Bikes that go too first may demand excessive pressure to bring to a halt. Therefore, it is neither sensible or dependable to rely on the hand brakes alone. They may not always deliver the pressure sufficient to fully grind the whole bike to a stop. That calls for reinforcements, often in the shape of the coaster brakes. The coaster brakes are specific sorts of brakes that connect to the back wheels of the normal bike. Unlike the hand brakes, they are applied by the application of pressure on the bikes’ pedals instead of hands.
Though these brakes are crucial to the effectiveness of the bike, they may not always be required all the time. Indeed, upon outliving their usefulness,
Table of Contents
- How to Remove Coaster Brake?
- Step 1. Gather the Essentials
- Step 2. Prepare the Working Area
- Step 3. Make the bike standstill
- Step 4. Set the Wheel Appropriately
- Step 5. Bring in the Wrench
- Step 6. Remove the Dust Cover
- Step 7. Remove the Brake Shoes
- Step 8. Remove the Cone
- Step 9. Take out the sleeve and clean the hub
- Step 10. Install the New Sleeve
- Step 11. Put Everything Back Together
- Why Remove the Coaster Brake?
- What Tools Do You Need to Prepare to Remove the Coaster Brake?
- FAQs
How to Remove Coaster Brake?
There are only a limited amount of ways to accomplish this task. You can do it manually, or you can buy one of those interesting circular saws instead of trying to utilize the force of your hands. Here are some ways to remove the coaster brake:
Step 1. Gather the Essentials

First things first, you have to collect together the things that are necessary to get it done. Put out something that will act as a brake to prevent the rear wheel from turning abruptly. Next, put on some safety gear for your body. This can include gloves, goggles, hard hats, and other protection devices. Other necessary items include screwdrivers, adjustable spanner wrench, and pliers, among others.
Step 2. Prepare the Working Area
To make things easy on yourself, you have to organize the work area. Start by putting down a soft layer of cloth on the floor. This will protect your skin from coming into direct contact with the pedals. In addition, it will keep the pedals from moving around while you are working on them. To avoid accidents, you also have to clear any objects that might get in your way while working with the bike.
Step 3. Make the bike standstill

If you are going to be working on the bike by yourself, you have to make sure that the bike is still. This means turning it so that instead of being angled toward the rear, it is now upright. Some bikes have a locking mechanism called a parking brake. This can be put into use by looking for a button on the handlebars. When pressed, it will hold the bike in place until you are done with your work. If it does not have one, you can still use the U-lock to provide the same functionality.
Step 4. Set the Wheel Appropriately
Removing the coaster brake might be problematic at this point. To get that job done right, you have to pay attention to how it is installed. There are a lot of models in the market, and it has been proven quite a challenge to determine the appropriate position for each one of them. You can try looking at a little diagram in the manual or asking somebody who has experience with them what they would recommend. Once you figure out the best position, you can then use the adjustable spanner wrench to secure it into that position. Set the back wheel on your lap in order to achieve this. When in this position, elevate the coaster brake arm to 4 o’clock and place it there. This is the best position since you may safely and comfortably impact the whole bike’s length and width from this position.
Step 5. Bring in the Wrench

Once you have secured the coaster brake into position, you can proceed to connect the adjustable spanner wrench to the nuts at the back of the wheel. This will allow you to apply pressure to both nuts. Even with safety precautions, there is no guarantee that everything will turn out well. That is why it is important that you place your hands on the floor beside you for safety purposes.
Step 6. Remove the Dust Cover
A dust cover is located at the top of the coaster brake. An important part of their job is to keep out dust and other potential sources of harm or degradation. A wrench is usually required to remove the dust cover’s locknut. The cone screw should be used first, followed by the little ball retainer to fully loosen. The brake may now be accessed immediately without having to remove the lid. Lift the hub’s shell from the assembly after this. Keep an eye on the coaster’s brake shoes while you do this to ensure they don’t come off.
Step 7. Remove the Brake Shoes

After the dust cover has been removed, you can see the brake shoes in place. These are cone-shaped pieces of metalwork that are attached to the rear wheel of the bike. You should not try to lift them out to take them out but rather use pliers to twist them off. This requires that whatever strength given by the pliers is used by turning them into an arc. To get the brake shoes off, you will need to use pliers to twist them off. This requires that whatever strength given by the pliers is used by turning them into an arc.
Step 8. Remove the Cone

Once you have removed the brake shoes, you can now move on to removing the cone. This is not done using pliers but rather by using your hands. The cone has a small metal shim that helps it to fit into place in the hub assembly. You will need to take this out by pinching it out of position with your hands or carefully lifting it with a screwdriver.
First, set what is left of the coaster brake mechanism on your lap. You should then use a wrench to unscrew a small locknut at the top of it. The next thing you need to do is use a cone screwdriver and an additional small ball retainer to undo it completely. Once this has been done, lift out the shell while catching the brake shoes before falling off.
Step 9. Take out the sleeve and clean the hub

