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  • SLX Hubs – Opinions
  • whatnobeer
    Free Member

    Considering a set of Spank Subrosa rims on SLX hubs from Chain Reaction. Anyone got any experience of the SLX hubs? Worth paying the extra for XT, Nukeproof or Hope?

    binners
    Full Member

    I wouldn’t touch any Shimano hubs with the proverbial barge pole. They’re cup and cone and are therefore prehistoric. So when they wear (and they will) you’ll have to bin the wheel or get a new one laced to a new hub

    Its better to pay the extra and have sealed cartridge bearings. They last for ever in comparison. And when the bearings do wear, you just bang a new set in. Sorted

    honourablegeorge
    Full Member

    Bear in mind that centrelock bubs, so you’d need a rotor or adaptor too.

    Not worth it, IMO.

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    barrykellett
    Free Member

    What a load of tosh!! If you can service them and can be bothered to do it they will last well. I’ve two sets on the go and like them very much.

    binners
    Full Member

    Alright. Fair enough, I’ll add the prefix

    “If you’re a lazy bastard like me, or have a life that is presently filled with stuff infinitely more fulfilling than fannying around with the hubs on your bike, then……”

    Is that better?

    whatnobeer
    Free Member

    I’m a lazy bastard, so best to stay clear then by the sounds of it 😛

    Tbh, I’m even sure what servicing a hub consists of?

    _tom_
    Free Member

    Every few months or so, cleaning out and re-greasing the bearings, then faffing to get the cones just right..

    or hammering out/in a new set of cartridge bearings roughly once a year 🙂

    barrykellett
    Free Member

    Yes, slightly better.
    The thing that gets me though, is why are cartridge bearing hubs so much more expensive for what is in actual fact, an inferior performing hub? Its just a block of aluminium milled out.

    I’ve been told, and have long believed it to be true, that cup and cone bearing hubs are more expensive to produce, which is why only shimano do it… as they have the whole set up on the go already. Is this an old wives tale?

    In all seriousness, I do see the benefits of hammering out your old bearings and hammering in a couple of new ones, it takes about the same time as servicing a C&C hub. But for me, the unsuitability of Cartridge bearings, the cost of the hubs and bearings, and more importantly the smoothness and much more resistance free performance means I am a C&C man myself. I only service mine about once a year and it seems more than enough.

    The SLX hubs are a good wee hub. They are well sealed and probably are the best for a cost/weight score.

    binners
    Full Member

    I just know from experience that I’ve only had one set of Shimano hubs and they fell apart. This was probably entirely my fault. They were replaced with a set of Hopes that are still going years later, with the bearings replaced a couple of times.

    Have a look at the custom wheel builds on CRC. They do builds with Ringle Disc Jockey hubs which are as good as Hope IMHO, but a lot cheaper

    barrykellett
    Free Member

    ahem, if you want a set of indestrucible wheels I have a pair of Halo Spin Doctor hubs on Mavic 721 rims for sale…

    kimbers
    Full Member

    have had xt hubs that lasted years

    however servicing c&c hubs is much more of a pita than cartridge bearings

    my main problem with the shimano hubs is the lack of swapability, my hopes will take standard qr, 9mm thru axle, 15mm qr, 20mm on the front and standard qr, 10mm thru axle, 10mm bolt up etc on the reaer

    stcolin
    Free Member

    My XT’s are going strong after two years. Will be serviced sometime soon.

    Expect a thread on how I’ve f**ked it up.

    TurnerGuy
    Free Member

    If you are going to get shimano cup and cone then its worth getting XT so get the better seals – to keep the crap out of the bearings that you are hoping will last.

    And if you do forget to service them frequently enough, or the seals fail before your regular servicing, you will have damaged them.

    So it is better to get sealed bearings, even though the cup-and-cones are theoretically better.

    ahwiles
    Free Member

    …servicing c&c hubs is much more of a pita than cartridge bearings…

    nah, c&c hubs are easy – a couple of spanners and away you go, nice and gentle.

    cartridge bearing hubs need all sorts of hammers, presses, pullers, chisels, screwdrivers, etc.

    (and a lot of swearing)

    binners
    Full Member

    cartridge bearing hubs need all sorts of hammers, presses, pullers, chisels, screwdrivers, etc.

    and a lot of swearing.

