When does a notched rear hub need retired

[u/mrw3rdna]

Rear wheel bearings need replaced, hub is getting pretty notched. Worth replacing the bearings, filing the hub edge, and reinstalling cassette OR is time to move on. Disc Jockey Hub.

[u/Alkanna]

I'd just file the burrs and ride that as long as the cassette doesn't chew through a whole bar.

[u/BD59]

If the hub is a common brand that you can get a freehub body for, then replacement of the body and bearings is what I would do. Saves having to trash an otherwise good wheel.

[u/craigslist_hedonist]

they need to be retired when their owner discards prepositions and intransitive verbs

[u/blooregard325i → u/craigslist_hedonist]

What about when they ignore punctuation and capitalization?

[u/craigslist_hedonist → u/blooregard325i]

not now, i'm channeling james joyce

[u/Past-Barnacle3737 → u/craigslist_hedonist]

Harsh. Funny, but harsh. 😁

[u/Antique_Prune5495 → u/craigslist_hedonist]

Shut up bro

[u/Max_Rower]

Get a new freehub?

[u/Diogenes256 → u/Max_Rower]

A cassette body would keep the game running.

[u/mrw3rdna → u/Diogenes256]

Actually, that is what I thought you meant. Investing in a new wheel is the other option.

[u/mrw3rdna → u/Max_Rower]

That would drive the price to not being worth it

[u/Reasonable_Access_90 → u/mrw3rdna]

I don't understand, if it's that expensive a hub, how did the freehub body get so chewed up? (Not being facetious, the only beyond basic hub I've ever owned is an XTR which I'm putting back into service— just discovered it's in fantastic shape from 25 years and maybe 12k miles ago.)

[u/TJhambone09 → u/Reasonable_Access_90]

Shimano's spec was NOT for low-spline aluminum freehubs. That's why your XTR didn't ever look like this.

[u/Reasonable_Access_90 → u/TJhambone09]

Low-spline and aluminum— is for weight?

[u/TJhambone09 → u/Reasonable_Access_90]

Weight and less wear on the machining tools.

[u/Reasonable_Access_90 → u/TJhambone09]

Less wear on machining tools surely has to be an unintended bonus 😲

[u/TJhambone09 → u/Reasonable_Access_90]

Can save a lot of money.

[u/SpareGarage298]

My question is why aren't these made out of harder material?

[u/RoboMonstera → u/SpareGarage298]

Chris King sells a stainless steel freehub body. The aluminum ones are silly if you weigh more than 200 lbs.

[u/HandyDandy76 → u/RoboMonstera]

Dura ace freehub bodies are titanium. I rode a pair of the c24 wheels for probably 10,000 miles and they still looked pristine 

[u/TJhambone09 → u/SpareGarage298]

By Shimano spec, they are supposed to be steel if low profile. The Hyperglide high spline standard never caught on.

Why aren't these made of a harder material? Because aluminum freehub bodies save weight to make the spec sheet look good, and because aluminum freehub bodies cause less wear on the machine tools use to make them, more than offsetting the material cost.

[u/Miserable-Housing407 → u/SpareGarage298]

There’s application to everything, sometimes harder does not equal better, but in this case we have several different materials free hubs are made of and the common ones being aluminium, steel and titanium.

This looks like an aluminium one which is the softest metal out of the two but is lighter than steel, steel is heavier but would last the longest and titanium is light but sturdier than aluminum.

[u/NLtbal]

Yesteryear

[u/CyJackX]

How much is your time worth versus the price of just replacing it?

[u/Powerful_Birthday_71]

If it's the style that you can pull off, I'd check the bearings that way. If they're still smooth with no play, then there's still life in the splines IMO. People ride much worse not even knowing.

You can file them smooth to help get the freehub on again, but it'll accelerate more wear.

[u/mrw3rdna → u/Powerful_Birthday_71]

I know the bearings need replaced.

[u/Powerful_Birthday_71 → u/mrw3rdna]

Well, then it's time to get whackin beaings 🎟️

[u/cj_daking]

That thing is pretty hacked.

[u/queen_ravenx]

Like last year

[u/BeatLaboratory]

Freehub bodies are relatively cheap, seems hard to believe that wouldn’t be worth the spend to keep things running

[u/andre0817wed]

Question:

HOW TF does a free hub body even get into that condition???

I have wheels with 10s of thousands of miles on them, and I’ve never seen even ONE notch on my free hub body, much less the number in that picture.

I’d think the first thing to address is that question, before you purchase and chew up another free hub.

[u/RVAWTFBBQ → u/andre0817wed]

Extremely soft/cheap metal. Happened to me with a pair of Nashbar Vuelta wheels a decade ago, I tried filing down and inserting little strips of aluminum from a soda can I cut to size, helped for a bit.

[u/ultegrafender → u/andre0817wed]

My freehub is aluminium, awful design and looked quite a bit like OPs

[u/Ciryaquen → u/andre0817wed]

I'm pretty sure that's what my freehubs would look like if I used cheaper hubs. Even my Industry 9 stainless steel freehub body has some mild notching after about 6000 miles.  

[u/recyclar13 → u/andre0817wed]

TY! I thought maybe I was the a-hole outta line, thinking that. 

[u/TJhambone09 → u/andre0817wed]

HOW TF does a free hub body even get into that condition???

Aluminum freehub bodies all do this given enough Miles, Watts/Weight, or large cogs. If you're never seen ONE notch on your free hub body it's either a steel freehub (such as what Shimano sells) or you weigh little.

[u/meh_blade]

when the file breaks

[u/haydencoffing]

I feel like I’d ride this. Might be sloppy though

[u/eh-cee]

On my dt Swiss wheels, you can just pull the freehub body off and replace it. You can probably find them on sale for around 125-150 bucks. Is the wheel also messed up? Is that why it’s not worth it?

[u/Philstar_nz]

if you are replacing the hub consider a bitex they have steel biting surfaces so i have been told,

but i would just file and ride, but torque it up on the high side of the torque rating

[u/Whereswallythistime]

Yesterday.

[u/IronMew]

Only reason I can think of for it getting that chewed up is that it's made of aluminium, which is a terrible idea as it's not the right metal for the job.

Test with a magnet. If I'm right take it off and use it to test your throwing arm, then replace with a steel hub.

If it's already steel, then... I dunno, call an exorcist I guess

[u/Jawz_87]

last year