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Looking for a new wheelset, & it's pretty hard to ignore the value of Superstars builds. What is the STW collective's experience of Switch Evo hubs?? ... or should I just ignore the budget & shell out for some Hope Hoops??
My 2p's worth.
I've got both.
The SS hubs are great IME - no problems - easy to take apart & service / check.
The rims are great. Stiff - no dings.
The bit inbetween (mainly the build I guess) needs a tweak from new. Otherwise - fine.
Overall - much better value than my hope pro / flow's that squeak (freehub seal is too big!) and munch pawl springs.
Anyway- that's likely to be a very unpopular view on here - but it only cost me 2p!
/Edit - I should say: that's SS AM rims. And you dont get the loud freehub sound - not as quiet as shimano but still quiet/
Been running a pair for about 4 years now, they've great. I replaced the bearings last year because I thought I should (they were still running fine) - didn't really make any difference! Goes to show how well they last - I know some people have had issues with the bearings, but they're cheap and easy to replace. I'm running the DH wheelset which have been solid as a rock but will probably get the AM for my new bike as they're a bit lighter.
I have two sets, dh and xc, both excellent, love them, better than the hope pro2 I had which just seemed to eat bearings. Wouldn't buy anything else.
I bought some, they were laced wrong and failed out on the trail..... i now run shimano wheels which are much stronger....
avoid.
I had a set of wheels built on them and they are excellent hubs, I now have Pro IIs and although the pawl mechanism is better on the Hopes, they aren't really any better, they are draggier and more poorly sealed than the Switches.
the superstar build was poor though, the non drive side rear popped and pinged from the start and soon some spokes were totally loose. Not sure I would buy again - depends if you are comfortable fixing the wheel coming loose on you.
Cheers for the replies guys. Looks like the general consensus would be to go for the wheels .... (but pray the wheelbuilder is having a good day!!) 🙂
Ive only got a switch evo front hub, not a superstar full build
Span pretty well from new (not like the proII draggy bearings stories)
Only issue when new was that the 20mm adapters seem quite wide. My Maxle axle lever side sits maybe ~1.5mm from the fork lowers. Ive tried a different hub in my fork and the maxle screws up tight
I quite like how the adapters attach, just pop on my hand, no tools required. Though I can see it might be possible to knock them on sometghing and lose one.
about 5months in (may-october, eastern england), not my main bike the bearings developed play and roughness. Was hoping they'd have lasted a bit longer
Once I sussed out how to bodge getting out the adapter base pieces stopping the bearings from coming out they weren't difficult to replace. Will see how long my £2 ebay bearings last ..
re: superstar build quality. If you're happy with the rim and spoke options available, you could always budget in sending them to a good shop/wheelbuilder to get them checked over/retrued and see if they're still they right price?
really really good. would be perfect if the rear hub was pro 2 loud 😛
Have front switch / rear trizoid. Probably done 500 or so miles last year as a second wheelset. Front hub no issues, rear hub is only just starting to make a few interesting noises which might need to be opened up and checked.
Build quality was poor, virtually fell apart after 2 rides but hey, I learnt a new skill in sorting them.
~My ProII / 4.2 wheelset are a couple of years older, probably 10 times the mileage and have just needed the rear bearings replacing once.
Next purchase will be another hope wheelset unless SS is massively cheaper
My mate's superstar built wheels failed at the switch hub fairly badly. Have been sent back under warranty but build quality looks suspect still. Probably fine but not confidence inspiring.
I have both and Pro2 bearings needed replacing after 18mths. Evo have been fine so far (6 mths). I inspected the Evo the other day and it looked fine.
Mates Evo freehub failed after about 10mths, but superstar replaced it for him - he got the steel version instead. Although the freehub is only £25 anyway.
I would definitely buy again. Build has been good, quality good, warranty good and parts are cheap if you do need to rebuild.
I'm thinking about getting some SS wheels too maybe.....
any updates on the quality, longevity?
Are switch bearings cartridge or are they loose like shimano? I assume these days everybody except big'S' are caged?
I have set of SS switch hubs on SS rims for 18 months - no problems.
I've just ordered SS switch hubs on Crest rims - we'll see.
Had some Superstar SS wheels (Front & Back)Buil;t with Flows
Still going strong after 2 yrs and have taken some abuse
- Rim: Superstar XC-430 Black
- Nipples: Red Alloy SAPIM SILS
- Hub Type Rear: Switch EVO Rear Hub - Red
- Hub Type Front: Switch EVO Front Hub - Red
- Adaptor Included F - SWITCH HUBS: QR Adaptor
- Adaptor Included R - SWITCH HUBS: QR Adaptor
- Rimtape: Included Free of Charge
- Spokes: Black Double Butted SAPIM Race S
Recommended
Coming up 20 months on these now, maybe 2000 offroad miles , apart from adjusting spoke tension on rear a couple of times and one snapped spoke, they've been hassle free.
I had problems with my new front hub as there was excessive play when using a 15mm thru axle. Replacing the bearings with some good quality ones seems to have fixed the problem.
Expect to hear lots of pinging and creaking when first used from the spokes.
I've a pair of SS Switch/ZTR Crest for 18 months+ - no issues.
Expect to hear lots of pinging and creaking when first used from the spokes.
Really? Tell-tale sign of an incomplete/poor build.
I've had a Tech2 EVO AM/Enduro 135 Switch wheelset since January and done 1,751.3km on them (thanks Strava). They were great from new until I had a big off in April buckling the front wheel and sending the chain into the rear drive side spokes. Sent them back to SSC care of Parcelfarce for £14 and they fixed and returned them for free which is pretty good IMO. The bearings aren't great and felt rough plus the front had some play but they're easy and cheap to replace ( http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/superstar-hubswhat-tools#post-4141196) and all bearings need replacing eventually. I'm happy with them and so is everyone else I know who has them.
I've had Switch/Flow wheels for almost 2yrs now. Spoke tension was awful, but they seem to be better at this now. The front bearings died after a couple of months (to be fair, they had been fully submerged in flood-waters a couple of times). The rear bearings went about 6 months ago. Replaced with cheap (£1 each on ebay) ones, which are actually lasting very well.
thanks for the replies, confidence in SS is growing 🙂
I have a pair of Superleggera tech 2 which I bought in 2009. The original alloy nipples failed on a ride so I sent then back and they were rebuilt with brass ones and were treated to new bearings for free. I've swapped the bearings myself once since then, and only occasionally need to tweak the spoke tensions.