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how to service front hub on magic wheels

by fenwick458
Thu, Oct 12, 2017 22:18
5

going to service the hubs on my summer wheels soon, the front is sounding a bit rough and is the through axle type with adapters to make it normal QR type, so will likely have sealed bearings in there somewhere, and the back is just old fashioned cup n cone. 

the back is no problem, but a little unsure how to do the front. I've tried prising the plastic/rubber sheild off one side but it just looks lke i'm going to butcher it, so I left it. I've searched online and must have found 10 videos about hubs NOT LIKE mine, but not one video with the same hubs as mine. anyway, on one of them it shows you can just remove the dust seal from the bearing, de-grease, clean and dry them and the re-pack with grease and re-assemble. is this likely to work if the hubs are at the stage where they are making a noise already? or would I be better off replacing the bearings completely?

how much do bike shops charge for this, seems you need a few tools which I don't have

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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5 comments

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Acm | 7 years ago
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Can't speak for the Mavic front wheel as mine is QR, but service for a standard QR rear wheel is dead simple. From memory, you remove the cassette, then put a spanner over the nut that should be visible on the driveside and an Allen key in the driveside axle end. You can then remove the axle end and the whole axle can be removed.

There are 3 cartridge bearings in a Mavic rear wheel (2 in the hub to take the rider's weight and one in the freehub). There's also a bushing in the freehub. This normally needs a service long before the bearings (a few drops of wet lube is all) so a new freehub might be in order if this hasn't been done and it's rough. Otherwise, replacing the bearings is the same as any other hub based around cartridge bearings

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beezus fufoon | 7 years ago
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have you tried using a magic wand and saying abracadabra?

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Goldfever4 replied to beezus fufoon | 7 years ago
1 like

This didn't work for me on my mavic wheels, I had to do it the muggle way

 

beezus fufoon wrote:

have you tried using a magic wand and saying abracadabra?

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beezus fufoon replied to Goldfever4 | 7 years ago
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Goldfever4 wrote:

This didn't work for me on my mavic wheels, I had to do it the muggle way

 

beezus fufoon wrote:

have you tried using a magic wand and saying abracadabra?

ah, good thinking - might be mavic and an unhelpful spellchecker

aren't mavics sealed bearing units though? - I think all you can do is use the special (but non-magical) tool to undo the units and clean out any crud

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mike the bike | 7 years ago
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Levering off the dust seals from the cartridge bearings and repacking them with grease is often all it takes to rejuvenate a hub, but if it's already sounding distressed, who knows?  It might be worth a try.

There are loads of YouTube videos showing how to mock-up an extractor/press to help with replacement.

Best of luck.

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