Thoughts on hubs

[MaineSkiAddict1]

This thread got me thinking about hub upgrades I was looking to do to the stock WTB i23/ DT Swiss 350 combo I'm using now.

Looking at some I9's but can't find info as to whether or not there are spoke compatibility issues with the i23's. Anyone have experience with them?

*EDIT - yes, I know both have a 32 spoke count *

[toast2266]

I have I9's laced to WTB i25's (with I9's aluminum spokes). No issue there.

The engagement / pawls / driver body on the I9's is fantastic and the spokes help produce a stiff wheel, however the bearings have revealed themselves to be slightly less fantastic. After a couple years of use, while the bearings aren't shot, they're not anywhere near as smooth as I would expect from a high dollar hub.

[MaineSkiAddict1]

I have I9's laced to WTB i25's (with I9's aluminum spokes). No issue there.

The engagement / pawls / driver body on the I9's is fantastic and the spokes help produce a stiff wheel, however the bearings have revealed themselves to be slightly less fantastic. After a couple years of use, while the bearings aren't shot, they're not anywhere near as smooth as I would expect from a high dollar hub.

Good to know, thanks! I wonder about some King's vs. the Torches on long range durability? I had considered them but the Torches seem to get much more love from the LBS that deals with both. Sadly, demo wheels aren't available.

[Finstah]

My vote would be DT 240s or Shimano XTR if weight is your priority. Hadley or Chris King if points of engagement is your priority.

[beaterdit]

Don't overlook Hope. The Pro2 EVO 40 tooth has acceptable engagement angles, it's light and durable, and pretty affordable.

[toast2266]

Good to know, thanks! I wonder about some King's vs. the Torches on long range durability? I had considered them but the Torches seem to get much more love from the LBS that deals with both. Sadly, demo wheels aren't available.

Mine are the classics, for whatever that's worth. Wife has some torches which seem to be alright, but they're only ~10 months old. The torches are quite a bit lighter, which is nice, but that doesn't leave me with the impression that bearing quality is significantly improved.

[jm2e]

Buddy I ride with bought a set of i9 Torch wheels. He has a perma-boner for the engagement point and I don't see him ever riding anything else because of it.
That said, he had bearings die after less than a month. Then he spent 2 months getting i9 to deal with it. After dropping $1200 bucks, I thought they should have bent over backward and replaced the wheel or sent him a loaner while they fixed his hubs. Instead, he chased them down with several emails and several phone calls until they sent him the wrong size bearing and then the whole runaround again to get the right sized bearing. Fortunately, he found and bought and replaced the bearing on his own while he waited for them to "get it right" on principle.
His other regret is getting the straight pull hubs. Means he's 1000x less likely to ever build them up with a different rim (i.e. Carbon) down the road. Pretty much stuck with the identical hub unless you want to pay a Meeeliion dollars for Al spokes and deal with the p.i.t.a of figuring out straight pull spoke lengths.

[jm2e]

Anybody ride with these?
http://www.bikehubstore.com/product-p/mtb270.htm
Really nice POE and fantastic price.

Is there any reason to pay a bunch of money for a front hub, other than to match the rear? I kind of figure the front hub is a no brainer bit of engineering that everyone's pretty much got dialed in, and spending big bucks on one is silly.

[Chugachjed]

I pretty much only ride Hadley anymore. Great bearings simple to maintain bomber and made in 'Murica.

[ticketchecker]

x2 on Hadley

[Catch22]

Just curious, what is the shortcoming of the 350 that you are trying to improve upon? You're basically on a slightly heavier 240, definitely a great hub as is. If faster engagement is what you want (assuming the 350 rear already has the 36 point star ratchet setup) I think it's King or Hadley. I'm on a set of Kings that I bought new in 2010. I haven't touched the bearings and they still roll great. I'll typically pull the freehub body once a year and clean out the lube and apply some fresh but that's all they've seen in maintenance. I'd buy them again in a heartbeat. Only issue I see with Kings is I wish the stainless freehub was a little less money. I'm still on my original alu freehub but the single cogs have chewed it up pretty good(usually file down a few burs each time I swap cassettes). I've only ridden Hadleys a couple times but they seem like a great option. Quick engagement and sounds like they are low maintenance as well. I've heard too many issues with I9 out here in UT to pay the premium price for them. Nearly every issue I've heard has been bearing related as well so I've chalked it up to not being sealed well enough for our fine UT dust/sand.

Hopes are a great hub at a better price but I think of them as more of a lateral move from the DTs as engagement is about the same and both are reliable and pretty simple to service.

[bsavery]

DT Swiss 240. You won't go wrong.

