out from the otherside. The non drive side. Post a picture of the other side

I might be wrong but I think 25 Nm is the tightening torque for the UDH. The axle is fitted from the other side with a much lower torque.

Kahurangi,

Thanks, you are absolutely correct 25Nm is for the UDH so the rear axle should only be 12 – 15Nm

The axle on my HT used to be a nightmare to remove. I ran a tap through the dropout to clear the paint/ anodising a bit and it’s been perfect ever since.

Sorry, misread two posts. I thought it was spinning

Sorted, so well done. Anti sieze and don’t overtighten; short Allen key with hand pressure not body weight

Inspect the threads if you’ve been going well over 12-15nm, if the threads are stressed or worn tightening back to proper torque could result in it working loose over time, a thread pitch gauge is a good little cheap tool to have and a magnifying glass or jewellers loupe to inspect for damage, it should be okay though, but some axles are made of cheese, once torqued correctly make a note of the writing on the bolt head position so at a glance you’ll know if it’s moved, some people use a marker pen or a bit of paint.
I use Burgtec axles and just remember how the logo lines up, for example the ‘R’ is at 12 o clock on my rear axle.