Destructive Freewheel Removal

There is a way to remove most freewheels without a special tool. By removing the ratcheting gear cluster you can access the inner piece that is screwed tightly onto the hub. This freewheel is an old Suntour "Perfect" unit, and I don't have a 2 prong removal tool:

Notice the two small holes on the face of the freewheel? You can use a hammer and centerpunch on these holes to unscrew the front cover plate (this piece is actually a bearing race, and it's the only thing holding your freewheel together). The cover plate is reverse threaded, so angle your punch in a clockwise motion to unscrew it:

Now be very careful as you remove the cover plate if you intend to reuse the freewheel. Put a big towel under the wheel to catch the little ball bearings because they will spill out all over the place once you remove the gear mechanism. Here is the cover removed:

Now you can lift off the gear cluster (prepare for an avalanche of ball bearings):

That core piece is the part you need to unscrew from the hub. Remove the washers, pawls, and springs (if possible. The pawls weren't easy to remove on this particular freewheel so I just left them in place). Now clamp the flat parts securely in a bench vise and use the entire wheel as leverage to unscrew the core piece:

Here is the bare wheel hub:

Now comes the tedious part. You need to add a little grease around the races that the ball bearings used to spin on, and stick each ball bearing back into place. This might take a while:

Once the bearings are all back in place you can reassemble the freewheel. Contrary to many popular sources, this is usually possible without any tools whatsoever. You just need to slide the core piece into the gear cluster with a turning motion. It's easiest if you angle the core piece so that you engage one pawl first, then twist the gear cluster while pressing the halves together until the second pawl slips into place (you might need to persuade it with a small flat screwdriver):

Once the two pieces are back together you just need to screw the cover piece back on. Use your hammer and punch again to make it nice and tight, since you don't want it to come loose while you ride. I also like to drip lots of oil onto the ball bearings just before replacing the cover piece in order to thin out the grease. This way the bearings will still spin freely in very cold weather. Here is the completed freewheel:

This is quite a bit of work if you don't have the correct removal tool, but at least your freewheel will be in better working order due to the fresh grease inside.