New MTB wheels

[Steven Templeton]

Looking for new set of MTB wheels and after some assistance fellas.

Don't have discs (yet), currently use v-brakes. Looking for quality fit and
forget wheelset. I ride hard XC (20 miles offroad typically) with some small
drops and rock gardens. I weight approx 13 stone.

I have seen a pair LX on D521CD for £80 delivered. Are LX hubs of high
enough quality ? And will D521's be OK or too heavy.

Finally is this a decent price ? Or can anyone suggest anything better?

Thanks in advance

 

[Tony Raven]

Steven Templeton wrote:

> Looking for new set of MTB wheels and after some assistance fellas.
>
> Don't have discs (yet), currently use v-brakes. Looking for quality fit and
> forget wheelset. I ride hard XC (20 miles offroad typically) with some small
> drops and rock gardens. I weight approx 13 stone.
>
> I have seen a pair LX on D521CD for £80 delivered. Are LX hubs of high
> enough quality ? And will D521's be OK or too heavy.
>
> Finally is this a decent price ? Or can anyone suggest anything better?
>

If I were ordering personally I would get them from Merlin Cycles.
Their prices are pretty good but more importantly they are well built
and properly tensioned. I've seen a lot of MTB wheels that go out of
true but Merlin's have not been amongst them.

No relationship with the company as I build my own wheels.

Tony

 

[Moray Cuthill]

"Steven Templeton" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Looking for new set of MTB wheels and after some assistance fellas.
>
> Don't have discs (yet), currently use v-brakes. Looking for quality fit
> and
> forget wheelset. I ride hard XC (20 miles offroad typically) with some
> small
> drops and rock gardens. I weight approx 13 stone.
>
> I have seen a pair LX on D521CD for £80 delivered. Are LX hubs of high
> enough quality ? And will D521's be OK or too heavy.
>
> Finally is this a decent price ? Or can anyone suggest anything better?
>
> Thanks in advance
>

Don't get the LX hubs. I've got a rear LX hub, and i've got to clean the
bearings every couple weeks as the hubs seem to collect water at the first
sign of any dampness (I did manage 2 months cycling in dry weather only).
Personally i'd go for XT hubs, as they seem to get alot of good comments
made about them (I'm hoping to replace my rear wheel with an XT hub + mavic
XC717 soon).

moray

 

[Peter B]

"Steven Templeton" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I have seen a pair LX on D521CD for £80 delivered. Are LX hubs of high
> enough quality ? And will D521's be OK or too heavy.

LX hubs are shite, the RHS seal is useless and water will find its way not
only into the wheel bearing but also the freehub.
It's actually cheaper to buy a new hub complete and use the new freehub, RHS
cones and bearings and bin the body, how do I know this? :-(
(Since moved over to cartridge bearing hubs).

Pete

 

[Just zis Guy, you know?]

On Sat, 11 Sep 2004 14:58:07 +0000 (UTC), "Peter B"
<[email protected]> wrote in message
<[email protected]>:

>LX hubs are shite, the RHS seal is useless and water will find its way not
>only into the wheel bearing but also the freehub.

Really? I must replace mine instanter. After a couple of years
all-weather use amounting to about 8,000 miles it must be totally
shagged.

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

 

[Simon Brooke]

in message <[email protected]>, Just zis Guy,
you know? ('[email protected]') wrote:

> On Sat, 11 Sep 2004 14:58:07 +0000 (UTC), "Peter B"
> <[email protected]> wrote in message
> <[email protected]>:
>
>>LX hubs are shite, the RHS seal is useless and water will find its way
>>not only into the wheel bearing but also the freehub.
>
> Really? I must replace mine instanter. After a couple of years
> all-weather use amounting to about 8,000 miles it must be totally
> shagged.

You aren't using them under mountain bike conditions. I'd be horrified
if any serious mountain bike component couldn't stand up to 8,000 miles
of commuting. Not that I'm saying the LX hubs are shite because I
haven't used them, but I don't think that 100,000 miles of commuting
use says anything about whether a component is any use on a mountain
bike.

--
[email protected] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
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M- !d- PS++ PE-- Y+ PGP !t 5? X+ !R b++ !DI D G- e++ h*(-) r++ y+++
------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------

 

[James Annan]

Simon Brooke wrote:

>
> You aren't using them under mountain bike conditions. I'd be horrified
> if any serious mountain bike component couldn't stand up to 8,000 miles
> of commuting. Not that I'm saying the LX hubs are shite because I
> haven't used them, but I don't think that 100,000 miles of commuting
> use says anything about whether a component is any use on a mountain
> bike.

That may be true for some components like handlebars, but doesn't seem
so obviously true for the effectiveness of the hub seals, which will
still get attacked by dirty water (although perhaps will be less
frequently fully submerged) when commuting.

The only hubs I have had which failed from this problem are Hope Big'un
(x2, bits of the ratchet teeth were snapped off in each case).