    I beg to differ. What they need (like most tasks) is a good LBS 🙂

    TandemJeremy
    Free Member

    cartridge bearing hubs need all sorts of hammers, presses, pullers, chisels, screwdrivers, etc.

    (and a lot of swearing)

    Nope – what thy need is the right approach and technique. Very simple and easy to do.

    ahwiles
    Free Member

    Nope – what thy need is the right approach, TOOLS, and technique. Very simple and easy to do.

    FiFY

    (but yes, a good bike shop makes it all much more easy, but it does add £10/£20 to the price of a service)

    bellerophon
    Free Member

    I’ve not serviced my SLX hubs and they’re getting on for two years old now and still seem fine; mind you I only ride once a week with the odd saturday day ride thrown in.

    cheers_drive
    Full Member

    My rear XT 778 wheel has been a pita to keep maintained as the seals don’t keep out the dirt, the front as been fine though. I can strip and clean the hub in 20 minutes but it needs it evry couple of months of not that heavy use.
    I have a pair of Ultegra hubs on Open Pros and they have been great, but the conditions thay get used in are somewhat kinder.

    whatnobeer
    Free Member

    ahem, if you want a set of indestrucible wheels I have a pair of Halo Spin Doctor hubs on Mavic 721 rims for sale…

    Thanks for the offer, but I’ve got my heart set on a set of green rims. Main reason for looking at the SLX ones is that they’re cheap on CRC at the moment and the subrosa rims/slx/xt combo is probably a safer bet than the superstar AM wheels, although a bit more expensive.

    So it looks like its a trade off between price and faff? I dont mind a bit of faff, cleaning and greasing bearings every couple of months doesnt sounds too bad really… Hmm some thinking to do.

    _tom_
    Free Member

    cartridge bearing hubs need all sorts of hammers, presses, pullers, chisels, screwdrivers, etc.

    I did mine with a screwdriver and rubber hammer to knock out the old bearings, then greased it up and put the new ones in, using the old bearings as a drift (or whatever it’s called) as not to damage the new ones with the hammer.

    TurnerGuy
    Free Member

    If you go cup and cone I used to use Castrol CL grease to good effect – it seems to be quite resistant to breaking down with water contact – better than the proper lithium cycle greases that were recommended for bikes – which I suppose it should be as it a grease for marine engines.

    but I would go for the sealed bearings myself – if something goes wrong with a seal and crap gets in you have stuffed the hub and then it is expensive.

    Dickyboy
    Full Member

    Only ever had shimano hubs here, must say that the configuration of the lock nuts for some reason makes my XT hubs harder to nip up correctly after servicing than my LX or Hone ones – if you are getting new SLX hubs worth loosening off & adding a squirt of grease from the start as shimano can be a bit meagre with the slippery stuff in the factory.

    Simon
    Full Member

    Also bear in mind that Shimano hubs can’t be converted for different axles/Maxles and QRs, so limiting your choice of forks and frames in the future. Hope hubs can be converted and all parts are available so you can re-build them.

    And +1 for everything Binners said about Shimano cup and cone 😆 And I’ll add that Shimano freehubs go wobbly very quickly and when they give up they go without warning, in my experience.

    yunki
    Free Member

    I’ve just ditched a third hand set of deore hubs.. they were serviced by an LBS when I got my grubby mitts on them two and a half years ago and have had an average of 70+ hard off road miles on them.. week in and week out.. rain or shine ever since..

    they’ve been pretty reliable up until the last few months and I’m sure that if I’d maintained them better they would still be going strong and smooth now..
    but I didn’t maintain them.. so they is royally borked.. and I now have shiny new cartridge hubs..

    billyboy
    Free Member

    Some of Shimano’s recent hubs have a tendency to undo….it’s not an isolated incident…I have seen it several times. I had a brand new pair of black 2007 XT hubs and I couldn’t stop them undoing themselves. The cone nut and locknuts just wouldn’t stay in place.

    To set that in context I have a set of 1997 XT hubs that are still working fine. I have worked through at least one new freehub and numerous servicings and the rear rumbles a bit, but they are sound.

    Continual innovation and progress are probably to blame.

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