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Specialized
Stout Front Hub
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Submitted by
planethill
a Weekend Warrior
from London, England
Date Reviewed: July 14, 2009 | | Favorite Trail: | North Downs, Surrey | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Bottom Line: | This is an observation on all these comments on the Stout Hub. I am a MASSIVE Specialized fan - I owned an Enduro Expert for 6 years until it was stolen and I cried. Best Bike ever, by miles. However I just picked-up a Specialized Stout hub from a workshop's scrap bin - the rim was totalled and it appears that the wheel has never been used, as if the damage was caused in transit before the bike was sold. What I'm surprised about is that the nuts are far too tight. This hub has been put together badly. If used like this, the bearings would not survive for many miles. A correctly set-up hub should last for years and years, as some of these riders are saying. If a hub goes loose after every ride, it is almost certainly because the (very fine) setting of the contra-rotating lock nuts are not tightly locked or they may be too tight against the bearings, causing excessive wear. If you're Specialized hubs are not giving you trouble free use it is almost certainly because they are not set precisely right. To give you a clue, if you are an amateur bike mechanic, it could take you an hour or two to get the bolts set exactly right - that is holding the bearings in the right place so they spin without any friction; making sure that there is no play or movement (too loose) in the axle and locking the contra-rotating nuts Iron-man tight in this correct position. Many bike shop mechanics are not totally skilled or diligent to get this right, so it is definitely worth checking, unless that is if you have had years of trouble free riding, in which case leave well alone!
| Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
kingbozo
a Weekend Warrior
from At Louis Park, MN, USA
Date Reviewed: April 29, 2009 | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Purchased At: | Came with bike | | Strengths: | Never has caused a problem | | Weaknesses: | Not as blingy as other brands? | | Bike Setup: | 01 Enduro | | Bottom Line: | My 2001 Enduro came with Stouts front and rear. I have yet to have an issue of any kind with these hubs. The different sized flanges to compensate for disc rotors are a nice touch. The oversize axle and skewer provide a touch of additional stiffness. Not a thru axle by any means, but stiffer than a regular hub skewer combo. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Bruzer
a Weekend Warrior
from Minnesota
Date Reviewed: October 17, 2008 | | Favorite Trail: | Leb. Hills | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Purchased At: | Erik's bike shop | | Strengths: | 9MM Quick release, Service free, disc brake compatible. | | Weaknesses: | Flanges are different heights. | | Similar Products Used: | Other Shimano hubs. | | Bike Setup: | A bike with two wheels. | | Bottom Line: | The Stout came stock on my bike. Used flawlessly for 6 years since 2002. While riding a trail, I bent the rim so far the wheel wouldn't turn in the fork, had to carry my bike out. The rim was beyond repair but the Stout hub was undamaged. Since the flanges are different sizes, the spokes were different length from one side to the other. Asked the LBS reuse the Stout hub with a new rim. Now laced on another rim, and the hub is still working great. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Andrew
a Downhiller
from Kendal
Date Reviewed: October 9, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | I never had to service the hub once. It is tight and smooth. I had a very hard landing where I bent my front wheel in half and this hub came out unharmed! Must be very well built. | | Weaknesses: | None that I found. | | Similar Products Used: | na | | Bike Setup: | na | | Bottom Line: | Good build quality and good value for money! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
lee
a Downhiller
from Aberdeen
Date Reviewed: October 4, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | laggan wolftrax | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Strengths: | It ame free with the bike already on the front wheel ready for action | | Weaknesses: | None what so ever!!!!!!!!! | | Similar Products Used: | various Shimano jobbies | | Bike Setup: | hard hitting Enduro comp | | Bottom Line: | I cant see where eveyone is getting the idea that these hubs are poop, i have never needed to tighten or service the damm thing since 2004 and i go ridig in all weather and all places and it has never failed me yet and doubt it will. 9mm QR.....bring it on baby its well solid and fast to remove the wheel! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Belgian Bob
a Weekend Warrior
from Loughborough, UK
Date Reviewed: June 5, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | Penmachno | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | Smooth bearings, stiff and reassuringly chunky axle, nice finish too. | | Weaknesses: | I've not found any. | | Similar Products Used: | Deore and XT hubs | | Bike Setup: | '04 Rockhopper Pro (frame, everything else is an upgrade)MXP ETA+TAS, XT+XM321 wheels, XT transmission, Thomson, hope C2s, etc... | | Bottom Line: | This was the hub that my bike's original front wheel was built onto, and that wheel lasted me 18 months of Welsh, Peak, Lake district, South Downs and Quantocks riding before I wrapped it round a tree at Swinley forest. The hub, however, was unserviced and still buttery smooth after all of the above. The front wheel was then replaced with a brand new/second hand wheel which cost less than a rebuild onto the existing Stout hub would have cost me, which means I still have the Stout at home in my bike cupboard, waiting for a new wheel build... I can't wait to see what difference, if any, it will make to my steering and possibly sorting out my rubbing disc brakes when I corner hard. Bring it on!