Now is the time to take out the sleeve. This is done by using a cone wrench and turning it clockwise until it has been removed from the assembly. In addition, you can also use a screwdriver to pry it out of its position. Make sure that you keep an eye on its position to replace it with another one if needed.
Step 10. Install the New Sleeve
Replacing the coaster brake sleeve will require that you install a new one. This is done by pushing it into the assembly until it is pressed against the small metal shim. You can help it along by putting pressure on its top with your hand or fingers. This will make it easier for you to fit into a position without having to use anything else.
Step 11. Put Everything Back Together
The final step in removing the coaster brake is to put everything back together. This means following the steps in reverse order. First, start by pushing the cone back into place. Next, you can put the wheel back together by installing the brake shoes, cover, and cone using the screwdriver. Now you can proceed to put on or tighten your wheel nuts using your adjustable spanner wrench. As you do so, you should start with the wheel closest to your bike’s frame and work your way outwards to minimize the chances of accidents.
Once you have tightened the wheel nuts, secure the wheel into place with the wheel lock using your U-lock. After this, set the adjustable spanner wrench on top of the wheel hub. This will ensure that you can now safely place your bike onto its kickstand or stand. It is best to hold onto the bike by resting one hand on either side of it so that you can carefully measure where to drop it.
Why Remove the Coaster Brake?
The coaster brake is an extremely efficient, reliable braking system based on the idea of using two arms to exert pressure on the rear wheel. There are various benefits to it, such as reducing unnecessary road-noise, increasing stopping power, and making it easier for you to ride. It is also an inexpensive alternative to many other types of braking systems.
However, there are instances where you will want or need to remove your coaster brake, such as:
- Removing a flat bicycle tire. A flat tire can result from a puncture or a loss of air pressure. In either case, removing the coaster brake will allow you to replace the flat bicycle tire on your bike without risking your safety.
- A broken part on the rear wheel. A loose brake shoe can result from a damaged axle or a broken coaster brake mechanism. This can easily be repaired, but you will need to remove it first before you proceed.
- It is used as a substitute for a front and rear brake. If you want to replace both brakes with coaster brakes, then go ahead and proceed with this. However, there are instances where certain states or countries will not allow your bike to be ridden with only one braking system. In such a case, you can remove any coaster brake you may have.
What Tools Do You Need to Prepare to Remove the Coaster Brake?

- Adjustable spanner wrench: to tighten or loosen your wheel nuts. This is a heavy-duty tool that can help you attach the nuts quickly and securely.
- Cone wrench: remove the cone from your bike’s hub assembly. This is a cone-shaped wrench that will allow you to unscrew the bolts holding the coaster brake onto its hub assembly.
- Screwdriver: to fit screws into their corresponding holes to hold the brake shoes in place.
- Hammer: to tighten the nuts by striking them with the hammer’s flat end. This will make sure that they are securely fastened.
- Pliers: to hold onto the cone while twisting it out of position. It is useful if you are having difficulty doing this using your hands alone.
- Pry bar: to pry out broken parts of your bike’s rear-wheel hub assembly.
- U-lock: secure your bike with a chain and padlock if it has broken parts that have fallen off.
- Cone screw and ball retainer: to join together the parts of your coaster brake mechanism.
- Small brush: to clean your bike’s hub assembly.
- Small flat-bladed screwdriver or a knife: pry out the metal shim used to help with coaster brake installation.
- Can of spray lubricant: to ease the movement of your bike’s coaster brake mechanism.
- Large flat-bladed screwdriver: for removing and replacing flat bicycle tires.
- Rubber mallet: used to strike parts that are stuck together with your bike’s axle or hub assembly.
- Pliers or wrench for removing the brake shoes: to allow you to pull them out without risking any injury.
- Container for holding or storing your bike parts: to prevent them from getting lost.
FAQs
How long to remove the coaster brake?
Based on the type of bicycle you have, it can be anywhere from one to three hours. Each will have a slightly different amount of time required to get it off. As for removing a hub, you will have to take it apart from the rim and from the spokes. This means that you should allow somewhere around four and a half hours in order for everything in the wheel to be replaced in proper order.
What best way to remove the coaster brake?
This is a personal preference question. There are many ways that you can get the job done quickly. First, you can get a hand tool that has been specifically designed to remove the cone from the rim and spokes of a wheel. This will require all of your attention and time while you work through it. Another method is to use a small sledgehammer and a large hammer to carefully pound the cone out of place until it has been removed from both wheels.
When to remove the coaster brake?
Under normal circumstances, removing the coaster brake can be done anytime. The optimum time to do this is in the summer when the metal pieces are less prone to rust.
What are the best tools to remove the coaster brake?
The best tools you will need for removing any part of your bicycle are adjustable spanner wrenches and a hammer. You can also choose to use a large set of pliers if they are available.
Are coaster brakes bad?
The best way to remove the coaster brake is to use a screwdriver. All you need to do is unscrew the threaded metal rod attached with the pin and ball retainer to the rim’s axle. The downside of removing your coaster brake by yourself is that there can be more parts for you to lose. It will be tough to put your bicycle back together if you do not have all of these components.