[darrylruddock]

Just wondering how many would choose the DT's because of the 90g weight difference. I'm not a full on weight weenie and not racing but am trying to lighten up my V4 Ripley a bit. I'm building a wheel set and current is ~1900grams and I had it in my mind I want to get to the 1500 gram range. If I build with Hydras that i want for the bling colour and unique sound it will be 1650g and the 240's will get me more the desired weight of mid 1500grams. If i post in any other forum I'm sure ppl will just say you will never feel the 90 grams so just get the hydras but wondering what ppl say here. Thanks!

 

[*OneSpeed*]

What do you want to hear?

Yes, the DT is lighter. Yes, the i9 has more bling, more sound, and more engagement.

Your move.

 

[russya]

You will notice the difference of the engagement and the sound way more than the weight, that’s just a fact. I built up my V4 Ripley about as light as anyone I’ve seen (23.5lbs XL), but I was making the choice between these two hubs and chose the heavier I9’s. My buddy’s RIpmo has the exact same wheels as mine but with the 240’s and when we ride each other’s bikes back to back he wishes he would have gotten the I9’s instead. I’m not saying the 240’s are not great hubs, because I’ve owned several and have always liked them with the 54t driver. But myself and people I ride with prefer the I9’s when we ride them back to back, even for a weight weenie like me. My $.02 for what it’s worth.


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[pctloper]

Personally, I hate those loud hubs-----I enjoy riding thru the woods without the feeling of bees swarming--worth 90 grams

 

[Suns_PSD]

Neither.

Project 321.

 

[russya]

For the record, if you put the thicker grease in the I9’s they quiet down to be quite a bit quieter than the DT240’s. So If I’m going to be riding out by myself where there’s not a lot of people I run them quiet. If I’m going to a trail where there’s lots of traffic, especially mixed traffic, I run the thinner/louder grease to let people know I’m coming.


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[darrylruddock]

Neither.

Project 321.

I have heard good things but the company I'm likely dealing with (NOBL) does not stock them.

 

[darrylruddock]

You will notice the difference of the engagement and the sound way more than the weight, that’s just a fact. I built up my V4 Ripley about as light as anyone I’ve seen (23.5lbs XL), but I was making the choice between these two hubs and chose the heavier I9’s. My buddy’s RIpmo has the exact same wheels as mine but with the 240’s and when we ride each other’s bikes back to back he wishes he would have gotten the I9’s instead. I’m not saying the 240’s are not great hubs, because I’ve owned several and have always liked them with the 54t driver. But myself and people I ride with prefer the I9’s when we ride them back to back, even for a weight weenie like me. My $.02 for what it’s worth.


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Thanks, this is along the lines of what I wanted to hear! I 've heard only great things about the hydras and if I don't enjoy the free hub noise I'll put the recommended grease in them. 23.5 is crazy light! My SLX build with carbon bars is about 30 even! Just wondering what ID wheels you are running when you are that low? I can also easily get down to my goal wheelset weight of around 1500 grams if I go with a 27ID instead of 30ID which i thing I'm going to go with.

 

[phlegm]

For the record, if you put the thicker grease in the I9’s they quiet down to be quite a bit quieter than the DT240’s. So If I’m going to be riding out by myself where there’s not a lot of people I run them quiet. If I’m going to a trail where there’s lots of traffic, especially mixed traffic, I run the thinner/louder grease to let people know I’m coming.
...

Seems like a lot of work. (?)

 

[darrylruddock]

Seems like a lot of work. (?)

There are plenty of vids on this. Looks like a 5 min job, no tools required.

 

[FishMan473]

I am also looking to get some lighter wheels for my Ripley LS this spring, however, I've been shooting more for the 1300g range. My aggressive weight goal makes the Hydra tough sell.

Overall, I've been comparing a number of hubs, and what I think it comes down to is that DT has a small and light free hub engagement system. By all reports it is durable, but the small diameter of the Ratchet Drive means you can only put so many teeth in it and maintain that durability.

The I9 on the other hand has a big engagement ring with many tiny teeth and 4 pauls to engage with them, and that all adds weight. Generally, across the range of high-end hubs, the high-engagement hubs are heavier and the lightweight hubs have less engagement. There's no way around that, you have to pick which is more important to you.

If you have Ibis branded hubs right now, the DT have the same number of engagement points, so you won't miss it, FWIW.

I had some King hubs back in the day, and going from 18t to 72t back then, it was obvious how important high engagement is for my style of riding. I say riding style is important because situations like technical climbs or terrain with a lot of corners you have to accelerate out of or short steep climbs, the extra engagement is really valuable. Descending and flow trails, not so much. Currently I have a bontrager Kovee wheelset with 108t and the Ibis 938 with 36t. Honestly, I don't notice it much, because I typically choose the lighter bontrager wheels (with lighter tires too) for rides with more climbing and tight corners, and the Ibis wheels for more descending and rougher trails.

