HELP - removing back wheel on Thorne Rohloff bike !?

[swayzak]

Hi

I have a Sterling & want to change the tyres.

Having put the Rohloff in 14th gear, as instructed, & removed the ext. box, I can't get the rear wheel off because of the chain.

I know I'm probably being v dim here, but how do I do this ? Do I need a link remover ? Do I need to adjust the eccentric BB to slacken the chain off ?


thanks

[julk]

Unclip the noodle from the rear brake arms to let the rear brake go wider.
Select gear 14.
Have a cloth handy.
Put the bike upside down.
Undo the thumbnut and gently pull the ex box off sideways.
Undo the rear quick release, Pitlock or whatever rear axle nuts are there.
It may help to let some air out of the rear tyre.
Pull the wheel up an out of the rear dropouts, as it comes out move the wheel forward slightly and the chain will go slack. At this point use the cloth to work the chain off the rear sprocket and park the chain carefully on the chainstay using the cloth to prevent any scratches.

With the wheel out work on it as required.

Putting it all back. reverse the instructions above, making sure the Rohloff arm is in the longer dropout
and you have the full range of gears.
Make sure to reconnect the rear brake!

[swayzak]

Brilliant, thanks.

I did try and see if the chain became looser when inching the wheel out of the vertical dropouts, but couldn't see how this would work as no slackness was introduced with vertical movement ... 

[Fred A-M]

You should normally be able to induce the chain to come off without too much effort but try loosening the chain tension by using the eccentric bottom bracket to induce some slack.  From what you describe, you might have the chain tensioned too tightly with the EBB, which can cause damage to the hub (I think I read this in the manual) - there should be a total of about an inch play in the chain (moving it up and down) when you replace the wheel and tighten the EBB. 

PS. Have just re-read your post, so yes, EBB adjustment is the solution, just make sure you don't over tension the chain, which should help avoid this problem. 

[swayzak]

Thanks again both.

Embarassingly, in my rush to change the tyres on back i had forgotten to release the brakes ... doh 

After doing this the wheel came out fine - so chain tension was OK.

Unfortunately I forgot to put something soft under the bike when turning over & now have scuff mark on the gear selecter 

It looked like aluminium (?) so hoping it won't now be vulnerable to rust.

Touched it up with some frame paint anyway ...