Headshot Posted April 28, 2022 Share Funny how a pile of maintenance issues suddenly rear their heads with little or no warning and often after the bike has been standing around for a while... My trusty HT developed an awful creaking sound over Easter. Its hardly been ridden this year if at all prior to that. I was aware the dropper post was in a parlous state but hadn't noticed any crunching and creaking from the bike. I isolated it to the drivetrain and found the freehub with a completely failed Enduro inner bearing. No sign of water ingress or rust. That failure led to parts and labour around a 1/3 of what the hub had cost in the first place. This after 4000km and fairly moderate use - no big wet rides over a 3.5 year period. I have been told the Funn hub in question was simply "crap" and I'm quite prepared to believe that, though I'm not sure exactly how manufacturers manage to produce stuff that wears to the extent that fundamental parts fail like this rather than wear out gracefully. The outer bearing was still serviceable as were the other hub bearings. Are the tolerances and design so poor in anything that's not a DT or Hope, or its it time there was a total rethink of bicycle component design, especially rear hubs? That said, the DT hubs on a far older bike we have are still very good to go - almost no bearing wear, as are the Mavic hubs on my ancient road bike. A 9 year old Giant front hub on the same HT has never needed a bearing change and they are still running fast albeit a tad noisily. Then again, I've seen DT hubs wear their front hub bearings leading to play at the wheel, too. The rear Giant hub was donated to someone else and I bet its still working fine too. Contrast this ancient Giant stuff with the OE Specialized hubs on my Enduro and there is no comparison. The low end Spesh stuff is absolute junk that made my Funn hub look like a Swiss watch. I think the first bearing failed after a couple of months and the hub as a whole never ran smoothly. Being unable to ride my HT I switched over to my enduro bike but there too were issues. The RF BB bearings have also reached the end of their natural life and also not in the way I'm used to Shimano stuff going. There is a slight sense of bearing wear when the crank is spun without a chain, but even with that low perceived wear, there is a very noticeable side to side play in the cranks. Oh well, new BB time and hopefully no damage to the crank itself. I'm going to add this to the list - I have just done a chain swop to find the cassette or chainring is too worn for the new chain. Maybe its time to take up trail running 🙂 mecheng89 and Fred van Vlaanderen 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mecheng89 Posted April 28, 2022 Share What's that saying - goedkoop koop is duur koop. Happens to a lot of us man, good luck with the maintenance spending! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
love2fly Posted April 28, 2022 Share 4 hours ago, Headshot said: Funny how a pile of maintenance issues suddenly rear their heads with little or no warning and often after the bike has been standing around for a while... My trusty HT developed an awful creaking sound over Easter. Its hardly been ridden this year if at all prior to that. I was aware the dropper post was in a parlous state but hadn't noticed any crunching and creaking from the bike. I isolated it to the drivetrain and found the freehub with a completely failed Enduro inner bearing. No sign of water ingress or rust. That failure led to parts and labour around a 1/3 of what the hub had cost in the first place. This after 4000km and fairly moderate use - no big wet rides over a 3.5 year period. I have been told the Funn hub in question was simply "crap" and I'm quite prepared to believe that, though I'm not sure exactly how manufacturers manage to produce stuff that wears to the extent that fundamental parts fail like this rather than wear out gracefully. The outer bearing was still serviceable as were the other hub bearings. Are the tolerances and design so poor in anything that's not a DT or Hope, or its it time there was a total rethink of bicycle component design, especially rear hubs? That said, the DT hubs on a far older bike we have are still very good to go - almost no bearing wear, as are the Mavic hubs on my ancient road bike. A 9 year old Giant front hub on the same HT has never needed a bearing change and they are still running fast albeit a tad noisily. Then again, I've seen DT hubs wear their front hub bearings leading to play at the wheel, too. The rear Giant hub was donated to someone else and I bet its still working fine too. Contrast this ancient Giant stuff with the OE Specialized hubs on my Enduro and there is no comparison. The low end Spesh stuff is absolute junk that made my Funn hub look like a Swiss watch. I think the first bearing failed after a couple of months and the hub as a whole never ran smoothly. Being unable to ride my HT I switched over to my enduro bike but there too were issues. The RF BB bearings have also reached the end of their natural life and also not in the way I'm used to Shimano stuff going. There is a slight sense of bearing wear when the crank is spun without a chain, but even with that low perceived wear, there is a very noticeable side to side play in the cranks. Oh well, new BB time and hopefully no damage to the crank itself. I'm going to add this to the list - I have just done a chain swop to find the cassette or chainring is too worn for the new chain. Maybe its time to take up trail running 🙂 Why was the rear hub repair so expensive if just a bearing? I never replace my BB and replace the bearings only Sram GXP threaded probably R200 in total...As soon as I hear any sort of noise I strip, clean and grease.. prevention is cheaper than cure 😃 Headshot 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Headshot Posted April 28, 2022 Share The freehub needed 2x bearings which are over R100 each and there was some machining to the spacer which was damaged. And we're not taling about a DT 240 hub here price wise. I have just solved the noisy new chain issue by refitting the used steel RF chainring which shows little if any wear. Just tested it and nothing but the gentle