Shimano Alfine 11 internal gear hub feels like braking

Manufacturer: Shimano
Type: Alfine SG-S7001-11

Description of failure

The bike with the gear system feels like it is being braked. Even short distances of, say, 5 km feel more like cycling 15 km. If you simply push the raised rear wheel with your hand, it stops after a short time. On comparable bikes, the rear wheel spins for significantly longer. This bicycle has been riding like this since it was purchased new.

Failure investigation

First, check whether the belt tension is correct. There is an app for android / iOS. The Shimano manual points out two different suggestions

  • Internal defect of gear hub, and

  • the cone of the wheel is too tight and blocks the bearings.

First, it should be checked if the is any damage on the internal gear hub. Details should be checked according to Radambulanz. The following image shows the hub gear disassembled. Care should be taken to ensure cleanliness so that no dirt enters the interior of the hub during reassembly. The gears should be checked for broken corners and irregularities. In general, with a little skill, the hub is easy to disassemble and reassemble.

Second, the Shimano service manual states that the cone lock nut should be adjusted so that the wheel can be turned easily, but there should be no bearing play. If the bearing play is adjusted as described (without bearing play), the wheel can still be turned easily, but no longer smoothly when the wheel is mounted on the bike. Without the frame mounted, the force pushes outward and the balls in the bearing can move freely. When the frame is mounted, an additional force is exerted on the balls despite the lock nuts, which further reduces the previously non-existent bearing play.

At this point, it must be clearly stated that a slight amount of bearing play (not mounted in frame) must be allowed in order for the wheel to turn smoothly when mounted in frame. Even if it seems to make little difference, this small difference is important! The wheel must then be re-installed in the frame to check whether it still turns smoothly when screwed in place. If necessary, the adjustment process must be repeated iteratively.

After approximately 6 months with minimal bearing play, no oil loss could be detected at the hub. But the bike rides very well again.