The Sedona has finally been repaired and is back on the streets!
The Sedona’s rear hub was damaged in early February, rendering the bike inoperable. Unfortunately, it seems that the freewheel system the Sedona uses is prone to failure, especially with heavier riders.
The front (tubeless) tire also went flat and would not hold air.
The first issue to be solved was the tire problem. I completed another Ghetto Tubeless setup on the front wheel, and successfully inflated it using a local gas station’s air compressor. I had to purchase some more sealant, as well as a syringe to make measuring and installing it in the tire through the valve much easier. It’s still holding fine. The rear tire is still setup with a tube, and I purchased new decorative valve caps for both.
The hub problem, unfortunately, wasn’t so easy to fix.
I had to return the bike to the bike shop to have a new hub installed. This isn’t a big deal, other than the bike shop being 80 miles away – and I have to have my father pick the bike up (since it won’t entirely fit in my car, and I don’t want to drive long distances with it hanging half-way out of my trunk.)
Because of time and money constraints, I couldn’t have the bike shop do a more “permanent” fix. The permanent repair would be to replace the entire wheel with a “free hub” wheel. This requires replacing the whole wheel, as well as the rear gearing. And since my bike has seven gears on the rear, it requires an additional spacer. I hope to have the more permanent repairs done sometime in the future.
In the meantime, I just had the quick-release skewer itself replaced. The bike is back up and running. Now I don’t have to be jealous to see others out riding their bikes and enjoying the nice weather.