 

[FishMan473]

Oh, and I want to add, take a look at XTR: 54t, only about 15g than than the 240's, and cost about $150 less. You could put the money you save towards some chinese carbon rims, and save the weight where it really counts.

 

[darrylruddock]

I am also looking to get some lighter wheels for my Ripley LS this spring, however, I've been shooting more for the 1300g range. My aggressive weight goal makes the Hydra tough sell.

Overall, I've been comparing a number of hubs, and what I think it comes down to is that DT has a small and light free hub engagement system. By all reports it is durable, but the small diameter of the Ratchet Drive means you can only put so many teeth in it and maintain that durability.

The I9 on the other hand has a big engagement ring with many tiny teeth and 4 pauls to engage with them, and that all adds weight. Generally, across the range of high-end hubs, the high-engagement hubs are heavier and the lightweight hubs have less engagement. There's no way around that, you have to pick which is more important to you.

If you have Ibis branded hubs right now, the DT have the same number of engagement points, so you won't miss it, FWIW.

I had some King hubs back in the day, and going from 18t to 72t back then, it was obvious how important high engagement is for my style of riding. I say riding style is important because situations like technical climbs or terrain with a lot of corners you have to accelerate out of or short steep climbs, the extra engagement is really valuable. Descending and flow trails, not so much. Currently I have a bontrager Kovee wheelset with 108t and the Ibis 938 with 36t. Honestly, I don't notice it much, because I typically choose the lighter bontrager wheels (with lighter tires too) for rides with more climbing and tight corners, and the Ibis wheels for more descending and rougher trails.

Thanks for the input! I am on the Ibis logo hubs so although i likely would not miss the engagement of the 240's something tells me that I will enjoy the added engagement of the Hydras. My local trails is more pedalling with some tight stuff with only short ups and downs so i may make a small difference,

 

[darrylruddock]

Oh, and I want to add, take a look at XTR: 54t, only about 15g than than the 240's, and cost about $150 less. You could put the money you save towards some chinese carbon rims, and save the weight where it really counts.

Yes I was considering BTLOS but I like the idea of NOBL, a Canadian company rather than dealing with China, and yes I'm aware the rims are coming from China....haha. I'm ok with spending the extra few hundred bucks to go with NOBL.

 

[phlegm]

I bought some carbon NOBLs with I9s a few years back, and was very happy, so I'd have no concerns with the firm. I'm running DT-based rims now (Spec Control SL) and also happy.

As suggested, I don't think you'll notice a massive difference on weight, nor engagement either way. I personally wasn't a huge fan of the I9 sound, but that's me.

 

[darrylruddock]

I bought some carbon NOBLs with I9s a few years back, and was very happy, so I'd have no concerns with the firm. I'm running DT-based rims now (Spec Control SL) and also happy.

As suggested, I don't think you'll notice a massive difference on weight, nor engagement either way. I personally wasn't a huge fan of the I9 sound, but that's me.

Thanks for the input, the Hydras are more quiet than the torches apparently and as said above, they can be easily silenced with Dummond grease so I don't think it will be an issue if i don't like the stock sound.

 

[LC17SMP]

I’m not a fan of the i9 hydra concept. To get the high engagement numbers they rely on one pawl of engagement and other pawls engage as the system torques or flexes if I understand it correctly. So there is always more stress on 1 pawl. DT 240 hubs have an even torque load applied. If a mechanical engineer was picking one of these systems for longevity and durability I wonder which one he/she would pick? 😉

 

[WHALENARD]

Is that 90g's difference real world confirmed weight or advertised? I wonder what the confirmed weight difference is with the 36t ?
I have a weight weenie build in mind I've been considering and that 90g's may have choosing 240's over I9's. I've loved my 9's thus far though. Beyond degrees of engagement I really like how firmly they engage.

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[*OneSpeed*]

I’m not a fan of the i9 hydra concept. To get the high engagement numbers they rely on one pawl of engagement and other pawls engage as the system torques or flexes if I understand it correctly. So there is always more stress on 1 pawl. DT 240 hubs have an even torque load applied. If a mechanical engineer was picking one of these systems for longevity and durability I wonder which one he/she would pick? 😉

I think you're misunderstanding that system. Yes, a single pawl engages first but before it receives too much torque, a second, third, and forth pawl engage so that no one pawl ever receives too much load. It's actually an extremely strong design.

There's lots of them out there at this point, if it was problematic it would be all over the internet.

 

[FishMan473]

Is that 90g's difference real world confirmed weight or advertised? I wonder what the confirmed weight difference is with the 36t ?

I have a spreadsheet with some numbers, I believe what I have down are "Actual Weights", with I9 coming in at 300g and DT 240 EXP at 235g, so a 65g difference. But if one had a SRAM free hub and the other Shimano, it could make a pretty big difference.

EDIT: I Had originally posted the weight of the straight-pull 240 hub, just corrected that.