I would get inside there and have a look at the races and pawls, etc., What I do is get the lockring(s) off, put something like a milk-bottle top over the exposed bearings, and up-end the whole thing. Then the 'core' can be pulled out and the inner bearings flicked out of their race and into the bottle-top too.
I've just been reconditioning a 20+ year old Suntour Winner myself. The inner race was pitted to f--k. Been using emery cloth wrapped around a short length of strimmer cable, 'sacrificial' bearings (i.e. the old ones) with grinding paste, re-assemble without pawls and spin, spin, spin...
Not 'engineering', but it does (eventually) get it back into circulation. (pun intended)
Had to make a pair of new pawls out of an old woodwork plane blade, too.. the old ones were worn out.
So, a lot of work if your freewheels are as bad as mine was. I just use oil in 'em. Mainly in the bearings, and before re-assembling I wipe the whole inside of the body with oil. Just a smear for the pawls or they get gummed up and stop working. I'd be interested to know what others do... I doubt that my methods are anything like 'best practice'... Worst bit is when re-assembling.. you got the freewheel upside-down and have to get all those little balls positioned around the inner race,(in oil) and then get the 'core' with the pawls past them without knocking them out of place.
I do all this as a sort of penance for letting it get so f--ked up in the first place..
BTW I re-read your post and mentally substituted 'bottom bracket' for 'freewheel'. If you do that, the answer becomes obvious.. Well, to me, anyway...