I can't comment on value, as It was original equipment, but it performed like a trooper for 18 months, so it gets top marks. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Larry
a Cross Country Rider
from Scotts Valley, CA
Date Reviewed: October 10, 2006 | | Favorite Trail: | Magic Carpet | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | Scotts Valley CycleSport | | Strengths: | They kept rims and spokes attached to the bike | | Weaknesses: | Constant tightening of cones... before every ride and sometimes during a ride | | Bike Setup: | Stumpy FSR | | Bottom Line: | These are the WORST hubs I have ever used. Before these I have never had a significant problem with a hub. But I am having issues with both front AND back hub. For a long time I thought the problem was an inability to properly adjust my cones. However, finally I determined that something was going on with the hubs that was causing them to need frequent tightening. I can't understand why Specialized would use a hub like this. Cost? Now I have to go out and buy new hubs and have them spoked onto my rims. This is a cost that I have to eat. I would have happily paid more to avoid this. Not sure how I feel about Specialized right now. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
steven boltzmann
a Weekend Warrior
from adelaide
Date Reviewed: October 23, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Purchased At: | jtcycles | | Strengths: | ??? | | Weaknesses: | free-hub and bearings.......essentially the whole hub | | Similar Products Used: | hope XC, power tools and shimano STX | | Bike Setup: | beefed up specialized epic | | Bottom Line: | this review is more for the rear hub than the front. these came standard on my epic comp and i am sickened that specialized would put such a sub standard component on a relatively high end bike. the front hub has been relatively trouble free, however i have had the free-hub replaced on the rear once and it needs replacing again, not even 1 year after purchase! the freehub is binding so that the cassette tries to turn with the wheel under freewheel, causing slack and inevitable chucking the chain. to make it worse, the bearings refuse to stay tight and so i also have a wobbly wheel. this hub has packed up where even the shimano STX mentioned above has sailed through. i would be dissappointed with this hub if it came standard on a huffy. if you are buying a specialized with these hubs standard and dont want to spend half your riding time putting the chain back on, i recommend having them upgraded before leaving the store. and specialized...........PLEASE STOP USING THESE HUBS!!! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Vince
a Cross Country Rider
from Utah
Date Reviewed: October 3, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Purchased At: | Als cycles | | Strengths: | Nice looks, nice decals, Good preformer. Kept up with me in DH, Freeriding, XC. Good skewer. | | Weaknesses: | .25 cm lateral wheel shifting when I turn left. This isn't much but my disk brake caliper was a little to the right and it caused disk rubbing. No problems I just centered my disk brake caliper. Could be due to my cheap fork :) | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano 475 vans | | Bike Setup: | specialized fsr 2004. upgrades = hayes disk brakes 8' inch front 6' rear, sworks strongarm II crank, truntive DH BB, Cane creek rear shock, xt drive train, ritchty seat post with seat with chode hole. | | Bottom Line: | Good, needs proper skewer tighting, and a good fork. No problems whatsoever. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Alex Tourangeau
a Cross Country Rider
from Gatineau
Date Reviewed: September 19, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | anywhere | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | OEM | | Strengths: | Simple design, excellent material, reasonably rigid. | | Weaknesses: | None identified so far | | Similar Products Used: | Deore, Deore XT | | Bottom Line: | I have numerous reviews on this hub and I have determined to include my own opinion, as it seems that this decent piece of hardware has suffered very harsh critic. I am a heavy rider (190lbs) and although I could be rougher on my ride, I do put the bike through its paces, and I have yet to encounter any of the issues oulined in many reviews. I don't doubt that these people have had some problems, specifically with the bearings, but I believe that there may have been some quality control issues at some point.