James
--
If I have seen further than others, it is
by treading on the toes of giants.
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/julesandjames/home/

 

[Peter B]

"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Sat, 11 Sep 2004 14:58:07 +0000 (UTC), "Peter B"
> <[email protected]> wrote in message
> <[email protected]>:
>
> >LX hubs are shite, the RHS seal is useless and water will find its way
not
> >only into the wheel bearing but also the freehub.
>
> Really? I must replace mine instanter. After a couple of years
> all-weather use amounting to about 8,000 miles it must be totally
> shagged.


I bought an mtb with LX hubs at the end of '99. It's used in all weathers,
all year off road (proper mtbing not an occasional foray along a towpath).
The first time I decided I ought to service it the hub was knackered, full
of rusty balls and water rather than grease of any description. I put this
down to perhaps poor lubrication when assembled and an overlong period
before service.
I fitted a new hub, loads of grease, but when I remembered I ought to
service it the story was the same.
I fitted another new hub and think I managed to service it successfully once
after a very short period but next time I went to service it it was U/S.
This was at the end of '03 and I replaced it with a Hope. I don't need to
be faffing about servicing a hub every other week.
In contrast the Chorus hubs on my ex road bike never had any problems in
perhaps 30,000 to 40,000 miles but then again were never subjected to wet
Peak District peat.
YMMV.

(The front hub and the LHS of the rear have been fine).

Pete

 

[Just zis Guy, you know?]

On Sat, 11 Sep 2004 22:35:03 GMT, Simon Brooke <[email protected]>
wrote in message <[email protected]>:

>>>LX hubs are shite, the RHS seal is useless and water will find its way
>>>not only into the wheel bearing but also the freehub.

>> Really? I must replace mine instanter. After a couple of years
>> all-weather use amounting to about 8,000 miles it must be totally
>> shagged.

>You aren't using them under mountain bike conditions. I'd be horrified
>if any serious mountain bike component couldn't stand up to 8,000 miles
>of commuting.

All-weather commuting? On salted roads? It's pretty harsh on
drivetrain components, you know.

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

 

[Simon Brooke]

in message <[email protected]>, Just zis Guy,
you know? ('[email protected]') wrote:

> On Sat, 11 Sep 2004 22:35:03 GMT, Simon Brooke <[email protected]>
> wrote in message <[email protected]>:
>
>>>>LX hubs are shite, the RHS seal is useless and water will find its
>>>>way not only into the wheel bearing but also the freehub.
>
>>> Really? I must replace mine instanter. After a couple of years
>>> all-weather use amounting to about 8,000 miles it must be totally
>>> shagged.
>
>>You aren't using them under mountain bike conditions. I'd be horrified
>>if any serious mountain bike component couldn't stand up to 8,000
>>miles of commuting.
>
> All-weather commuting? On salted roads? It's pretty harsh on
> drivetrain components, you know.

Nothing like as harsh as being bottom-bracket deep in mud, or fording
non-trivial streams. Essentially commuting never normally sees your
hubs immersed in anything. It's a whole other world out there.

--
[email protected] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
Windows 95:
You, you, you! You make a grown man cry...
M. Jagger/K. Richards

 

[Just zis Guy, you know?]

On Sun, 12 Sep 2004 14:35:05 GMT, Simon Brooke <[email protected]>
wrote in message <[email protected]>:

>>>You aren't using them under mountain bike conditions. I'd be horrified
>>>if any serious mountain bike component couldn't stand up to 8,000
>>>miles of commuting.

>> All-weather commuting? On salted roads? It's pretty harsh on
>> drivetrain components, you know.

>Nothing like as harsh as being bottom-bracket deep in mud, or fording
>non-trivial streams. Essentially commuting never normally sees your
>hubs immersed in anything. It's a whole other world out there.

I've been through floods which came above the BB on my tourer before
now. Knackered my old cup and cone BB, but didn't kill the LX rear
hub; at annual strip and clean it was still in fine shape

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

 

[Simon Brooke]

in message <[email protected]>, James Annan
('[email protected]') wrote:

> The only hubs I have had which failed from this problem are Hope
> Big'un (x2, bits of the ratchet teeth were snapped off in each case).

Was this on the tandem, or on singles? I had understood Hopes were quite
good.

--
[email protected] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
.::;===r==\
/ /___||___\____
//==\- ||- | /__\( MS Windows IS an operating environment.
//____\__||___|_// \|: C++ IS an object oriented programming language.
\__/ ~~~~~~~~~ \__/ Citroen 2cv6 IS a four door family saloon.

 

[Peter B]

"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news[email protected]...

> >> Really? I must replace mine instanter. After a couple of years
> >> all-weather use amounting to about 8,000 miles it must be totally
> >> shagged.

