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Home > Forum > Triathlon Forum > wheel hub break in period?

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wheel hub break in period?
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titemple652
Jun 20, 19 18:12
Post #1 of 6 (1987 views)
Folks,

Rode my new Bontrager xxx6 race wheels this evening. Beautiful wheels really stiff and aero.

I am writing because on the work stand I notice this is quite a lot of drag going on inside the rear hub, more than I have seen. If I turn the cranks to get the wheel spinning good and release the cranks the cranks will turn and turn on their own and also the wheel doesn’t spin all that long. The wheels have DT Swiss internals with star ratchets.

Wondering if there is a break in period, or if anyone here has seen this with dt hubs? Any advice appreciated.

Again the wheels are brand new.
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Re: wheel hub break in period? [titemple652] [ In reply to ]
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Shambolic
Jun 20, 19 18:20
Post #2 of 6 (1980 views)
I found this with a set of Mavic wheels. The issue was too much grease inside the freehub and not letting the freehub release operate freely enough. I just took the freehub off and reduced the amount of grease in there or you could put a lighter grease in there.
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Re: wheel hub break in period? [Shambolic] [ In reply to ]
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titemple652
Jun 20, 19 18:36
Post #3 of 6 (1966 views)
Yeah I was wondering about that as well. Will give it a go.
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Re: wheel hub break in period? [titemple652] [ In reply to ]
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rruff
Jun 20, 19 19:31
Post #4 of 6 (1916 views)
Some break in is normal though if they have good seals and high grease fills.

Take the wheel off the bike and get washer stacks or nuts that will let you clamp down with a QR like it's mounted on the bike. Then spin the axle. If it's smooth resistance you'll probably be fine. If it's notchy or gritty at all, there is a problem.
Last edited by: rruff: Jun 20, 19 19:33
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Re: wheel hub break in period? [titemple652] [ In reply to ]
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MattyK
Jun 20, 19 20:18
Post #5 of 6 (1890 views)
A sticky freehub won't make any difference whatsoever while you're pedalling. And the drag (maybe a couple of watts) would only show up when you're coasting, which would be when you're either slowing down (in which case you don't care) or when you're topped out at terminal velocity (in which case you shouldn't care).

Try removing the chain and spinning the wheel unencumbered by the freehub drag. That will check the wheel bearings only, and if that runs fine then you're sweet.
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Re: wheel hub break in period? [titemple652] [ In reply to ]
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RichardL
Jun 20, 19 21:21
Post #6 of 6 (1863 views)
This is pretty common with DT Swiss star ratchets. I wouldn't worry about it. Give it some miles. Mine took a good month of riding before the rear wheel spins freely.
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