This is probably a case of idle hands but …
I have on route to me some new road bike wheels.
They come with DT’s 370 hubs but the later ones with the ratchet system rather than 3 pawls.
I think as std these hubs come with the 18 point ratchet cogs(?) fitted.
I find myself drawn to either the 36 or 54 point upgrades as after years of being chased by the sound of my own Hope hubs I do like a loud hub.
Noise to one side (and cost) are they a worthwhile upgrade? My road riding is pretty flat so not much in the way of climbing and certainly not technical.
I guess more engagement = more drag so that’s a negative.
Thoughts?
I switched to the 54 because i'm a slut for the sound. Can't comment at all on other benefits sorry.
To me and my style of riding, I appreciate fast engagement for technical climbs where I have to clock the cranks to clear stuff. 45T and above typically works for that. I do love the instant soft engagement of my onxy hubs though.
On a road bike, I'd take the lower drag of the 18T unless you can envisage yourself trying to instantly go from coasting to sprinting.
For road, probably no benefit. The noise changes and becomes more urgent, but a little quieter. Not sure the drag would be that much different as the valleys are not as deep. I've got a mixture of 18t and 36t across bikes. Yesterday went to pull what I though was a 36t out of my gravel wheels only to discover it was an 18t and I hadn't noticed. In a similar vein I have noticed on one of the MTBs where I swapped from 36t back to 18t (this will definitely be going back to 36t).
I've got a Silt rear wheel on my hardtail. Uses a copy of the DT Swiss ring ratchet/driver.
I went for 54 teeth as they were the same price as a lower number, and more is betterer 🤣🤣
That being said the noise was a bit hollow for me, like angry wasps in an echoey room, so I added a gob of grease in there to quiet it down.
No real benefit on a road bike, I wouldn't go beyond 36t either (without a specific need for very fast engagement) as then you're looking into potentially a bit more maintenance/faster wear.
Are they new? If so I'd shop around for some 36t hubs. Because the genuine upgrade kits are £££.
IMO 36t is the sweet spot, below that feels clattery, above that it's getting into the realms of you might notice it adversely once in a while but it's not worth a days wages to sort out such a minor issue. On the road though, probably not noticeable at all, even Shimano's high end hubs have relatively slow pickup.
The worst bit of the 18t is it sounds like someone whizzing round one of those rattle things. On the road bike that get's irritating REALLY quickly. There was one bike in the club with Bontranger carbon wheels (DT internals) and all you could hear was the freehub as it coasted, it even drowns out conversation! The not-DT 36t ratchet ring in my wheels on the other hand is a just a quiet whirr.
Are they new?
They are but were a bargain, a full wheelset for less than a pair of hubs.
Interestingly(?) I have seen a complete 36t 350 hub for only £9 more than the ratchet kit so I may look at this as an option as it would come with a spare free hub, bearings etc.
Freewheel had some really cheap 36 tooth 350 MTB hubs , looks like they're clearing them out due to the arrival of the Ratchet DEG versions.
I put a 54t ZTTO ratchet in my MTB's 240's at the end of 2024. Was a bit worried about longevity / reliability but it's been fine and is £30 (was £24) so a good chunk cheaper than the real thing.
@nixie … according to Madison it would be. I may be missing something but what makes you think there would be an issue?
370 ratchet LN hubs have the seal on the freehub. 350 (and older pre exp 240s/180s) have the seal on the hub shell. Physically yes a 350 freehub will fit a 370 ratchet LN hub but there will be no sealing.
370 hubs use Ratchet LN freehub, while 350 (non-DEG variants) use the original Ratchet freehub - different seal orientations that aren't cross compatible as far as I know.
Note there could be edge cases in DT full wheelsets where the hubs are labelled as one thing but are actually another. E.g. I know that some 240 labelled hubs in wheelsets are actually 180 hubs without the ceramic bearings (i.e. when buying end caps you need the 180 end caps).
18t would be fine on a road bike, I don't personally find the free hub noise annoying. 36t is better on an MTB, I don't think 54t is worth it (I have a 36t and 54t on different bikes)