Thinking about it Guy it quite possibly could be so but of course if you
haven't looked you won't know what state your balls are in. Regular
examination is reccomended

Pete

 

[Peter B]

"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> I've been through floods which came above the BB on my tourer before
> now. Knackered my old cup and cone BB, but didn't kill the LX rear
> hub; at annual strip and clean it was still in fine shape

Yebbut mine didn't last a year each. One failure can be an anomaly but not
three, especially as I became aware of a potential problem and thought I was
taking adequate steps.
The mtb I had prior to the one with LX hubs had a pre Parralax XT hub and
this proved trouble free for 6 years (still got it, still use it) even
though on the face of it the sealing looked inferior to the LX.

Pete

 

[Just zis Guy, you know?]

On Sun, 12 Sep 2004 16:17:22 +0000 (UTC), "Peter B"
<[email protected]> wrote in message
<[email protected]>:

>> I've been through floods which came above the BB on my tourer before
>> now. Knackered my old cup and cone BB, but didn't kill the LX rear
>> hub; at annual strip and clean it was still in fine shape

>Yebbut mine didn't last a year each. One failure can be an anomaly but not
>three, especially as I became aware of a potential problem and thought I was
>taking adequate steps.

So: LX fine for all-year-round use as long as you don't ride through
mud. Will that do?

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

 

[Just zis Guy, you know?]

On Sun, 12 Sep 2004 15:46:44 +0000 (UTC), "Peter B"
<[email protected]> wrote in message
<[email protected]>:

>> >> Really? I must replace mine instanter. After a couple of years
>> >> all-weather use amounting to about 8,000 miles it must be totally
>> >> shagged.

>Thinking about it Guy it quite possibly could be so but of course if you
>haven't looked you won't know what state your balls are in. Regular
>examination is reccomended

I examine my balls regularly, in line with all the best advice ;-)

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

 

[James Annan]

Simon Brooke wrote:

> in message <[email protected]>, James Annan
> ('[email protected]') wrote:
>
>
>>The only hubs I have had which failed from this problem are Hope
>>Big'un (x2, bits of the ratchet teeth were snapped off in each case).
>
>
> Was this on the tandem, or on singles? I had understood Hopes were quite
> good.

It was on the tandem, but it was almost certainly precipitated by water
(dirt) getting in.

One of the hubs was only about 4 days old, but that was 4 days of
TransRockies racing.

James
--
If I have seen further than others, it is
by treading on the toes of giants.
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/julesandjames/home/

 

[James Annan]

Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:

>
> So: LX fine for all-year-round use as long as you don't ride through
> mud. Will that do?

That would appear to rule out MTBing use, which was the point of the
sub-thread...

James
--
If I have seen further than others, it is
by treading on the toes of giants.
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/julesandjames/home/

 

[Just zis Guy, you know?]

On Mon, 13 Sep 2004 06:18:09 +0900, James Annan
<[email protected]> wrote in message
<[email protected]>:

>> So: LX fine for all-year-round use as long as you don't ride through
>> mud. Will that do?

>That would appear to rule out MTBing use, which was the point of the
>sub-thread...

Yeah, yeah. I am happy to concede that LX hubs are nowhere near as
good as Hope, but I don't think they are shite. In particular, they
are probably no more shite than the mostly percent of MTB hubs out
there in the wild which are lower spec (e.g. standard Deore, which
appear to be made of cheese).

Once a fortnight use? Probably not an issue. Six hours of
mud-plugging every week? Probably a big deal.

I'm also wondering to what extent the wash-down process might be
contributing to the failures.

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

 

[Peter B]

"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I'm also wondering to what extent the wash-down process might be
> contributing to the failures.

In my case Guy I use a light sprinkle of water to loosen the grime then
brush & cloth with car shampoo to remove grime followed by a light sprinkle
of water to wash off residue.
I never, ever use a jet wash, kiss of death to bearings IMO, and never point
a strong hose jet at the bike.
My philosophy is that the bike should be able to be used in a rain storm
and therefore so long as my cleaning method doesn't exceed what a rain storm
can deliver I've breached no limits.
This is the same method I used with the XT hubs and in fact also with my
road bikes, albeit less frequently in the latter case.

I only wonder if the cupped metal disc designed to create a labyrinth in
fact somehow acts as a pump to force water past the rubber lip seal on the
freehub, but I don't wonder to the point of loosing sleep.

Regarding Hope hubs: The OP was considering a complete pair of wheels for 80
quid, a rear Hope XC hub costs nearly this amount alone and if he's on a
budget is clearly too expensive so I could hardly recommend one with his
cost criteria. But if he expects to ride often throughout the year then an
LX hub might prove a problem and taking a longer view of 4 or 5 years a
better hub would return its higher initial cost, but of course if he doesn't
have the money in the first place...
If the OP wants to ride mainly in fair weather and is prepared to check the
rear hub often then the LX may very well do the job, and if on a budget
will have to do it.
I am in no position to reccomend an alternative budget hub, my comment was
based on my own experience and was meant to be an informed opinion, the
adjective used was perhaps not subtle but my opinion remains

Pete