In none of my rides have I encountered anything but absolute smoothness in the bearings of this hub. I have yet to service it, as no symptoms have come up yet. I really empathize with people who have had issues, because nothing ruins a ride quicker than loose wheels. For those individuals, I can offer a couple possible solutions:
- Return to your dealer and indicate that the component is defective and ask for an exchange.
- Take the whole thing apart, clean every component, grease and reassemble, using the correct tools to tighten everything down.
Check every component you purchase, as well as it's assembly. Often it is this crucial second step that determines the overall quality of any mechanical device. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Johno
a Cross Country Rider
from Alice, NT, Australia
Date Reviewed: June 27, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | Kurrajong | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Weaknesses: | This thing comes loose all the time. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano hubs | | Bottom Line: | After every single ride I check this hub to see if it's tight, and after every single ride it's worked loose.
I tighten it up, it loosens up. Not very confidence inspiring. Especially when you know a drop off or another obstacle is up ahead.
The wheel has never come off but as I said, it is always loose.
Do yourself a favour, don't buy this hub. It came stock on my bike and that's the only reason I have it. I can't wait to get rid of it. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris
a Downhiller
from Palo Alto, CA
Date Reviewed: May 15, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | Braille Trail | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Nothing that stands out. | | Weaknesses: | Bearings were quite loose when the bike was new. After each ride they've gotten noticibly looser. After 6 rides they're so loose that when you grab the wheel and shake it back and forth it wiggles significantly. Also, when you lift the front wheel and drop it back down it "bangs" due to the slack in the bearings. After just 6 rides the bearings need replacement. They've never been wet or gotten significantly dusty and no jumps or drop-offs. I went back to the store and tested other new Stout hubs on bikes and found they were also shockingly loose. Even more shocking, there reviews indicating similar defects in the Stout hub going all the way back to 1998. So it seems that Specialized still hasn't improved it's quality control or improved the design appreciably. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano Deore DX and LX | | Bike Setup: | Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Expert | | Bottom Line: | This hub seems to either be of poor design or have poor quality control. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
James
a Racer
from UK
Date Reviewed: May 11, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | Came on bike | | Strengths: | Easy to service, stiff skewer. | | Weaknesses: | The bearings - worn out after 4 months. The seals are poor and let dirt in.
The quick release can be very difficult to release and at the same time it is prone to coming loose....go figure! | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic and shimano | | Bike Setup: | Specialized Epic Marathon. | | Bottom Line: | Poor seals and a suspect Quick Release spoil a potentially great product. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ryan R.
a Cross Country Rider
from Long Island N.Y.
Date Reviewed: August 3, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | Dirt ones! | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | Came with the bike | | Strengths: | Oversized thru axel is able tio handle the big hits to the front whee;, Very smooth rolling hub bearings are still as smooth as the day I bought my bike. Very strong I have beaten the hell out of this hub trough every type of trail imaginable and it still has yet to fail me. | | Weaknesses: | Some wieght issuses if your the type to count grams, Skewer replacement must be hard if you ever bend it no after market company makes a skewer with the same size as this one. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano LX and XT as well as WTB | | Bike Setup: | Specialized Stumpjumper FSR XC With plenty of goodies. | | Bottom Line: | This is a great font hub and is one of the few stock componets left on my bike. I am getting ready to change rims and I will be taking this hub with them when I do. Not that I am too cheap to buy a new one but I see no reason to replace one of the things that have been there for me when I need it evry time I do. This hub is near indistructable and I have throw plenty at it my bike rarely sees pavement and when it does it's brief. Anyone who has problems with this hub is nuts and I ave yet to kill it. The oversized thru axel is great and itis a nice piece of mind when using my disc brakes (the only way to go!). No noises as of six to eight months of use and they have seen everything from Mud to Harpack with not so much as a peep. Who should use this I would say anyone who is looking for a good front hub that is matinance free except for greasing the skewer ever month or so. PEACE! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Notorious P.I.G. .
a Downhiller
from Dogtown
Date Reviewed: January 10, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Oversized, cartridge bearings, smooth roll and 20mm thru axle. | | Weaknesses: | nothing so far | | Similar Products Used: | Marzocchi 20mm hub, also very nice! | | Bike Setup: | 2003 Bighit Comp stock except fot planet x meteor stem, azonic bars, azonic love seat and pedals. | | Bottom Line: | I got this hub on the '03 Bighit Comp so I really dont know the cost. But Stout is right! It's definitely a quality hub, pretty much as good as anything else out there right now. I'd buy it if I were looking for a new thru axle hub. It's got an oversized body, 20mm thru axle and cartridge bearings and rolls smooth as can be. A 5 rating even without knowing the price! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
G.
