First trail wheelset advice

The Duckmeister

The Duckmeister

Has a juicy midrange
Oddjob said:
Them too. Short of Peter Sagan and Adam Brayton I'm probably pretty close to the worst use case outside of e-bikes and tandems.

The wheelset that had the cracked XT spider is on my road bike, so it sees the most miles. I've got a power meter in it so I know that my threshold power is 375 watts (2.5w/kg, so Ineos aren't calling me any time soon) and peak is touching 2,000 watts. I've also managed to enlarge the bearing seat on the steel freehub on this wheelset to the point I need to use retaining compound.

It's not just this wheelset that munches the oem bearings though. I've had a pretty short life out of the inboard freehub bearing with every set of Hopes I've owned going back to the Pro2s and Pro3s. Normally the inner freehub bearings will be the first to go followed by the main bearings in the hub shell. The front bearings and the outer freehub bearings go forever. I think it's related to the choice of stainless steel bearings which pit more easily and then destroy the balls.

I now have Japanese KSM 6803 bearings for the inner freehub bearings and a mixture of KSM, Enduro and ceramic 6903 bearings for the hub shell and this seems to working well.

For comparison an I9 Torch freehub uses an Enduro 3803 which is essentially a double row 6803 for the inboard bearing and a 6903 and 6804 for the hub shell.

DT 240s use 2 of their own 6802 bearings in the freehub and 2x 6902 in the shell.

I haven't noticed a pattern of bearing wear in my I9 or DT hubs but I haven't had near as many kms on them either. The weak point on the I9s are the pawl coil springs, and for the DTs it's getting the drive ring off to change bearings.
Click to expand...
I've seen that pattern of bearing munching in pretty much every hub built to that principle, includin DT, Novatec & others.
 
Oddjob

Oddjob

Merry fucking Xmas to you assholes
The Duckmeister said:
I've seen that pattern of bearing munching in pretty much every hub built to that principle, includin DT, Novatec & others.
Click to expand...
I'm not surprised. I'm just trying to say that the Hope oem bearings seem to get munched quickly compared to the Enduro, KSM and Enduro bearings.

Just on that note. I find that while the Enduro bearings are good, the DT and KSM (and presumably every other japanese brand) bearings are a step up longevity wise.

Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk
 
H

HamboCairns

Thanks for all the bananas
Oddjob said:
I'm not surprised. I'm just trying to say that the Hope oem bearings seem to get munched quickly compared to the Enduro, KSM and Enduro bearings.

Just on that note. I find that while the Enduro bearings are good, the DT and KSM (and presumably every other japanese brand) bearings are a step up longevity wise.

Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Hunt wheels use Japanese bearings I believe.
 
Mattyp

Mattyp

Cows go boing
I have no idea I only use SKF or NSK.
There are plenty of fake/ripoffs out there too so I only buy through a reputable bearing supplier.
 
dazz

dazz

Downhill Dazz
Mattyp said:
I have no idea I only use SKF or NSK.
There are plenty of fake/ripoffs out there too so I only buy through a reputable bearing supplier.
Click to expand...
If you have a good bearing man, most sizes are available in 'full complement'. This means that there is no bearing cage and more balls to share the load. Result is a bearing with higher load carrying capacity but lower speed rating. They are also generally much dearer than a standard caged bearing due to being much less common. Usually an order in job.
INA are another good brand.
https://www.skf.com/au/products/rol...-deep-groove-ball-bearings-with-filling-slots
 
Last edited:
frenchman

frenchman

Eats cheese. Sells crack.
Mattyp said:
I have no idea I only use SKF or NSK.
There are plenty of fake/ripoffs out there too so I only buy through a reputable bearing supplier.
Click to expand...
And going by hunt using rebranded novatec hubs I’d bet that the bearings would be no different. Ezo aren’t terrible, but they aren’t great, still better than the ‘enduro’ shit though.
SKF, NTN and FAG are the ones to stick with.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top