Hub recommendations for Velocity Cliffhangers

[Lucio Rodriguez]

I'd appreciate some recommendations for a new hub for my Appaloosa. I don't backpack, so a dynamo is unnecessary. I'm leaning towards a Paul hub because of its minimalist aesthetic, but if there's a hub you all love, please let me know! Thanks.

[aeroperf]

I like the Deore LX trekking equipment.  A rear hub would be FH-T670.
Quiet and bulletproof.  I’ve laced them to Velocity Atlas and Velocity Dyads.
For a front hub, I tend to use Shimano 105s because they are reliable and reasonably cheap.

[Luke Hendrickson]

I second Deore LX! I had those front & rear until I laced up a front wheel with a Kasai FS dynamo hub.

[Josh C]

I'd recommend a set of white industries hubs if you are looking for something more high-end. Smoothest hubs I've seen. 

[Victor Hanson]

cheapest you can get....Shimano LX?  

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VIctor R. Hanson

Gen Mgr

Schmier Industrial Properties

o:  510-652-0800

c:  510-207-8593

[Nick Payne]

If you want silver (as in unpainted metal) hubs, the White Industries MI5 hubs are nice.

Nick Payne

[Josh (BertoBerg)]

A T11 or an MI5 would be a great choice. They sure are pretty to look at and they roll so smooth. 

Josh

Seattle, WA

[Garth]

With cassette hubs to me it depends on how much noise one can finds "acceptable" (hah hah)  from the inherent design fof the ratcheting mechanism. 

The only real quiet ones I've heard are the Shimano's that have the self enclosed thread-in freehub bodies and the ratchetless Onyx. You can find recordings of  most any brand on YT and they're all screamers compared to the above. Sorry, even the White hubs. 

[Bill Lindsay]

The OP is looking for "a hub" for their Appaloosa.  The Appaloosa takes a 10x135mm rear hub and a 9x100 front hub.  The OP is leaning towards Paul and does not need a dynamo, which indicates they are looking for a FRONT hub.  Paul makes two 9x100 Front Hubs that would both be lovely on an Appaloosa:

https://www.paulcomp.com/shop/components/hubs/front-hubs/high-flange-front/

https://www.paulcomp.com/shop/components/hubs/front-hubs/fhub/

I think the Paul is a terrific front hub, and it's fun that every Paul product comes with a Paul Sticker, and you get to put a Paul Sticker on your bike now that you are running Paul bling.  If there was anybody who wanted the functional equivalent of a Paul front hub for a lot less money than a Paul front hub, I'd point them at the Surly Ultra New, which comes with bolts, but you can just remove the bolts and use it as a QR hub with a skewer if you like.  No issues,  

Unless I am mis-reading the OP, all REAR hub recommendations are un-necessary.  If the OP is looking at a Paul REAR hub, that means we're talking about a single-speed Appaloosa, which would be really interesting, or maybe even a 3x1 Appa, which would be fun.  :)

Bill Lindsay

El Cerrito, CA

[chintan jadwani]

Another recommendation to confuse you :)

https://analogcycles.com/products/bitex-touring-hubs

[Will Boericke]

As Bill said, depends on whether it's front or rear.  A front hub is a tube with sealed bearings, so while Paul hubs look lovely and I like to support MUSA products, it's hard for me to justify the price there.  Any old sealed bearing hub is pretty much as good as any other, bearings being equal.  I like DT swiss because the parts will always be there.  I've used a number of Bitex hubsets, and if silver and simple is what you're looking for, that's what I'd buy.  See Analog or Bikehubstore (the owner, Brandon, is great).

Will

[Corwin Zechar]

I'll second the recommendation of White Industries hubs. Phil Wood is also a great option if you want your hubs to last forever.

Regards,

Corwin

[Daniel Grilli]

My Appaloosa is being built up with a Bitex rear touring hub. 

Wheels are being built up this week - I'll report back once they (and the bike) are ready!

[Johnny Alien]

I find the Analog review of the Bitex hub to be very accurate. They are very close to the WI hubs at a small fraction of the cost. Amazing at quality and price but with zero hyper around them.