a Cross Country Rider
from Fort Collins
Date Reviewed: November 27, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Purchased At: | LBS | | Strengths: | SIX years of trouble free use. Replaced the bearings a few years ago and the hub is as good as ever! | | Weaknesses: | Had difficulty working with a 2002 SID/Judy--the fork tabs contacted the side of the hub body. Also, for the first 2-3 years the quick release took a LOT of force to undo. Seems to have gotten better though. | | Similar Products Used: | Low end shimano hubs | | Bike Setup: | '96 Bontrager Race, Marzocchi Z.2 Atom Race. . . | | Bottom Line: | Superb piece of equipment: strong, durable, easily serviced & rebuilt. Highly recommended. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Sam Firth
a Cross Country Rider
from Truro, Cornwall, UK
Date Reviewed: September 15, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | Anywhere interesting... | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$28.00 | | Purchased At: | Clive Mitchell Cycles, Truro | | Strengths: | Rolls perfectly, still completely smooth--feel like something fitted to expensive HiFi when turned by fingertip! Keep the water out well, strong. Look pretty trick too... | | Weaknesses: | hhhmmm, slightly heavy? Wish i could take it with me if i go disk, but there's no rotor mounts! Might be hard to find new bearings when they die [not at-all yet].... i dunno....pass? | | Similar Products Used: | Alivio-level, Shimano hub. | | Bike Setup: | Specialized Hardrock ['01] A1 Alu frame, Alivio transmission with LX rear mech, Manitou SixSuper forks, Deore rear Hub [not so hot], HS33s hitting D521s....and so-on | | Bottom Line: | Fit and forget in my experence. Been exposed to a wet winter and quite bad treatment; kept clean however. Never stripped down. Still feels as good as new, if i turn it to check it's condition. But there's a lot of metal in there if you care [Though the weight difference from an XT hub is easy for the rider to loose if the bikes' used enough!] Wish i could fit disks if i wanted to.
I paid £20 for mine [clearence stock] so really good value.
Should be worth-it at the £50RRP, thou only 4 turds for value in that case. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Joey
a
from Sydney, NS, Canada
Date Reviewed: August 26, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | It's doing a good job of keeping my wheel together while I wait for the shop to call me back. Oh, the bearings are pretty smooth, too. | | Weaknesses: | Freehub guts bit the dust after just under 400 miles of non-abusive riding. | | Bike Setup: | 01 Rockhopper Comp Disc | | Bottom Line: | This review is for the REAR stout hub. I started to notice some clicking and grinding coming from the rear when I would pedal hard. Took off the rear wheel and proceeded to clean the gunk from between my cogs and noticed alot of play in the freehub. Took it to the shop and they said it was shot, and I now have to wait a few days for a new one. This shouldn't have happened, I don't abuse my gear, and I only weigh about 140lbs. I'm less than impressed. I don't really know how I should rate it for value since it came on the bike, and I got a good deal on the bike. I'll be generous and give it 2 overall, since it does roll nice and smooth. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Sam VeraSforzza
a Racer
from Seattle,Wa, USA
Date Reviewed: April 20, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Purchased At: | Stock on 2000 S-Works M4 | | Strengths: | Superlight, rolls great, same quality as Chris King but less $$$, easy to repair, don't need to repair - "Set it and forget it!" | | Weaknesses: | Not as many colors as Chris Kings, rear version needs to be lighter, but not enough to warrent a deduction. | | Similar Products Used: | Bontrager, XMax's (came on 2001 S-Works), a few others. | | Bike Setup: | Too many to list. | | Bottom Line: | This hub is the shiz-nit, I'm going to have another superlight wheelset built with Kings rather than these because of color options and quality of rear hub, get these if you're on a budget. AAA+ for Specialized for another reliable product. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
andrew
a Cross Country Rider
from middletown
Date Reviewed: February 22, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | the jungle | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | theyre stiffer than normal hubs, cartridge bearings are nice. they look good | | Weaknesses: | see below | | Similar Products Used: | low end shimano, chris king(friends wheelset) | | Bike Setup: | trek hardtail, mavic wheelset | | Bottom Line: | some people say they dont like the non adjustable bearings. they are cartridge bearings and dont need to be adjusted. any hub should be mantained regularly so i dont see why people complain about that. these are great hubs that i reccomend. the only problem is that you can only get skewers through specialized, as no oter companies makes a comparable axle | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Craig
