Submitted by
Holmes
a Weekend Warrior
from Berthoud, CO
Date Reviewed: November 7, 2011
Strengths: Cheap, bomber
Weaknesses: Not the lightest
Bottom Line:
Have used XT hubs (rim and 6 bolt disc) on several bikes over the years riding in varying conditions. Zero problems. I personally think these are the best value for the money - easy to maintain and solid.
Submitted by
and30ers
a Cross Country Rider
from Stockholm, Sweden
Date Reviewed: October 12, 2011
Strengths: Inexpensive, good quality, serviceability.
Weaknesses: None yet.
Bottom Line:
Just if anyone wondered I put the hubs on the scale before I built a set of new wheels. This is the 2012 Shimano XT HB-M785 and FH-M785 hubs for CenterLock disk, 32-holes, traditional 100/135mm quick-release versions.
Front hub w/o QR at 165g
Rear hub w/o QR at 332g
Front quick release 59g
Rear quick release 66g
Rubber cups covering the center-lock rotor mount, if using hubs for rim-brake wheels coming in at 5g per hub.
Bike Setup: Pimped my old aluminium full-XTR hardtail with some new wheels and other goodies, then donated it to my wife.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
ineffable
a Weekend Warrior
from Connecticut
Date Reviewed: September 3, 2011
Strengths: Front hub is a dream--I'd say set and forget, only you never have to set it.
Weaknesses: The rear hub is a different story. Every XT rear hub I have had (I've had countless ones over the years) has developed slop. Sometimes this happens after months, sometimes after days on new bikes. The cones get loose, and tightening the nuts only leads to major drag (from overtightening) or play returning. I've tried everything, but it is practically impossible to keep the rear hubs tightened correctly. The slop that develops leads to poor handling and has even destroyed a few wheels. (The wheel shifts during cornering, the derailleur gets caught in the spokes, and derailleur and spokes are both toast.)
Also, replacing the cones when they get worn is impossible, as the nuts no matter what fuse to the axle. The entire hub has to be replaced.
Bottom Line:
Fine for cross-country, but if you your riding gets you high Gs in many directions, get a different *rear* hub.
Similar Products Used: None yet--looking at cartridge hubs
Bike Setup: Specialized Stumpjumper FSR
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
shreddler
a Cross Country Rider
from Georgia
Date Reviewed: June 3, 2011
Strengths: None - Shimano XT M775 Rear Hubs are crap.
Weaknesses: Pawls within freehub body fail within 1 year.
Bottom Line:
Bought a pair of Shimano xt M775 factory wheels. Rear hub failed within a year. Pawls within freehub body failed to engage / locked up. Replaced freehub body with new one bought at Jenson USA. It failed within 8 months. Same exact problem.
Submitted by
timeless52
a Cross Country Rider
from Troy, MI
Date Reviewed: February 26, 2010
Strengths: Nuke-Proof / Easy to Service
Weaknesses: None
Bottom Line:
I'm rather shocked by all the negative reviews below. I've ridden various iterations of XT hubs for over 15 years and have never experienced problem one. I weigh about 225 lbs and ride hard.
As a matter of routine, I disassemble hubs and adjust cones/bearings before riding the first time. I have found cases where the drive side cones seemed loose against the jam nut. When it comes to service, I haven't found many bike shops I trust. Learn to do it yourself, you'll be much happier and dollars ahead.
Weaknesses: the threads are too weak. Broke twice during 2 year period
Bottom Line:
Bought it for 50 GBP in UK
the hub failed twice. First time after 18 months, not sure which part failed as the hub just seized and I sent it back under warranty. 6 months later the cassette became loose and I've checked that the bolt which connects cassette body to
the hub was loose - the thread inside the hub was filed down.
In other words - 50 pounds for two years of riding, about 8-10k miles covered, mainly commuting in all weather + long weekend rides.
The good part is the sealing. Upon disassembling the drive part was a bit dirty, but nothing too serious, and the opposite part still had original green lube.
Submitted by
cafam1
a Weekend Warrior
from staten island ny
Date Reviewed: November 6, 2009
Strengths: Very sturdy, no nonsese cone and cup bearing set up,easy to maintain.