sound of a happy chain. Yay. On examination, the old ali front ring was quite worn. It's definitely a case of lig koop is duurkoop when it comes to drivetrain components. I remain impressed with the GX cassette which is now on its third chain in 4 years and shows barely any wear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marcv Posted April 28, 2022 Share Maybe its time for an FTP test...... Headshot and mecheng89 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steady Spin Posted April 29, 2022 Share Had my turn between December and February. R10k in parts later. mecheng89 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilipV Posted April 29, 2022 Share Be warned, trail running sucks funds as well. I've spent more on shoes in the last 18 months than I would have on a shimano drivetrain replacement for my bike. Sid the Sloth, Headshot and mecheng89 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herrowpreeze Posted April 29, 2022 Share Dear diary.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MORNE Posted April 29, 2022 Share 46 minutes ago, PhilipV said: Be warned, trail running sucks funds as well. I've spent more on shoes in the last 18 months than I would have on a shimano drivetrain replacement for my bike. As someone who liked trying all sorts of hobbies in the past…I always tell people that the entry fee into most new hobbies is around 20-30k lol. Bikes, shoes, gps, clothing, golfclubs(i would never!) RC racing, archery, kite surfing, diving etc etc etc lol Edited April 29, 2022 by MORNE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jewbacca Posted April 29, 2022 Share 1 hour ago, PhilipV said: Be warned, trail running sucks funds as well. I've spent more on shoes in the last 18 months than I would have on a shimano drivetrain replacement for my bike. hahahaha When my free shoe ride came to an end in 2019 I bought 4 pairs of shoes. I really likes 2 of the 4 and waited for them to go on special then bought 2 more pairs at half price. I'm still chewing through those and bought a pair of Merrell on their 50% off clearance sale. The fact that I ran my fastest 100 miler in 2007 shows me that last seasons shoes are more than adequate for this season's plodding! M L 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie Stewart Posted April 29, 2022 Share My HT needs a complete group set overhaul. Cassette, chain, chain ring, derailleur, shifters - the lot. I have an old 2x11 I removed from my Spez when I switched to Eagle so I can get the derailleur and shifters from there and then just need a new cassette and front ring as well as likely a new BB and rear hub as well. Then the bike will be rideable again, although I am pretty sure the wheels are probably not long from needing to be laced up again. My Camber needs suspension servicing front and back - badly. Cassette, chain and chainring also needs replacing but then that is good to go as well. Then don't even get me started on needing new baggies, socks, jerseys etc. etc. . . . and if that was not enough already, last week I had to do the brakes on my Isuzu after it tried to end me on the N1. Slamming the brakes for an emergency stop is not a good idea on worn brakes when the ABS, ESC and all the other "electronic aids" meant to assist all conspire to work against one another to help the mismatched brakes and result in shaking the steering like a wild pony at speed. My funds are being wildly depleted at the rate things are going now . . . Headshot and ChrisF 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyLuke Posted April 29, 2022 Share same here...my xo1 12 speed group sets almost gone, Shimano deore looks cheap and bulletproof...😅 MORNE 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MORNE Posted April 29, 2022 Share 54 minutes ago, LuckyLuke said: same here...my xo1 12 speed group sets almost gone, Shimano deore looks cheap and bulletproof...😅 thats why everyone needs a frame with sliding dropouts. when parts are too expensive and the going gets tough...make it (and yourself) more tougherer... and single speed it haha LuckyLuke and Headshot 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyLuke Posted April 29, 2022 Share 8 minutes ago, MORNE said: thats why everyone needs a frame with sliding dropouts. when parts are too expensive and the going gets tough...make it (and yourself) more tougherer... and single speed it haha haha...you can buy a rapide tigre frame and deore gears for the price of premium groupset MORNE 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Headshot Posted April 29, 2022 Share I forgot to mention the other issues in the fleet. wife's bike needs a rear shock service (R1.5k) , its making weird squishy noises, and a new chain and possibly also a new cassette. Already have a new chain but I'm a little scared to fit it in case it leads to more expense 🙂 My HT need a new dropper post or an expensive repair to the existing one (thanks Spesh). My enduro bike rear wheel is basically toast - new rim and spoke time is around the corner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisF Posted May 8, 2022 Share And so the time came to service my bike ... Bought the new chain .... so busy making sure it is rated for the ebike I took the 116 link instead of the 126 .... jip, too short. Bought new brake pads .... nope, must move the pads back to fit it ... carefully the bleed hose (had to go buy some hose first), open the bleed nipple at the caliper and move the pads back .... New pads fitted ... follow the normal pot on the bars process .... nope !! All the air is out, but the bite point stays on the bars .... Watched some Parktool videos .... tried the strap on the brake lever ... nope. Just cant get the bite point higher. Four pot Shimano brakes. O.well .... back to Mark tomorrow .... PS . I built up a new brake set, Shimano 2 pot, a few months back ... from routing new hoses through the frame, new bleed of the system ... I am comfortable with brakes .... but this is the second time this particular set has me stumped. PPS . I did a lot of searching, but did not find a thread on bleeding the 4 pot Shimano brakes. MajG 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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