a Weekend Warrior
from Allendale, MI
Date Reviewed: July 24, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | came on my bike | | Strengths: | - functional
- stiff (if you can really tell a difference???) | | Weaknesses: | - skewer operation wasn't very smooth
- scratching noise developed in hub (bad seals?) | | Similar Products Used: | Mavic, XT, LX, Coda | | Bike Setup: | Seven Cycles Sola | | Bottom Line: | I replaced the wheelset with Mavic Crossrides as soon as I could afford to. The skewers on the Specialized hub didn't seem to work smoothly, and were very hard to open after a ride - they stuck really bad when closed. A scraping noise also developed after just a short time. Granted, I couldn't really tell a difference in stiffness over other hubs, probably due to the fact that I used a HeadShok fork (already very stiff). I'd recommend against these hubs. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jens
a Downhiller
from Muenster, Germany
Date Reviewed: April 18, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | Buhl Bikes in Oldenburg | | Strengths: | finish, stiffness, durability | | Weaknesses: | none so far | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano's XT '99 and '01 | | Bike Setup: | Specialized FSR, Z1 MCR, (now) Hayes FH, Mavic D521... | | Bottom Line: | They look really good, but the main strenghts are stiffness and durability. I was surprised to read so many bad notes on the bearings... Here in Germany I really know bad weather conditions, but in spite of that my hubs hold up on that even though I'm not THAT nice to them... And testing them 4 weaks at Vancouver's NorthShore-Trails I could not detect any weaknesses though my rims were scrap after that.
Thus I give 5 chilis to them... | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
TJ
a Weekend Warrior
from Vancouver
Date Reviewed: April 2, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Purchased At: | LBS | | Strengths: | Light, roll well, hold my discs/wheels to the bike.... | | Weaknesses: | Do not have a shimano sticker on them? | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano LX, Deore | | Bike Setup: | 2001 Specialized Enduro Expert, stock except for shorter stem, and Raceface seatpost | | Bottom Line: | I have had these hubs on my new bike for a 4 months now, have been riding lots in rainy Vancouver winter, and they are working just fine. Took the advice of some reviers and regulary pull back the seals and re-pack (@ once every 2 weeks) but I think that is probably overkill. I just love to take stuff apart, I believe it makes anything last longer.
Bottom Line, if they come on a bike you purchased dont worry about em, if you are looking for new hubs, definately add them to your short list (especially the front hub) | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jim
a Racer
from Westport, CT
Date Reviewed: December 8, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | Bike store | | Strengths: | Light. Rolls very well. Rare maintnance. Really good Hub | | Weaknesses: | Eventually need to be replaced | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano XTR. Hugi. Chris King | | Bike Setup: | Specialized Stumpjumper Pro. | | Bottom Line: | I work in a shop, and whenever we bulld up our own wheels, we use these hubs on the front. They are simply the best of whats around. Great Hub, pure and simple. After two years on my bike, I still have the same front wheel, and it is great.
If you are into any type of riding at all, this is the hub for you. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Per Dahlén
a Cross Country Rider
from Sweden
Date Reviewed: August 8, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Rocklunda Västerås | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | * Stiff
* Need no adjustments | | Weaknesses: | * Bearings doesn't hold up well in wet weather conditions. | | Bike Setup: | Stock Specialized Stumpjumper M2 Comp | | Bottom Line: | I'm quite satisfied with this product so far (I've ridden it for about 2000 miles). It's stiff and smooth rolling, but needs regular maintenance if you ride a lot in wet/muddy conditions.
It took me a while to figure out how to service the bearings (I've only worked with cup-and-cone style hubs before), but now that I now how to do it, it takes me about 15 minutes. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
TIM
a Weekend Warrior
from Nashville
Date Reviewed: May 31, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Lock 4 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Smooth rolling
| | Weaknesses: | Non adjustable | | Similar Products Used: | n/a | | Bike Setup: | 99 Stumpjumper FSR
Panaracer Fire Pro XC tires
Specialrise bar
Shimano pedals | | Bottom Line: | These rolled smoothly until about 2 months ago. The non adjustable bearings developed a looseness that caused my spokes to "sing" everytime the bearing moved. Now there is a lot of play in the front wheel.