[MaineSkiAddict1]

Just curious, what is the shortcoming of the 350 that you are trying to improve upon? You're basically on a slightly heavier 240, definitely a great hub as is. If faster engagement is what you want (assuming the 350 rear already has the 36 point star ratchet setup)

Pretty much this. After trying a set of Torches on a friend's ride, I've been disappointed in the engagement on the 350's. I am not at all married to the I9's so looking at some King's or Hadley's is definitely a possibility. For me, rider weight is more of a concern than component weight. (at least, hub weight)

[scrublover]

IMO, Hadley is the way to go. Whatever axles you need, easy to swap. Easy to work on, though will rarely if evrr need to.

Yeah, sure they have no website. I've ordered up parts direct from them, via phone and had them in my grubby hands within a couple days.


These guys www.balleracing.com are fantastic to deal with if you need small parts and feel the need to get them online.

Does not sound as if you're on too strict a budget, but Hope stuff is pretty great for the money

[creaky fossil]

I've been riding the same set of Hadley hubs for 10 yrs, some of those years they saw little use, but they've only needed a few clean/relube visits for the rear hub and seals replacement 1x in that time. They're on the 4th set of rims laced to them. Never an issue of slop/hiccup. Might not be lightest you'll find but I don't think hub weight is such a big deal, much rather save rim weight. I've also had super-friendly very fast service from them each time I've called. Don't let the lack of website tell you anything about the hubs or the company. They just keep it smaller/simpler. Wouldn't you rather save money as a result?

[reynolds.trailrun]

I highly recommend Hadleys. High engagement especially if you can find an older 108pt engagement. The 72 pt is still really high. I open them up every 6 months or so just to clean and re-lube. Never really noticed much inside despite riding year-round here in the PNW. I also have a set of classic I9s. Just opened those up and had to replace a few pawl springs that had snapped. Other than that they seemed okay despite lots of riding and little maintenance in two years.

[shirk]

Anybody ride with these?
http://www.bikehubstore.com/product-p/mtb270.htm
Really nice POE and fantastic price.

I built up a set of these hubs late last season. Their first ride a bearing in the freehub imploded and ground the ball bearings flat.

I punched out the bearing and put in a new one, they've been great since.

I like that with some gear oil on the pawls instead of grease they are near silent. I've been riding a Hope hub for the last couple years and grew to dis-like the loud Hope buzzz. The Hope's will get rebuilt onto another wheelset eventually, but till then I am enjoying the silence.

For the price I don't think the BHS can be beat.

[chatton18]

profile elites ftw.

actually they do need the bearings replaced every couple years and are a little high in the drag department, but my god do those 204 POE sound sweet and make tech riding much easier

[MaineSkiAddict1]

Is there any reason to pay a bunch of money for a front hub, other than to match the rear? I kind of figure the front hub is a no brainer bit of engineering that everyone's pretty much got dialed in, and spending big bucks on one is silly.

I assume as much as well.

I've been doing some digging on Hadley's stuff. It looks like about $290 give or take for a 142/12. Does this sound about in line with what others have found?

Thanks all for the insight. I appreciate it.

[Chugachjed]

Sounds about right.

[creaky fossil]

Sounds good outside the inside. I bought my current Hadley hubs from Balle Racing back when, and a couple years back bought a Hadley SS rear hub from him. His prices seem the best/equal to best you'll find outside a hookup or blowout. Universal Cycles has had blowout Hadleys in odd colors or sizes in the past, might be worth checking there and using VIP15/VIP10 codes to see what they charge.

[chatton18]

I assume as much as well.

I've been doing some digging on Hadley's stuff. It looks like about $290 give or take for a 142/12. Does this sound about in line with what others have found?

Thanks all for the insight. I appreciate it.

The flange diameter can also make a little difference in how stiff wheels are by allowing you to use a shorter spoke if you really want to get technical about it.

Otherwise, they're all about the same if its a sealed bearing, just make sure you get something that uses decent bearings and they dont do okay machine work. Otherwise there's no reason to pay for CK bling. Shimanos are also an interesting option in front since they can be set to spin forever and are usually pretty cheap. They require a little more frequent maintenance, but its a lot easier to clean those out than pressing in new bearings.

[jm2e]

Don't you need special tools from Hadley to do any maintenance on them?
If so, seems like it'd make sense to factor that into their value.

[Chugachjed]

The special tool is 2 odd but not hard to find cone wrenches like 17 and 22 or 25.

[creaky fossil]

Just these two, which may already be in some people's tool kits: 21mm spanner and red Park pin spanner. That walkthrough works for my Hadley rear hubs, I doubt newer ones are radically different.