broken hub
i was out riding on monday evening and thought my back wheel was feeling weird. i remember hearing something on the ride downtown but i ignored it. anyhow, i coast to a stop and get off my bike to check it out. yep, another broken spoke … needless to say i was a bit miffed. 3 years old and this thing was already starting to show it’s age. i jump back on my bike and finish my ride.
when i got home i put my bike up on the wall and started feeling the rear wheel for loose spokes and maybe some other broken ones. my hands flow over a few spokes and then i touched one and it literally peels off with a piece of the flange from the hub. yea, the hub of my rear wheel broke on contact. i was flabbergasted. this isn’t a cheap hub either, it’s a hugi 240 which shouldn’t fail like this.
after researching it and talking to my guy at my lbs i took the wheel in today to have the hub sent in. it’s actually technically 3 months past the warranty date (3 years) but i’ve heard good things about dt swiss and their product support. if it isn’t then i have to build a new rear wheel, needless to say i won’t be getting my pedals just yet if this happens. just in case the hub isn’t covered under warranty i’ve started researching new hubs. it looks like chris king is the way to go if i need to go this route. but let’s hope it’s covered as their products aren’t cheap.
after looking at the specs of my current rear wheel i understand why it failed as soon as it did. first it only had 15/18 gauge spokes which is way to light weight for someone my size. secondly after so many spokes had broken over time i should have had it relaced. instead i had a wheel with strong spokes mixed with old stressed spokes that were different gauges. when i get my new wheel i plan on building it with stronger gauge spokes (14/15g – lower is stronger in spokes) to support my riding style and girth, i need that extra lateral strength.
i’ll let you know tomorrow if i’m going to be pedal-less the rest of the year.
