Drilling holes to grease

[mpvue]

Originally Posted By: cchase
Originally Posted By: rpn453
The well-sealed hubs I've been talking about are the traditional cup and cone style from Shimano. I don't think Shimano has gone to cartridge bearings, have they?


No. The only big name that really jumped on the cartridge bearing bandwagon seems to be Mavic. I'm not sure it's a good thing, either. They're simply not as good as a cup and cone open bearing system.

I wouldn't say Mavic 'jumped on the bandwagon' when AFAIK (which is pretty far) that's all they've ever made, since the mid '80's.
Phil Wood, Bullseye, Mavic, Suntour and others had/have been cartridge since forever.
instead of making this a 'which is better' discussion, howabout just seeing it for what it is; 2 different ways of doing things.

 

[cchase]

I agree - it's as simple as that. But for longevity and serviceability, the cup-and-cone system is better.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: mpvue
I worked in shops for 15 years, building, repairing, overhauling all kinds of bikes from all kinds of conditions and miles, rebuilt so many hubs, headsets and bottom brackets...

I have NEVER had to rebuild a pedal.


Im not talking about pedals. My speedplay frogs do have a grease port, FWIW, but I was thinking more like the bearings in the freewheel in the back (which can be fairly different audibly depending upon level of lubrication, Ive found), etc.

Maybe not possible... But I just dont have the time to R&R every last thing on my bike. Was looking for a quick and easy way to keep things tip top for as long as possible by DIY before getting it professionally done.

 

[UG_Passat]

Originally Posted By: cchase
Originally Posted By: UG_Passat
other big names in the hubs have gone to cartridge bearings, White Industries, Hope, DT Swiss, etc.

I do drool over the Mavic 29-er wheels though (and quite pricey)... not sure which route I'm taking for the road bike...

You are correct. I just don't like the insinuation that cartridge bearings are better than cup-and-cone. I think the only real reason 3rd party hub manufacturers have gone cartridge is because they're cheaper to make. Cup-and-cone is a better system for maintenance and they last longer.

sealed cartridge bearings are pretty much maintenance free.

the cup/cone requires maintenance, and if you don't maintain them, don't last that long.

If my pricepoint was equivalent to an Ultegra front/rear hubs, I might consider the Ultegra hubs. At the Dura Ace price point, I'm going with high end hubs from another manufacturer.

 

[mpvue]

back in the day, like late '80's, deore XT hubs had cool bearing covers w/ a grease port; you just had to push the grease needle into it and pump until clean grease came out. the caps fit regular deore hubs too.

 

[cchase]

Sealed cartridge bearing hubs are "maintenance free" like automakers are making transmissions "lifetime fill" and "maintennace free".

As I detailed earlier in this thread, the cup-and-cone hubs on my main trail bike had 10 years and many thousand miles on them. The grease in them was still nearly translucent and there was no visible wear on them.

OTOH, I've had to replace Mavic hub bearings on multiple occasions - some of which I knew to be used lighter than I abuse my own equipment.

To each his own. As I mentioned, they both have advantages and disadvantages but for the typical BITOG'er, I think C&C hubs have it all over cart. units.

 

[rpn453]

Originally Posted By: UG_Passat
sealed cartridge bearings are pretty much maintenance free.

the cup/cone requires maintenance, and if you don't maintain them, don't last that long.

If my pricepoint was equivalent to an Ultegra front/rear hubs, I might consider the Ultegra hubs. At the Dura Ace price point, I'm going with high end hubs from another manufacturer.


What kind of maintenance am I missing out on here? I've never seen a cartridge bearing that is sealed as well as a good Shimano hub. I disassembled and re-greased my 1995 Deore LX hubs exactly once. They looked so clean I've never bothered to do it again, or touch my many other well-sealed Shimano hubs.

It's relatively simple get a hub design machined and slap a cartridge bearing in it. You need a lot more manufacturing knowledge to make your own quality bearings. I think that is the primary reason for the abundance of cartridge bearing hubs. A user can also more easily destroy adjustable hubs if they set them up wrong. But both designs can work well if they're done properly.