[ggonzalez435]

Ok, hi, Im new at this, I bought my son a new bike (Huffy Rival, 21 speed), at Target. The rear wheel does not spin freely. If I hold the bike up and spin the rear wheel in the same direction it would spin if riding normally, it rapidly comes to a stop. Brakes are not rubbing, rim is true, tire is not flat, and there's nothing I can see caught in the hub, axle or freewheel.

Also, The freewheel does not seem to spin freely on the rear axle. If I'm riding forward and stop pedalling, or even just pedal a bit more slowly than required to match the speed of the bike, the chain droops almost to the point at which it begins falling off the front chainring. A hand inspection showed that the freewheel keeps rotating forward even when coasting, and this forces the chain to keep moving forward, drooping against the stopped front chainring.

LIke I said, I'm new at this, I copied almost all the names of parts and the first paragraphs from someone elses post, but it matches my problem almost word for word.
Any ideas on what might be causing this?

 

[ph0enix]

Why not return the bike to Target and get a working replacement (assuming it's new)?

 

[zoikz]

It's either a defect or the bike wasn't set up properly. Seems like it's coming from the hub or freewheel. Target should fix it for you.

 

[Kerry Irons]

Ok, hi, Im new at this, I bought my son a new bike (Huffy Rival, 21 speed), at Target. The rear wheel does not spin freely. If I hold the bike up and spin the rear wheel in the same direction it would spin if riding normally, it rapidly comes to a stop. Brakes are not rubbing, rim is true, tire is not flat, and there's nothing I can see caught in the hub, axle or freewheel.

Also, The freewheel does not seem to spin freely on the rear axle. If I'm riding forward and stop pedalling, or even just pedal a bit more slowly than required to match the speed of the bike, the chain droops almost to the point at which it begins falling off the front chainring. A hand inspection showed that the freewheel keeps rotating forward even when coasting, and this forces the chain to keep moving forward, drooping against the stopped front chainring.

Any ideas on what might be causing this?

Excess friction in the freehub (it's very unlikely it's a freewheel). This could be a lubrication problem or it might go away as things "wear in" but it is not something you should be experiencing with a new bike. As the others have suggested, take it back to Target and test a few other bikes to find one that doesn't do this.

 

[wim]

Check and see if a protrusion from a warped spoke protector is making contact with the back of the freewheel.

I've also seen freewheels come apart on almost new department store bikes, so there is a good chance that it is defective freewheel. As everyone said, take it back and complain about your unsafe-to-ride bike. Don't even try to advance a theory of why the thing doesn't work. No one at Target will have the slightest idea of what you're talking about.