Strengths: solid construction, color possibility, seal tight
Weaknesses: seal to tight, drag a lot, + to munch mécanical drag, over rated, lots of hub's are better.The color go away in less then 2 years.
Bottom Line:
If,.....IF you like to run them with oil= lot of maintenance, they are ok for gravity trail, going downhill, for trail and cross-country, used faster wheels like DT-SWISS, HOPE,WHITE industries, SHIMANO XTR,XT. USED your money somewhere else will be a better spend...........
Service, what service...........CK......Talk a lot but don't really deliver........
When you have a problem...it is your problem, they don't care.
Strengths: Light, build strong wheel. Super quick engagement. Fun bolts and replacement axle upgrade well worth it.
Weaknesses: High maintainence. Costly for something which comes loose as soon as you get it and then never really tightens properly. After much frustration, I ended up buying the fun bolt axle & fun bolts - much better. Stiffened up back end of bike too. Cassette carrier gouges too much too easily in my view.
Bottom Line:
Good product, just high maintainence. Hubs has stopped free wheeling after 6 years. Am trying to work out if I should buy the maintainence kit & have hub to a Stans flow rim, or sell the wheelset and buy a hadley wheelset. Might just get local bikeshop to service and see how that goes. Hub has also developed a bit play.
Haven't touched the front hub since I owned it, or my CK headset for that matter and they're still sweet as. Just wish that was the same for the rear hub.
Bike Setup: Turner 5 Spot, Rock Shocks Pike, CK headset 454 etc
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Submitted by
panzer07
a Weekend Warrior
from Fremont CA
Date Reviewed: March 18, 2011
Strengths: Quality,quality,quality. Looks great, very light, cool sound, easy to service and replacement parts are easy to get on King website.
Weaknesses: Does require some maintanance but welcome to mountain biking.
Bottom Line:
Lets see, almost 6 years of pounding this hub including some DH racing, jumps, drops - 6' to flat, Northstar, and tons of hard riding. Did break the freehub body when chain wedged in between casette and hub due to a branch on downhill - sheared all drive side spokes but that was my bad and finally cracked the left side axle end and both parts easy to get on King site at a reasoable cost. They are expensive but as bombproof as I have found and still going strong.
Similar Products Used: Hope, XTR - broke, White - broke, XT - broke and early Nuke Proof also broke so bad luck with weak hubs.
Bike Setup: 06 Nomad set up as an all mountain - trail bike.
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Submitted by
splice35mm
a Cross Country Rider
from SImi Valley, CA
Date Reviewed: February 25, 2011
Strengths: Supposed reputation? Unique sound? Lots of quality time spent wrenching in the garage?
Weaknesses: Value and longevity isn't there. Lack of support through Chris King.
Bottom Line:
The noise and constant maintenance required for Chris King hubs is a bit annoying, but beware... their anodized colors can fade inconsistently. I bought a pair of RED hubs about three years ago, and now the front hub is PINK while the rear remains red. I sent them to Chris King tech-support for service and they couldn't care less. "Our colors aren't covered under warranty. Your internals remain beautiful." Great, thanks. Much like that ugly fat girl with the really good personality? This is a high-end, very expensive set of hubs - I expected them to have decent longevity in both function and appearance. Look for these on eBay soon. Cheap!
I rode the CK hubs for a couple of years thinking they would break in but never did. Freehub friction is way to high. Chain piles up if you backpedal at all at speed. I considered it dangerous, not wanting my bike to drop the chain or lock up at 30 or 40 mph. I serviced them twice using King's service toolset and proprietary lube, but no improvement. The CKs have been relegated to my wife's rig. She doesn't have the same need for speed that I do and therefore won't be in any danger. I am riding on White Industries M-16s and lovin' it.
2 chilis for value. (They cost more than other hubs that actually work properly.)
3 chilis overall
(If you fix the friction problem they would be a 4/5)
Similar Products Used: White Industries M15 and M16. Shimano XT. Shimano Deore. American Classic.
Bike Setup: Horst Turner 5 Spot with long rockers and RP3 Pushed. Talas 130 Pushed. M-16/ZTR355 wheels by Daves Speed Dream Wheels. XT.