[Will Boericke]

100%.  I've built a number of wheels around them and all are still going strong, some not in my possession anymore.  This includes several sets of mtb hubs that are not coddled.  The only thing I've ever had to do to them is replace bearings on a front hub.  Well, and occasionally clean and relube the pawls.

Will

[Bill Lindsay]

The Bitex definitely seem to be the best bang for the buck, but I'm not crazy about the indirect implication that if you spend top dollar for White Industries, you're paying for hype, advertising, and pro sponsorships.  In my view it's mostly the economics of a medium sized Taiwanese factory vs a small boutique California machine shop.  

On the feature side, I like the feature of being able to change freehub bodies on my White Industries hubs.  I have both SRAM XD and Shimano HG "in stock" to give myself flexibility in my stable.  Can we do that on Bitex?

Bill Lindsay

El Cerrito, CA

[Will Boericke]

It really just comes down to what your disposale income looks like, I think.  Freehubs and endcaps are all replaceable on Bitex.  I now find DT Swiss to be a happy medium (and I prefer the reliability / interchangeability of the star ratchet + rebuildable nature of DT hubs).  But you're not getting silver.

Will

[Chris Copeland]

I second all the recommendations for bitex. 

[Patch T]

Lots of great recommendations for hubs at different price points, so I'll leave that point alone.

iwritela mentions: I don't backpack, so a dynamo is unnecessary.

I'm sure iwritela knows this and wrote something else - but you don't have to backpack or bikepack in order to justify a dynamo set up. Not all of my bikes have or need dynamo lighting set-ups, but those that do are not all bike-packers (or even tourers) neither. It's just wonderful always-having a front light; mine live on the bikes I go to when I want a big ride with no planned finish, where the possibility of staying out past late-afternoon is likely. And having a dynamo set-up has encouraged me to get out and ride at night on the occasion I've had the itch.

Perhaps OP already has a dynamo setup and knows all of this, in which case please disregard.

Patch in Oakland

On Saturday, March 2, 2024 at 10:55:35 AM UTC-8 iwri...@gmail.com wrote:

[Richard Rose]

Rear Cliffhanger on my Gus is built with this Bitex hub. It’s been very good for the first 2k miles.

Sent from my iPhone

On Mar 4, 2024, at 1:24 PM, Johnny Alien <johnny....@gmail.com> wrote:

I find the Analog review of the Bitex hub to be very accurate. They are very close to the WI hubs at a small fraction of the cost. Amazing at quality and price but with zero hyper around them.

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[Brian Turner]

I don't backpack, so a dynamo is unnecessary.

Although I am certainly glad to have it, the bike I use the most for bikepacking is probably the one I use my dynamo light on the least. Probably because on multi-day trips, I rarely find myself biking through the darkness for long periods of time. Typically, I am riding most of the daytime, and usually am at camp (or wherever) well before the sun sets. I find a dynamo setup to be incredibly practical for those bikes you hop on the most, for anything and everything; commuting or traveling on streets with traffic, riding around with friends at night, etc.

Ok, sorry to go off-topic!

[Jay Lonner]

I think the real use case for using a dynohub while bikepacking is to keep USB accessories topped up. Yes yes, one should try to unplug while in the wilderness etc., but being able to access .gpx files or use routefinding apps like Ride With GPS is clearly synergistic with the traditional map/compass/cue sheets.

Jay Lonner

Bellingham, WA

Sent from my Atari 400

On Mar 5, 2024, at 9:06 AM, Brian Turner <brok...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Johnny Alien]

For me personally I don't see the need for the dyno hubs. USB lights generally have more available options, are lighter, are brighter, and don't require a special setup (hub/wiring/etc). I understand and appreciate the "I don't want to charge anything" view but the sacrifice is extra weight and drag and with the length of time you can get off of one charge I don't see it as an issue. I respect that I am in the minority with that opinion. :)

[Lucio Rodriguez]

Thank you all for the fantastic recommendations. The Phil Wood hubs look amazing, and it appears they perform just as beautifully. However, I can't find the touring hub that fits my bike/rim specifications available anywhere so I will opt for the Bitex. White Industries seems to be a great other option, but I don't like how they look, especially compared to Phil Woods.

I'm going to buy the Bitex hubs and keep an eye out for Phil Woods touring hubs for a future upgrade. Thanks again, everyone!