If you’ve played roller hockey for awhile you’ve probably encountered a stuck axle bolt at one point. If you haven’t experienced this yet, just wait because you will eventually. This can be very frustrating, especially when you are trying to rotate your wheels in a hurry. You want to be careful when freeing a frozen bolt because if you let your carelessness get the best of you, you might damage your hardware.
Here are some tips that I’ve put together based off the many times I’ve come across this problem.
- After your bolt is loosened, leave your allen key in the hole and push firmly on the bolt to push the other side out
- Lightly tap on the bolt when it’s protruding (see front wheel on above image) with the butt end of your stick. Don’t hit it to hard or you may damage the threads
- Give the bolt a quarter turn and try pushing it out with your finger. Sometimes hardware gets warped, giving it an oblong shape as opposed to being perfectly round
- Do not use grease or other lubricant when inserting bolts into the chassis. They may slide in easy, but they will be difficult to get out
Have you ever dealt with a stuck axle? What advice would you give?