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Submitted by
spsmith
a Cross Country Rider
from Vancouver, BC
Date Reviewed: May 21, 2010
Strengths: The Rolls Royce of hubs.
Weaknesses: Economies of scale. Too expensive.
Bottom Line:
My hope hub which was born in the UK with the bike had lasted me 15yrs. It gave up then was rebuilt in Vancouver by the Master mechanic at xxxxxx bikes, owner is possibly one of the rudest individuals you will ever encounter so I wont divulge name. The mechanic salvaged another hard yr out of the Hope. When it died I returned to see if there was anything left in it. It was stripped. We discussed why and compared it to the CK as buying a new hub was my only option. The Chris King he explained in great technical detail, will not break because of the design of its locking mechanism.
Bike Setup: Nickel plated Orange P7 Hardtail with nice bits.
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Submitted by
Nomadic Buckeye
a Weekend Warrior
from Murfreesboro, TN, USA
Date Reviewed: March 28, 2010
Strengths: Immediate engagement, light weight, beautiful finish, unique sound, environmentally conscious manufacturer, MADE IN THE USA.
Weaknesses: There's a high price for perfection
Bottom Line:
I've jumped these wheels from 7+ foot drops and put oodles of miles on them with no reliability issues at all. They do exactly what they're supposed to do, every time.
Submitted by
rideHI
a Cross Country Rider
from honolulu, HI., USA
Date Reviewed: July 12, 2009
Strengths: the color selection, the engagements, the famous CK buzz, and its bombproof.
Weaknesses: i'll let you know if i find one.
Bottom Line:
once i took my first spin on these hubs i was hooked. it has instant engagement. when i need to do a half crank just b4 a jump its there! unlike the standard 2 pawl 24 engagement hubs. thats the biggest selling point for me. when i need to crank its there. plus it adds value to your bike not mention the infamous buzz as you pass your fellow riders. if you buy one you won't be dissapointed. its perfect for whatever riding you do or want to do!
Similar Products Used: NONE. there is no other hub like it!!!
Bike Setup: 09 SBC DEMO 7 ll frame. custom built, with CK hubs laced to MTX 36h rims. Diablous 165mm cranks, CODE brakes, Marz 66 rc3, Thompson x4 elite stem, E13 guide, ultegra 11-21 cassette. SRAM X9 rear shifter/derailuer, Gravity Maximus FR/DH handelbar
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Submitted by
JohnnyCanuck
a Cross Country Rider
from Whitehorse
Date Reviewed: February 27, 2009
Strengths: Indestructable
Weaknesses: Price
Bottom Line:
I have three wheelsets with this hub, including one that I rode through wet Vancouver Island winters for three years. Never missed a beat, easy maintenance, sounds great.
I just got my ISO's laced up to a set of new Mavic 819 disc rims, and couldnt be happier. It was a huge upgrade from my old wheelset, dropping a few hundred grams. I've lusted over this wheelset for a few months, finally got it, and couldn't be happier. The hubs make the infamous sound, and they roll much easier than my old loose bearing hubs. The needle bearings make such a huge difference. I've heard of a "break-in" period where I'll experience chain sag and derailing when I backpedal, things settling (Maybe), but I experience nothing. The freehub was tight for a little bit, but after a few miles it was perfect. When upside down the wheels spin forever. Literally no drag.
And the engagement is amazing. Something like 4 tmies faster it seems than my old hubs. I've ridden on them twice, one time at a very brutal race, and they gave me no problems.
I traded some work for them, so I've got no idea how much they actually cost, but they're worth whatever they retail for.
Homers - I remember a while back reading something about a thin shim being required to fit a Shimano cassette onto a rear Chris King ISO disc hub - but, alas, when you search for K Read More »
Has anyone converted their CK rear ISO hub to the new generation thru axle 12mm? Many bike frames are now sporting the 12mm MAXLE and I wanted to convert a Standard Axle over to Read More »
To anyone interested in upgrading their CK ISO Disc rear from 10mm QR to 10mm thru-axle setup, I just did this upgrade. My CK was the ISO Disc QR standard 2 piece axle (not the hea Read More »
I gave a "Best Offer" to Icyclesof $100.00 earlier this week, which was immediately accepted (which tells me they have the auction set to accept any bid over a certain $ asmount). Read More »
