QUERY: Cyclo ? Benelux Star freewheel on 1960's Dunlop 27"

[Craigmount]

Hi folks, I've just removed an old freewheel from a Dunlop Special Lightweight 27" wheel which I recently acquired.
See all pics. The wheel itself is dated 1964, so I guess the freewheel is 1964/65 - ish.

Sadly the flange on the freewheel body is goosed, presumably due to a previous attempt to remove the freewheel without the correct brand tool extractor. The sprocket cluster looks okay, and classic ratios 14,16,18,21,24.
The query is: has anyone heard of, or come across, the brand name Benelux Star? Is it Cyclo?
I've heard of Cyclo Benelux (a venerable name in classic circles!) however I've never heard of Benelux Star - and a quick Google search hasn't thrown up anything.
Any information or contributions gratefully received. Thanks.

 

[keithglos]

Re:

Cyclo freewheel. The earlier model had 3 half moon pawls operating simultaneously, with all cogs RH thread. The star was about 1963 and had 2 large cogs LH thread.

Looks like the attempt at removal did not tighten the remover enough, most important, I found the pressure from the hub nut helped loosen the freewheel.

You could try grinding new slots on the body, but probably have no case hardening on the ground edges.

Keith

 

[Craigmount]

Many thanks Keith for your reply and all the detailed information you have provided - much appreciated.

Must admit I'd seen a couple of old 1950's CYCLO freewheels in the past, but these were stamped CYCLO Made in England, or Made in France. I've never seen any stamped BENELUX STAR, and in that script.
It amazes me the information still held in this forum, and in peoples' heads !!

Quite a bit of the flange, both sides, has been broken off - however the main cog cluster seems still useable. I'll hunt around for a 2nd-hand replacement base with a better flange, to mate it to - if one exists anywhere !!
Neil

 

[Leehm23]

Re:

What tool did you use to remove the freewheel? I have a Benelux star that is stuck on a wheel. I've tried the VAR cyclo/Regina tool but the tool diameter is too large

 

[keithglos]

Drop the freewheel apart, end plate LH thread. Put the body in a vice with the pawls in place, and with care it should come off undamaged. The vice pressure is critical, too much will squeeze the freewheel body into the threads and it will not undo.
With only 2 pawls it is easy to reassemble.
I doubt it was British made.

Keith

 

[Craigmount]

Hi there, as Keith has described, I ended up removing my Benelux freewheel using a vice, which I have in the garage.
In my case, the freewheel flange had been totally destroyed in a previous attempt to remove the freewheel (tho' not by me! )

My own experience was that the task looked daunting, but was easier than I expected.
You'll need to remove the front plate (reverse thread), and the 5-cog cluster (catch all the ball-bearings!), and I also removed the 2 ears, and swung the 2 hair springs out of the way (see attached pic).
Then I mounted the freewheel base in the vice, being careful to pinch it but without crushing it (as per Keith's note above). Unscrew by turning the wheel anti-clockwise.

Good luck with the task … hope it works out!