Play in rear sprocket and rotor?

[Connor]

Last night I had some plans on taking apart the axle bearing carrier to check out the bearings and after tapping on the sprocket to bend the lock washers to get off the sprocket I noticed it moving. I then put my hand on it and it has a substantial amount of wiggle in it. Could this be from the bearings being worn out? Same goes for my back rotor, it wiggle back in forth.

Also one last thing. On the back left tire, the nut that holds on the hub does not match the one on the other side (stock). I went to take it off and noticed I could unscrew it with my hands (no cotter pin either) so that was kind of strange but when I went to put the nut back on it tighten to a point and then just kept going and going like it was stripped, I spun that sucker for 10 minutes and it will keep rotating like its stripped out but requires a bit of strength and there is no metal shavings either. Im to worried to look at it again.

If by anychance that is striped to I have to get a whole new axle?

 

[alex456123]

That's normal wear caused by riding it.

 

[Beastmode17]

The splines on your Sprocket hub and rotor hub could be worn down, Over time if your bearings are bad it will make your hubs have a little free play, If your castle nut still tightens then I would not worry about getting a new axle, but do get a cotter pin for sure. When I took my rear hubs off there was a white powder from a lot of oxidation from the aluminum and steel. Are you planning on getting a new axle in the future??

 

[Connor]

Well I didnt have plans on getting a new back axle now, maybe a long time down the road when Im just looking for some extra to buy for it. If its stripped though then I dont think I really have a choice. As far the the sprocket wiggle goes, Its slightly more then just a wiggle, Its moves probably a good half inch either way. I managed to get one axle nut unscrewed but the my 2 foot long cresent wrench was no match for the second nut closest to the sprocket. Wouldnt even budge so Ill have to figure that out.

I had plans on disassembling the whole back end anyway to replace the bearings, seals, sprocket and clean everything but the sprocket wiggles so much I wasnt sure if it was just the bearings. I know if your tires will shake back and forth thats a sign for new wheel bearings but wasnt sure if that same principle applied for sprockets.

One last thing, the lock washers for the nuts that actually hold the sprocket to the sprocket hub are all kind of mangled. It seems like they are actually bonded to the nuts over time from corrosion. Does anyone have any handy tricks for stubborn lock washers?

 

[Beastmode17]

Soak those axle nuts with some pb blaster, If that don't work you can slip a large pipe or bar over the end of the wrench for leverage. Ive even seen some guys around here apply heat. As for the sprocket bolts and nuts I went through the exact same thing with my rotor hub, the bolts have a Loctite on them form the factory and are a pita to remove without stripping them, I cut them across the head with a dremel to remove them, and bought M5x10 to replace the old from a local hardware store