RS80 Shimano Wheel Fail!

[ukalipt]

the full story here

[keviny]

oh wow...that is pretty bad.....i was considering a set too.....now i might have to rethink

[ukalipt]

thats why i wanted to post it here to let everyone know.

before this issue i loved the wheels. made the roadie like a new bike with this wheelset.
i guess the issue was more me not servicing them but still - to me though its a design flaw

[keviny]

definitely!! you've only done 5000km on em!

[Uncle Grumpy]

Years ago, Shimano hubs were the ducks guts, even though they were cup and cone. Keep them adjusted, keep them greased and they'd last forever if you looked after them.

That's not really a bit of pitting, that's the polished bearing surface coming away. If you don't look after them, you get wear marks. If they're not adjusted proparly you get pitting and brinelling of the bearing race surfaces.

But that is a failure of the races themselves. The metal has gouged out, it looks like it has flaked away. That's a flaw. Simple.

I don't have a problem with cup and cones. Sure, cartridge bearings you just pop out and replace and it's not fatal if the bearing gets manky because the bearing is all self contained.

I have 2 sets of Shimano 550s, whatever the full model designation is. One set is fine, but the other ones (I got them second hand for bugegr all money) are rough as guts. Regrease and adjust and still rough. Closer inspection reveals pitting to the races. I'll run them until I flog them out enough to annoy me then I'll build my own wheels, probably Mavics on Whites or something sexy.

Grumps

[ukalipt]

grumps your like a wiki for bikes.

yes when i first - and today - cleaned them out there were metal flakes everywhere, lots of them.
my bad for buying them from CRC. might have been able to have gone down the warranty route
if i had purchased them locally

ps. if anyone has a set of RS80's i now have some spares [spokes, skewer etc] for your front wheel
if you ever need them

[Tokyo Drifter]

this isn't a wheel failure and wouldn't be a warranty issue anyway. It takes about a minute to service a shimano front hub. Nothing lasts forever if it isn't looked after.

All you need is a new axle kit. A basic ($60-80) service at a bike shop will nearly always include a regrease and tightening of hubs.

FWIW, I did my big touring trip on shimano SLX hubs, carried the appropriate cone spanners in my panniers, but never had to touch them. They were completely submerged in water a few times and the races are not pitted.

[Uncle Grumpy]

this isn't a wheel failure and wouldn't be a warranty issue anyway. It takes about a minute to service a shimano front hub. Nothing lasts forever if it isn't looked after.

"About" a minute. Really? Takes me about 5 but hey, I'm not an expert on everything.

All you need is a new axle kit. A basic ($60-80) service at a bike shop will nearly always include a regrease and tightening of hubs.

Read the link, the hub cup is toasted as well. I thought the cones in the hub shell pressed out? If so (and I'm not sure about that particular model), then the hub may be able to be salvaged.

FWIW, I did my big touring trip on shimano SLX hubs, carried the appropriate cone spanners in my panniers, but never had to touch them. They were completely submerged in water a few times and the races are not pitted.

This isn't pitting, this is shitbag casting of the cone.

Grumps

[ukalipt]

i totally admit i should have serviced them more.

yes the hub has the same issue. pitting, gouting out. etc. not as bad but still as i mentioned
the LBS mechanic [who is good and not a bullshit artist] said that if the hub has the same
kind of issue then the value in replacing the hubs and axle aren't probably worth the money
compared to purchasing a new wheel.

FWIW: my issue is i am running a mavic aksium front wheel now.
its the original wheel that came with the bike and is worth about 50% of the value of the
RS80's. i have never serviced the aksiums and they obviously run better than the RS's.
Km to Km - i know the mavic's have rolled further.

i am not complaining about the issue. i do believe it is my fault
i just wanted to show people -
1. what happens if you neglect your wheels
2. IMHO - the aksiums are superior even though they are heavier and cheaper

[singletrack]

I had a similar issue with a set of XTR MTB wheels. It only takes a nats nut sac of movement with loose bearings to right royally root a hub.

I only run sealed units now which might spin slightly less and are heavier, but i'm not paying thousands of $$ to then have to watch the things like a new born

Shimano need to release a series with sealed hubs. Nuff said.