My LBS replaced them under warranty, until next time. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mike
a Racer
from Maryland
Date Reviewed: April 5, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Gambril/Watershed | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Great Stiffness | | Weaknesses: | Bearings are horrible. After 1 month of hard riding both front and rear started singing...very annoying. You must maintain the bearings religiously, especially in wet conditions. Have since switched to new Mavic Crossmax tubeless...a little bit of heaven. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano | | Bike Setup: | 99 stumpjumper pro frame, all xtr components, sid shock, chris king headset. | | Bottom Line: | A good strong hub that is very smooth. But, you must stay on top of the maintenance. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tinker
a Weekend Warrior
from Singapore
Date Reviewed: July 30, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
quarry | | Duration Product Used: |
3 months | | Strengths: |
oh really?????? | | Weaknesses: |
YES!!!MANY!!!! | | Bike Setup: |
Rockhopper A1 FS
LX/XT | | Bottom Line: | i broken the freewheel.....junk!!!!!!!!
in the smelly bin now!!!! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jordan Norris
a Cross-Country Rider
from Washougal, WA
Date Reviewed: June 13, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
1 Year | | Strengths: |
Stiff | | Weaknesses: |
Bearings went out,
The QR stuck and then I broke the handle of the QR trying to free it. | | Similar Products Used: |
STX hubs | | Bike Setup: |
98 Specialized M2
with a T2 fork. | | Bottom Line: | They are stiff. But the bearins went bad after 1 winter of use and they are non-adjustable. The QR also is different than all other's on the market. And it broke went it got stuck. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Colin Cooper
a Weekend Warrior
from Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Date Reviewed: May 20, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
1 Year | | Strengths: |
Smooth Ride
Sweet Looks | | Weaknesses: |
Sealed Bearings | | Similar Products Used: |
SHIMANO HUBS | | Bike Setup: |
97 Stumpjumper | | Bottom Line: | This hub came on my '97 Stumpjumper. I love the smooth ride and the sleek styling. Unfortunately, after the first month of riding the bearings started squealling like a dieing cat. A took it down to the LBS and had the bearings replaced, since then I haven't had any problems. I just make it a point to pull off the dust seals with a sharpened spoke and repack the bearings every few months. I will definitely be riding this hub for a couple more years. The ride is great and it only takes a few minutes to repack the bearings. I give it 5 stars for ride and looks but subtract 1 for the crappy bearings. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
J Hensley
a Cross-Country Rider
from Long Beach
Date Reviewed: April 7, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
Any Tahoe Trail | | Duration Product Used: |
1 Year | | Strengths: |
Stiffness, Fat Axle/Skewer Combo, Wide Flanges | | Weaknesses: |
Bearing Seals | | Similar Products Used: |
Shimano Hubs | | Bike Setup: |
Specialized M2 | | Bottom Line: | This hub came on my 97 model and I'm very impressed with it's lateral stiffness. The hub is laced radially and I have noticed no cracks in the flange and I have only had to true the wheel very little once. And I'm not a narrow, flyweight- guy either-I've raced this hub in the Clydesdale class with no problems. One thing to be aware of though is that the bearings are not immune to water damage. After one wet ride I noticed a squeak coming from the axle so I disassembled it, carefully removed the dust seals by prying them up with an Exacto blade, cleaned them with citrus cleaner and a toothbrush and blowing them dry with an air nozzle. Repack them with some quality grease, push the dust seals back on, reassemble and go have some fun. Make this part of your maintenance, I've had no more problems since. Go Big Red S! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ralf Kavsek
a Weekend Warrior
from Netherlands
Date Reviewed: April 6, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
Single Trail | | Duration Product Used: |
2 Years | | Strengths: |
Stiffness | | Weaknesses: |
Bearings | | Similar Products Used: |
Shimano front hub | | Bike Setup: |
Stumpjumper M2 1997 | | Bottom Line: | Sand and water destroyed the industrial bearings. After building a new wheel with a LX front hub learned that it wasn't as stiff as the Specilized hub. I had new bearings installed (this is quite cheap) and rebuilt the wheel.Bottom line: give it a second chance. It deserves it, for stiffnes in a single trail! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
El Jefe
a racer
from California
Date Reviewed: February 22, 1999 | | Bottom Line: |
What more can you expect from the BEST COMPANY IN THE WORLD, Specialized (and no, I don't work for them.) There is none higher than this hub. It rolls like nothing I've ever ridden. And the best part about it is the fact that there are none of these STUPID lock nuts and cones to go out of adjustment. The hub needs no work at all. I don't know why some people think that crap gets in them when conditions are shity. I guess thats what happens when you try to service sealed bearings. That's why they are SEALED (duh.) Five flaming tirds for this baby. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ralf Kavsek
a weekend warrior
from The Netherlands
Date Reviewed: November 4, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
It came on my Stumpjumper and it worked well for one and a half year. They runned very smooth until? last weekend I rode a really muddy ride, the worst ever. Then my front hub let his live, some water came in and itr stopped turning. To bad for me and no good for Specialized. My bike has to be made for mud, not for sunny weather. And that is because it rains to often in the Netherlands.