Weaknesses: These hubs can be finicky,
Bottom Line:
This is for the 756 disc hub. Depending on you riding style some riders are hard on particular parts such as rims, drivetrains or headsets. I'm hard on rear hubs for some reason. This hub is a no nonsense strong hub that can be easily broken down by the home mechanic with the right tools.If you can breakdown this hub and regrease on your own the hub is a dream. If it gets loose and you get pissed don't giveup on it. Get yourself together and take it apart correctly ,regrease and reassemble. I myself made the mistake for years of not making the driveside cone and nut under torque. The beuty of this hub is that you just need some cone wrenches,grease and a little mechanical ability. I have had nightmares with these aftermarket boutique rear hubs and found this hub to be pretty damn good. I'm not a Chris King basher either. I have a front hub and headset thats Chris King. For a rear hub I choose xt. I learned early that a hub is as good as its mechanic. If you don't maintain your own bike and Rely on a shop, don't get this hub.Its not the prettiest or lightest hub but if your looking for a strong sturdy no B.S hub this maybe for you.
Submitted by
richjh21365
a Weekend Warrior
from Danbury, CT, USA
Date Reviewed: September 15, 2009
Strengths: Well, it worked OK for a while? Not much of a strength.
Weaknesses: New rear XT hub failed after only 6 months! This the second Shimano rear hub I have owned & both were JUNK. Both failed internally while riding XC trails. The last one was an LX that came on a Stumpjumper, had it repaired, and it failed again. This one was the XT, which I would expect to be better than an LX, but no. (The cone also loosened up recently.)
Bottom Line:
Shimano rear hubs suck. Had to walk out of the woods 3 times now thanks to them. Will buy a Chris King and get back to riding reliable equipment.
I ride a lot of hills and am a fairly strong rider. The freewheel in these hubs last about 6 months before breaking. I've gone through 3 free hubs in the past 2 years. It's good that these are pretty cheap. The +...when they work they work well.
Submitted by
20tooth
a Weekend Warrior
from Wellington
Date Reviewed: May 2, 2009
Strengths: Cheap. Easy to get replacement parts, which you WILL eventually need.
Weaknesses: The freehub is weak. The cones are prone to loosening.
Bottom Line:
I've owned both disc and non-disc versions of the XT hub, so this is for all of them.
Shimano freehubs are crap. I've gone through far too many of them in the past 12 years, at least 5 freehubs now. 2 broke while I was in the woods, meaning I had to walk the bike out.
I'm a big rider, and I like to climb very steep hills. This puts a lot of stress on the freehub, but this is part of mountain biking. I'm not going to walk up a hill just to save my freehub.
Yesterday I was in the mountain bike stage (the last stage) of a multisport race, cranking up a steep hill and the XT freehub blew up. Theres no way to fix this in a race, so I had to withdraw. Thanks again Shimano!
Apart from the freehub, the rest of the hub isn't too bad; not great, and not terrible. The seals aren't great, but if you repack every year or so it will last. I also experienced the cones loosening themselves off. This was easily fixed by putting loctite on the threads.
I've used many different Shimano hubs. It doesn't seem to matter if you but something cheap or xtr, they all use similar freehub technology. Why doesn't shimano strengthen the freehub? It hasn't changed much for over 15 years. Its simply not strong enough for the forces many riders put on it. More pawls or larger/stronger pawls would be nice.
This hub would only be of use for a lightweight rider that puts very little stress on components, prefers to walk uphill, and repacks it every year or so.
Normally I'd give it a high value rating since it is cheap, but you have to include the cost of replacement freehubs. Here in New Zealand, the local bike shop wants $100 for a replacement XT freehub! HA! So how long will this one last me? It WILL fail, the only question is when.
The only other option is to use a different brand of hub. The reviews here indicate the following are the best (in no order):
-Phil Wood
-Hadley
-Chris King
-some DT Swiss
Unfortunately all of these hubs are several times more expensive than an XT hub. It would be easy to replace the freehub, and keep riding it, but I'm getting sick of this thing breaking on me! Hopefully I can find a good deal on one of the hubs above.
Well, just upgraded to all 2011 XTR.
XTR does not do a 6 bolt rotor, so I was "forced" to go with 160mm XT 6 bolts. = 228g!!!!:eek:
I am going from 140mm rear Alligator (58g) Read More »
Sorry for the dumb question,I just want to be sure.
Sram cassette,Sram crank and newly installed Shimano XT10v Dyna Sys. Everything should be fine,right ??
Bike is a Epic Expe Read More »
Cree has a new LED:
[URL]http://www.cree.com/products/pdf/XLampXT-E.pdf[/URL]
Here's a comparison model, looks like the die is slightly smaller than the XP-E.
[IMG]http://i975. Read More »
Does anyone have 5.7 with SLX build - the least expensive one?
What are the real drawbacks vs XT build?
from what i see:
- Fork is RL vs RLC fit - is it a big difference? I Read More »
Title says it all.
Bike currently has an M542 crankset with 22-34-44 gearing.
Deore XT T781 has 24-32-44.
I'll try running it with the 24, but I'd like to have the optio Read More »
