Hi, not sure if I’m too late to the party but I’ve just done this today. I also had great difficulty getting the nut out - using the provided tool was no good and my spanner just started rounding off the flat sections. I resorted to a pair of mole grips on the non-flat section and luckily the nut came off (I guess I must have remembered to grease it when I first installed it) the hub and cassette then came off easily and the cog just slid on. I then managed to use the supplied tool to tighten it. If you completely knacker the nut getting it off you can get replacements directly from Elite or a number of UK shops sell the adaptor kits including all the bits for around £15.
Happy Zwifting!
Gary
I sorted everything in the end. The trainer seems calibrated now, but the nut is still mangled; it at least works. I’ve found the UK stockist (Bikes Parts) that sells the replacement parts, so anybody reading this, a quick Google search and you’ll be fine. No need to go through Elite.
Not sure how I’d ever get the nut off if I did need to change the hub, but for now it’s working again.
I really do think Zwift and its partners need to update instructions and manuals. This type of discussion is increasingly common.
I just tried to install the Zwift Cog on my Elite Suito and experienced the same issue. I Followed the instructions from both Zwift and Elite and the nut holding the free hub on the trainer bent and now I can neither install the cog nor return to using the cassette. I fear my trainer is ruined since I can’t get the outer nut back on to the axel to secure the bike to the trainer. What a waste of time and resources. I really wish Zwift and Elite tested this together prior to claiming compatibility. It’s clear after reading these threads that’s not the case. Ugh. Now my trainer is completely inoperable.
I’m not sure exactly what went wrong but you should take the whole thing to a bike mechanic. There are a lot of tricks for removing stuck threaded parts.
Paul, here’s what went wrong: Zwift claims out of the box compatibility with the Elite Suito. However, the Elite Suito comes with a pre-installed cassette and free hub. Removing the free hub is possible, but turns out to be more challenging than it should be. The issue with the Elite Suito is that even while using the proper tool, which I have and used, the nut holding the free hub in place is made of a very soft metal that rounds / bends (there is also an outer nut / spacer that secures the cassette and provides the necessary spacing for the thru-axel). Once this nut is rounded / bent it’s impossible to rethread the outer nut / spacer AND insert the thru-axel to attach the wheel. The solution would be to include a Zwift cog that attaches to the free hub OR to include a specially designed tool to remove the free hub nut that won’t bend the nut. The result is that my trainer is now completely inoperable since I can’t use the Zwift cog or the original cassette. This is not user error. I have plenty of experience with bike maintenance. This is a compatibility issue between the Zwift Cog and Elite Suito that is positioned as an out of the box upgrade / install. Others appear to have had the same issue.
I’m not trying to defend Zwift’s design decisions. The Cog can be removed from its included freehub and installed on the original freehub that came with the trainer, but since stuff got damaged it’s time to think about how to repair it and get you back on your bike. As a mechanic with shop experience, I would be looking to put a very stout wrench on that nut, and possibly grind the deformed parts to make them flat again (and fit a different size tool on it) then use something like a quick release skewer to clamp the tool to the nut with a big washer, and then light taps on it with a hammer to see if I can break it free. That would be just one thing to try. If I thought I could get a penetrating lubricant into the threads I would do that as well.
Hi Matthew,
I’m having the same issue with a distorted rotating nut. How did you manage to fit the thru-axle adapter into it and get it to turn?
Thanks in advance!