Anyway my Shimano Rear hub was completely ok! Talking about quality!
A two star for the Stout hub, because when they are ok they run smooth. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Eady
a weekend warrior
from London, England
Date Reviewed: October 25, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These hubs came as standard on my stumpjumper. I love them to bits. They are working fine after about 4 months. They have got covered in mud and been crashed a lot, but they still work fine. They clamp my slightly flexy Judy T2 legs together very well. I'd recomend these hubs to anyone. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
pablo
a cross-country rider
from keene
Date Reviewed: August 16, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
good hum is stiff and looks cool and had it for 3 weeks so durability is an issue in this review creative skewer/axel combo is faily light and stiff on the 98 m2 stump four startrs bc of unkown durablity and there is no such thing as the perfect part ...yet | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jacob Avery
a cross-country rider
from Sonoma, Ca.
Date Reviewed: June 11, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
My '97 Stumpjumper came with this very cool looking front hub which began to squeek like a Sherman tank after 200 miles. I've only had it for a month, but thanks to El Nino (or is it the millenium) it has been a wet month. I popped the dust caps off to find that the sealed bearings were completely shot. A mechanic told me this is their weakness, but at least the axles aren't bending like the Trek factory hub. In retrospect, I should have loaded the dust caps with grease; this would have kept the elements at bay for a little while longer.Overhall a front hub after one month? I'm not impressed. Two stars(5 for looks) | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Kevin Punter
a weekend warrior
from Sydney Australia
Date Reviewed: May 6, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I can't seem to break this hub or damage the bearings. It spins freely - like no other hub I've seen. Came standard on my FSR Pro, mated with nice spokes to and ugly X222 (that has now become an X517!!!)This is a great hub, don't hesitate putting one of these up front. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Justin
a racer
from New England
Date Reviewed: May 5, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
The specialzed stout fron came with my 97 FSR comp that i bought last year. The hub is so stiff, and precise. The combination of a marzocchi bomber and this hub give you the stiffest front end possible. However after eight months of hard riding my sealed bearings are shot, and my frinds at the LBS say that they bearings are crap, and they all do that. I was told that they can be replaced, but sealed bearings are supposed to last a long time. chrid king has a five year guarantee on theirs, and a ten year on their headsets sealed bearings. only three chilis for stiffness, and looks. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Andy
a weekend warrior
from Alden, IA
Date Reviewed: March 29, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
My hub came stock on my FSR Comp, laced to a 221. It's the best hub I've riden in a long time. Combined with my z.2 BAM, it makes steering very reliably accurate. I recommend it to anyone looking for a stiff, smooth hub. It even has SPECIALIZED etched in it! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Giulio Harding
a weekend warrior
from Adelaide, South Australia
Date Reviewed: January 28, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
Woohoo!
Specialized hubs rock!
Bought one and laced it to a mavic 221 rim, and my first ride with it was a religious experience! Smooth, stiff, funky & chunky looking (mine is matt black) - and how they roll!
I'm giving it 1 billion chillies, but I can only show you the first 5 :( | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Scott Power
a racer
from Fresno CA
Date Reviewed: January 14, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I recieved this hub with my new specialized ground control. This thing rolls like there is no
such thing as friction. With the front axle actually being the skewer adds confidence in its
strength. It is lightweight and the price isn't too bad. It is comparable with expensive hubs in
rolling ability. In fact, the hub that came with the bike got stollen so I bought a new one. It
comes in a wooden box with wood burn engraving on it. Very sheik!!! This is by far the best
hub I've ever owned. Oh yeah, I am running the new hub on mavic 121. Plus, with this hub
the front end is so stiff laterally you feel like you are turning on a dime. I would give this hub
10 chilis but this review limits me to five.
| | Overall Rating: |
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