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I need a reasonable priced replacement for the busted hub on my new to me bike. I'll get local wheel builder to rebuild the pretty much brand new rim into it.
Needs to be reliable and I can get parts for. Also needs to be affordable, (ideally) 6 bolt, (definitely) 148/Boost x 12mm, 32h, and 11sp HG cassette fitting.
Going on an Orange Stage Evo, I'm a big lad but ride smoothly and wheels mainly on floor, but often rocky Highland trails.
I'm a fan of DT Swiss (even the cheaper pawl ones) and Shimano. I can get new Shimano XT for £60 and struggling to see much beyond them at the moment...
Hope Pro5
And affordable aren't really the same...
I’ve got XT hubs on some EX511 rims and they are silky smooth. I’ve had zero issues with them in about 4 years of use and they’re still running beautifully. Lots of haters due to them being cup and cone but I honestly can’t see why. No more of a faff to maintain, arguably less as they seem to go on forever…
If you can live with centre lock (and a bit of extra beef) shimano also do some cartridge bearing hubs these days as part of the CUES rage:
this one is only £40 from sjs
for a few pounds more swinnerton have the slightly fancier version.
as a counter to the above I’ve got XT hubs on one of my bikes and have had zero issues with them for a few years now despite my zero maintenance approach to the standard bearings.
I had an XT rear hub for four years, and never had to touch it. I reckon £60 for one of those is a good deal.
Hope Pro5
And affordable aren’t really the same…
I'm still running XCs that are over 20 years old.
A second hand Pro5 or 4 will still be going in 20 years time. Will a Shimano?
Higher up front cost, yes, but over time I'd argue they are affordable. Buy once cry once.
A second hand Pro5 or 4 will still be going in 20 years time. Will a Shimano?
True.
But some arsehole will have decided the the next new standard is 20mm rear axles for all by then....
And I've broken one Pro4 (shell cracked), and The Destroyer of Wheels that is my son has broken two Pro5 hubs, one of which resides in the shed with knackered ratchet and dented bearing shell from where freehub imploded...
Bike Tart had some really good offers on DT 350's the last time I looked.
I’ve got XT hubs on some EX511 rims and they are silky smooth. I’ve had zero issues with them in about 4 years of use and they’re still running beautifully. Lots of haters due to them being cup and cone but I honestly can’t see why.
The reason there's lots of haters is because the bearings are absolutely tiny in the modern through axle hubs and freehubs sadly! There simply isn't the room for the bigger (MUCH longer lasting and more durable) bearings that there was in the old QR hubs with their thinner axles... The seals aren't what they used to be either.
Simply put, I've seen way too many Shimano through axle hubs (XT, SLX, Deore or below, no experience of XTR on newer stuff) die prematurely to even think about recommending them! And this is from someone who was a die hard Shimano hub fan for a very long time, precisely because when everything was QR, their hubs used to last forever with minimal maintenance...
Hope Pro5
And affordable aren’t really the same…
Buy cheap, buy twice... Hope Pro5 is one of the more affordable modern hubs that I could actually recommend. They are reliable, last a long time, spares are readily available etc... You can't say all of those things for any cheaper hub that I can think of!
And I’ve broken one Pro4 (shell cracked), and The Destroyer of Wheels that is my son has broken two Pro5 hubs, one of which resides in the shed with knackered ratchet and dented bearing shell from where freehub imploded…
Hopes warranty and backup is legendary! How come you haven't given them a shout to see what they can do to fix/replace said hubs...?
I've had mixed success with Pro 4. Cracked free hubs, poor quality bearings.
So far I'm impressed with the Erase V2 hub (rebranded as Yama) They use good Japanese bearings and when I've opened the hub to check them they've been fresh as a daisy.
No idea of cost as I got them in a wheel build (FR541 wheelsets for £375).
What do you need to do to destroy a hub shell?
A few thousand miles / 5 years and one day, while literally 'just riding along' on a road bang....Spoke flange had cracked and was pulling away...
There simply isn’t the room for the bigger (MUCH longer lasting and more durable) bearings that there was in the old QR hubs with their thinner axles…
Ah I see. Makes sense. I wasn’t aware of that - cheers for the explanation!
