Well,

I have finally sorted out my creak from the drive chain area and have eliminated everything except the rear wheel until now. I stripped down my single speed to use the wheel to see if it could be the rear hub and guess what, no more creaking when putting down some hard out of the saddle pedalling. It can only be the hub!
12 month old rear wheel/hub and used every weekend and around 40 miles give or take! Is this normal life for the bearings or am I just unlucky?
Or well, £35 I would imagine.
How often do the rest of you change the bearings in the pro 2 rear hub? How many miles should you get etc?
Regards.

It’s very variable, but basically tht bearings are too small because the hub is a compromised design, and generally don’t last as long as they should

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/hope-pro2-front-bearings-how-long-should-they-last

Cheers PeterPoddy!

DEPENDS HOW LONG YOUR PIECE OF STRING IS…..

is it the bearings or do you have loose spokes that are chafing on each other?

Bearings need not be 35 quid if shop around carefully.

I got fag ones off ebay for about half that price to do all the bearings in rear hub.

Andyl,

Thought about the spokes! But definitely doesn’t sound like spokes!

Depends on many things…I have reduced my riding mileage but seemed to have increased the level of mank I’m riding in…bearings are lasting about 2 years – which I’m not complaining about.

Front hub is much worse though – about 20 months first set, then 2 months and the next set seem to be holding up much better…I suspect the fronts go largely down to the braking force of the brake – larger disc more twisting force (in my head at least!)…

I’m not complaining, before sealed bearings I was wearing them out every 4 months (but I was doing 350 miles a week on the bike!).

Bloody Hell Dick! I dream of being able to do 350 miles per week on my bike, I would love it! I’ll just have to wait for my retirement! 😉

Aye, it was good…but I am talking over 10 years ago – had a girlfriend, college and a job in the bar – survived on 3 hours of sleep a night and I was biking all over the place…it was great – although being 6′ 1″ and weighing 9.5stones wasn’t a pretty look – I miss the amount of biking though…but I’ll get it back once the daughter has moved out (which will be in 15 years if I get my way or more likely very early 20’s if her mum has anything to do with it! – I’m planting the seed already but at 3 years old, she thinks it’s just a game!).

Downside to the high mileage (all done on a mountain bike in all weathers) was the amount of replacement parts needed…cassettes/chains were lasting me 3 months; chainrings, 4 months; cables every 3 months; tyres about 4 months (but I never changed them until they were properly gubbed) – bearings felt like every month…

Nowadays I think I’m getting about 350 miles every 6 months – parenting and a self-employed wife has kind of knocked any spare time I have had on the head…which is probably why my bearings are lasted a whole lot longer!!!

My Pro 2 bearings have lasted very well. Both are 2nd hand and I’ve had the front one since early 2009, rear one since January of this year. Ok so the bike doesn’t get used in constant rainy muddy gritty conditions but being a predominantly downhill/”freeride” rider now the bike does take a beating!

Hope should take a lesson from King, Mavic & others that use a system of preloading the bearings to compensate for wear.

Pro 2 bearings would last longer if they actually stop water and gunk getting into the freehub and pawls. XC hub I have , just rebuilt it with fresh bearings after 5 years and ride it everyday, although not always muddy, but have a significantly better life than the Pro 2’s I have. Amongst mates, I suppose I get to rebuild one Pro 2 hub every 4 months ( about 4 riding with them) and always buy stainless bearings off ebay for the job in bulk.

Basically the more you use them, the wetter and muddier the conditions, the lack on maintenance and jet washing them and then leaving them wet will accelerate failure.

So if you rode them in the dry or you took them apart every 6 months (or mid-winter) and re-greased them and didn’t use any pressurised cleaning then they would probably last ages 😉

I slap extra grease around from new or from replacing bearings and so far the only bearing that goes is the one in the hub behind the free hub, all the other bearings have not failed, ridden all year round, front hubs seem more prone to failing when used in 20mm , 15mm and qr seem better sealed, change my front bearings every year when in 20mm.