Knackered hub, what are my options?

[SKoob]

Thought my rear wheel sounded a bit graunchy a few months ago but thought as it didn't have any play or didn't seem to have any issues with spinning freely I'd not look at it and go with the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" attitude. Anyway after going for a blast on it whilst my fixed speed bike was having its wheel trued I thought something didn't feel right. It was like cycling through mud, I assumed it was just the extra drag from the drive train having derailiers etc... Curiosity got the better of me tonight and I was greeted by a nice rusty coloured greasy mess upon removal of the drive side of the axle as its been like it for a while it has pitted both the bearing race in the hub and the axle. So with that in mind do I get the hub replaced which I imagine is expensive due to the labour involved or take it as an opportunity to upgrade to a better wheelset? It's currently got some 700c disc braked alexrims ace17s, not got a clue if they are any good or not but can't say I ever felt they hampered my performance. I'm not that clued up on what makes a good wheel or what I need to be looking for as a replacement should getting the hub replaced prove uneconomic. Any help would be appreciated

 

[SKoob]

Sorry should point out it is a GT Transeo 2.0 Hybrid

 

[stumpy66]

If it was me and i was planning on keeping the bike id buy a new wheel

 

[lpretro1]

Depends on what state rim is in. If it is a good rim and in good condition then get wheel rebuilt with new hub. Should only cost about £25 plus cost of spokes & hub.

 

[SKoob]

Been doing a bit if research and just to check.... I should get away with just replacing the free hub body as that's where the drive side bearing race is? Or am I barking up the wrong tree here

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

Been doing a bit if research and just to check.... I should get away with just replacing the free hub body as that's where the drive side bearing race is? Or am I barking up the wrong tree here

Don't these bikes have GT/AllTerra own brand hub? If so it might be difficult to get spares so you might want to check availability first. Secondly if you have been able to take it apart assuming it is cup and cone is the non-drive side cup (usually integrated into the hub shell) smooth?

 

[SKoob]

The non drive side is absolutely fine, its the drive side that is shagged. I'm just guessing that the drive side bearings sit in the freehub so if I replace that and the cone I should be laughing or does the hub have the drive side bearings?

 

[SKoob]

Here's a pic of the offending item

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

The non drive side is absolutely fine, its the drive side that is shagged. I'm just guessing that the drive side bearings sit in the freehub so if I replace that and the cone I should be laughing or does the hub have the drive side bearings?

If the drive side cup (i.e. where the ball bearings run around) is within the freehub (which you would have noticed when you removed the drive side cone) then replacing the freehub, the drive side bearings and cone should give you a hub that runs as good as new.

 

[fossyant]

If you can, and it's usually cheaper, try and source a new hub, and transplant the parts. The problem you'll have is that it's a generic hub, so might prove trickier, but a bit of internet researching should help.

I've done the same with Deore hubs - but they are easy to find the exact model. Worked out much cheaper for a full hub, than it did for just the freehub. Quite alot of these generic hubs are made by Quando - there might be the name printed on the rubber cone seals on the non-drive side.