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Freehub body replacement/upgrade

by mdac
Mon, Sep 05, 2016 12:29
4

Hi there. I am new to the forum and was hoping some of you could give me some advice please?

I have a 2014 Trek Madone 2.1 with about 7km worth of riding and was wondering if now would be a good time to change the freehub body?

I would prefer to be proactive rather than wait for it to fail out on a long ride. I would guess they are probably not the best quality being a stock, factory issue freehub which appears to be unbranded.

I can barely hear it when I freewheel and was wondering if this was normal? When riding with others I can hear theirs fine, I actually quite like the reassuring sound of a freewheel.

I have recently taken apart the rear hub and ordered new cones and bearings. I have not yet removed the freehub body as the largest size allen I had was 10mm. I think it needs an 11mm or 12mm.

Can I put any Shimano style freehub body on there? Or am I limited to Trek/Bontrager freehubs?

Any guidence would be appreciated!

Thanks

Marc

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4 comments

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mike the bike | 8 years ago
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You've got a newish bike from a good manufacturer and it's done only reasonable miles.  Why would you be worried about a silent freehub?

It's very unlikely to suddenly collapse, they almost always send out distress signals before dying, so it would be well down my list for attention.  I'd be more tempted to spend money on things like tyres, headset bearings and brakes.

But hey, it's your bike, enjoy it how you see fit.

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Jimthebikeguy.com | 8 years ago
1 like

Could be a formula hub. Theres a lot of them about. Its a service item so prepare to replace it from time to time. If it spins freely then dont worry. When it goes sticky take it off and clean and regrease it. If it is still bad get a new one like for like.

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Dnnnnnn | 8 years ago
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My experience is that they last a long time and then fail gradually - an occasional bit of spin, getting more frequent over time. So there's usually warning.

Difficult to know how interchangeable yours might be with others. As guyrwood says, Shimanos (the ones I've seen) are 10mm allen bolted - doesn't sound promising for a match with yours. Might just be a case of try it and see.

And different hubs do sound different - I prefer the quieter ones!

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StraelGuy | 8 years ago
1 like

Is that a typo? You say it needs changing after 7 km - I'm guessing you mean 7,000 miles?? If it's a Shimano freehub, it's held in with a 10mm hollow bolt so you'll be fine. Shimano freehubs tend to be pretty subtle noise-wise. I had a Hope hub on a mountain bike a while ago that I actually sold the rear wheel on and bought a Shimano-hubbed replacement because it was astonishingly loud. Enjoy the peace and quiet while you've got it.  Unless it starts slipping, I wouldn't worry about it. Mine started slipping on my old mountain bike a couple of years ago (the pawls inside were sticking) so I removed it, removed the inner seal, and boiled it for an hour to remove the grease. I relubed it with grease mixed with oil to make a sloppy lube and it's been fine since.

 

Having said all that, they're pretty cheap and easy to replace so you could just replace it yes.

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