I'm a fan of XT too. I have both older (QR) versions and newer (thru-axle) versions (M8000 FWIW). Absolutely faultless. Sealing on the XT seems to be much better than the Deore/SLX versions so they seem to run forever. When I say that I have M8000s on my bikepacking hardtail, and you've seen some of my photos, you'll appreciate some of the conditions I've put them through 😀
The cheaper DT hubs now have the ratchet freehub and would be a decent option
There simply isn’t the room for the bigger (MUCH longer lasting and more durable) bearings that there was in the old QR hubs with their thinner axles…
I've pondered this before. You end up with two axles in a rear hub. One comes with the frame and a 12mm OD, the other with the hub and typically a 17mm OD.
Why not get a steel 12mm axle with a tight enough finish to run the bearings directly on it, then go back be bearings with a 12mm bore?
The initial hub cost is only a small part If you're paying for a rebuild with new spokes.
What do you need to do to destroy a hub shell?
I have cracked 2 Hope hub shells, a Hope hub flange (70 miles from home - that was a long walk), and a couple of freehubs.
But Hope have sorted me out every time, often with a complete rebuild.
Novatec are now doing a ratchet hub now that the DT Swiss patent has expired. It's about £90.
I have zero experience with it but I would hope that it would be better than any pawl-based hub.
DT for life! Which would appear to be how long my 350s are going to last me.
Good warranty backup should not excuse high rate of failure, didn't help me when my Hope XC spat it's guts all over the GT car park 🙄
I’ve cracked a Hope Pro 2 hub shell, snapped a Hope Pro 3 rear axle and had a flange break on a Pro 4. All fixed by Hope, but hardly reliable. Similarly, I’ve had XTR and XT hubs which have had the races degrade and can’t be repaired. DT Swiss 370 and 240 have only ever needed bearings, but still it’s a need for replacement parts.
Industry 9 were the worst - went through bearings and pawls like they were Haribo. Really poor for an expensive hub. They also froze a couple of times (Same as a Hope Pro3)
My only faultless hubs have been CK.
Take a look at Bitex hubs, I have their 211 on my XC MTB, Novatecs were advised during my build if hard riding but the 211 have been fine for XC only for me.
IME bitex over novatec. The stock bearings in novatec hubs arent as good, whereas my bitex just kept on going.
In the true spirit of Single Track. I have had a Hope single speed hub since about 2006ish. It survived years on my Kona Unit until the frame snapped and then more years on my Surly Ogre until the chain stay snapped.
These were commuter bikes and covered about 50,000 miles. It has had a couple of sets of bearings and new pawls and springs.
There are lots of people on here saying that things break in 5 mins and others who have had them for years with no problem (Shimano brake leaks) but there are also lot of variables in use. Hub flanges can be fatigued by poor wheel building etc, bearing life is much greater the less time the hubs spend submerged in water.
Another here with broken pro 4 hub shells and excessive flex the though pawl interface resulting in either blown pawls, chewed drive ring teeth or both.
I've not risked the pro5 to the same fate. To be fair to hope and all other hub makers they're trying to package bearings into a tiny space with ID and OD limitations.
I've settled on dt350s. Bearings are not really appreciably any better than anything else, but the DT star ratchet at least helps to isolate them from the drivetrain forces and they don't blow up like the pawls and drive ring in the pro4.
The only pair of Hope hubs I ever had both had flange failures. None of my DTs, some of which are way older, have.
I’m a Hope Pro4 / Pro5 user but appreciate they are out of budget and you’ve had a bad experience with them.
In which case I’d shop around for DT Swiss 370(new ratchet version) or 350 or I’d buy the Bitex rear hub. I suggested my mate get one a few years back and he’s been bashing it round the Surrey hills on a hardtail with no maintenance required at all so far.
Think my mate bought this one, but looks like they make a heavy duty option too:
https://bitexhubs.co.uk/product/bx211r-boost-rear/
DT Swiss 370 and 240 have only ever needed bearings, but still it’s a need for replacement parts.
Bearings are consumables, at least you can replace them unlike in a Shimano where if the cup goes it's a write off.
Actually, if I was in the market for hubs, I'd probably give the Oneups a go. It's effectively a DT hub design wise.
Bearings are consumables, at least you can replace them unlike in a Shimano where if the cup goes it’s a write off.
I agree, but I always think it's impressive that Chris King hubs seem to never need bearings My oldest set is now 22 years old and they're as smooth as the ones I got only a few months ago. My commuter hubs must've now done over 50000km in all kinds of crappy weather, standing outside for 10-12 hours a day, several days a week and again, they're perfect.
They can (if required) be serviced in the hub and it takes 10 mins.