Bicycle Mechanics - Sealed Campy hub bearings replaceable?

I have a 9spd Veloce rear hub that is a little rough. I took it apart today to regrease/repack it....only to find that the bearings are sealed. Has anyone successfully (and economically) replaced their hub bearings in this type of hub?

It seems like I might be able to press the bearings out and press new ones in, but am not sure it's worth the effort. The rim is an open pro, and the spokes are of thick gauge while the nipples are red anodized (sweet looking). I'd rather not relace the wheel, but if I have to I will. Also, if I do have to relace it, can I re-use the hub body and put it onto something else, or are they campy specific?
thanks for the help in advance

Bearings should be 'standard' ie available from any bearing dealer net or walkin worth the name.
Removal is a matter of appropriate slow steady force applied from the opposite side of the bearing
Depends on your access but the hub has to be hollow. Even with locktite on the bearing it should
extrude out with some gentle persuasion. Bearing will have some cryptic numbers on the seal, take the
intact bearing to bearing store or cross ref with google. Doubt they will cost more than $2-4 each. 3/8" all thread, a couple of nuts and washers will allow you to press in the new bearings. Campy hubs highly likely to be Campy splined.

It's possible that the bearings will be upgradeable as well. Campy has extensive spare parts lists and you can check between parts to see what is compatible. I don't know the various bearing diameters off hand but you can check here:

http://www.campagnolo.com/jsp/en/doc/doccatid_3.jsp

A sweet upgrade would be the ceramic upgrade (CULT bearings) if they fit. CULT uses super hardened stainless races so they will last longer than the standard ceramic bearing units out there.

cdr

I know Campy's Chorus and Record hubs have cup-and-cone bearings and 10-speed Centaur and below hubs have (had?) sealed bearings but I wasn't aware 9-speed Veloce hubs had sealed bearings.

Interestingly, Campy seems to be getting out of the hub business altogether. Their website now lists only Record hubs as a separarate component. Chorus lists the Record hub and Centaur and Veloce groups include no hubs whatsoever. I guess Campy wants to sell complete wheels, not hubs.

I know Campy's Chorus and Record hubs have cup-and-cone bearings and 10-speed Centaur and below hubs have (had?) sealed bearings but I wasn't aware 9-speed Veloce hubs had sealed bearings.

Gotta love it; State-of-the-art sealed bearings on the low-end stuff;
Antiquated cone-and-ball on the high-end stuff.
That is why I went with Centaur hubs on the Litespeed I built last spring.

In 1997 I had ColoCyclist build a new pair of wheels for me with Phil Wood sealed-bearing hubs. The rims have been replaced several times since then. I have never touched the hubs. They are still as solid and silky-smooth as the day I received them. Why the hell would I want to go back to the obsolete design. I have better things to do with my time than fuss with hub bearings.

Gotta love it; State-of-the-art sealed bearings on the low-end stuff;
Antiquated cone-and-ball on the high-end stuff.
That is why I went with Centaur hubs on the Litespeed I built last spring.

In 1997 I had ColoCyclist build a new pair of wheels for me with Phil Wood sealed-bearing hubs. The rims have been replaced several times since then. I have never touched the hubs. They are still as solid and silky-smooth as the day I received them. Why the hell would I want to go back to the obsolete design. I have better things to do with my time than fuss with hub bearings.

"sealed bearing" is a bit of a misnomer -- it just means you can't service it. Maybe the higher quality of your Phil Wood bearings is the reason they're so smooth. The lower quality bearings on my veloce hubs haven't stood up to the cyclocross all that well. If they were "antiquated" I could just repack them and have them nearly as good as new. As it is, they're toast and I'm left trying to figure our what other bearings are compatible and just how exactly to R&R them.

It's possible that the bearings will be upgradeable as well. Campy has extensive spare parts lists and you can check between parts to see what is compatible. I don't know the various bearing diameters off hand but you can check here:

http://www.campagnolo.com/jsp/en/doc/doccatid_3.jsp

A sweet upgrade would be the ceramic upgrade (CULT bearings) if they fit. CULT uses super hardened stainless races so they will last longer than the standard ceramic bearing units out there.

cdr

CDR, thanks for the help. It looks like my winners are "FH-MI113". Unfortunately google doesn't know anything about these. Any suggestions for finding compatible "upgraded" bearings? Should I just pop them out and look for letters/numbers that I can use to order online, or would a different route be more productive?
thanks again

"sealed bearing" is a bit of a misnomer -- it just means you can't service it. Maybe the higher quality of your Phil Wood bearings is the reason they're so smooth. The lower quality bearings on my veloce hubs haven't stood up to the cyclocross all that well. If they were "antiquated" I could just repack them and have them nearly as good as new. As it is, they're toast and I'm left trying to figure our what other bearings are compatible and just how exactly to R&R them.

In 1991 I bought a used touring bike that had seen many miles including a RAAM-style tour. It had Sugino hubs with sealed cartridge bearings that were loose. I pushed them out, then took them down to the local industrial supply shop and picked up a new set for just a few dollars.

CDR, thanks for the help. It looks like my winners are "FH-MI113". Unfortunately google doesn't know anything about these. Any suggestions for finding compatible "upgraded" bearings? Should I just pop them out and look for letters/numbers that I can use to order online, or would a different route be more productive?
thanks again

Pop them out and read the type-codes off of them. This explains the codes:

http://www.bearing-king.co.uk/how-to-measure-a-bearing.php

Pop them out and read the type-codes off of them. This explains the codes:

http://www.bearing-king.co.uk/how-to-measure-a-bearing.php

thanks!

You could try asking a shop that sells a lot of Campagnolo. Ochsner USA and Branford Bike are well known for small parts as well.

6901 2RS

that's the generic bearing I'm looking for. Branford has it listed on the website but it is "NA"

I'll look at Ochsner

Enduro should have them also..

http://www.endurobearings.com/

Might try looking in your yellow pages under bearings for local bearing stores.
Motion Industries is all over the place and with the bearing # you listed you
have all you need. ABEC5 grade would likely gild the lily so to speak as would
ceramic. Motion not likely to have ceramic as a walkin walkout but could
order if you could wait a few days. The cheapest versions are almost
certainly going to be chinese or indian derived so it pays to be particular.
OTOH Motion or similar industrial suppliers don't sell to the bottom feeders
and stock only good quality bearings. LBS is not going to be particular except
for bling seekers so likely to have chinese bearings of unknown metallurgy
with melamine for lube next to ceramics.

Might try looking in your yellow pages under bearings for local bearing stores.
Motion Industries is all over the place and with the bearing # you listed you
have all you need. ABEC5 grade would likely gild the lily so to speak as would
ceramic. Motion not likely to have ceramic as a walkin walkout but could
order if you could wait a few days. The cheapest versions are almost
certainly going to be chinese or indian derived so it pays to be particular.
OTOH Motion or similar industrial suppliers don't sell to the bottom feeders
and stock only good quality bearings. LBS is not going to be particular except
for bling seekers so likely to have chinese bearings of unknown metallurgy
with melamine for lube next to ceramics.

looks like there is a Motion Industries near where my wife works. Interesting. When I get around to doing this, I'll have pics and all that fun stuff as an attempted reward for everyone's help

When I get around to doing this, I'll have pics and all that fun stuff as an attempted reward for everyone's help

Uh, did you get to it yet?

I'm looking at some Veloce front hubs I can get dirt cheap ($13) for wheel building; and am interested in the bearing-replacement question.

I purchased the Veloce front hubs also. they just press out and and in. Any bearing shop should be able to get the size in them.

On the rear hubs you can get some mirage hubs on ebay right now for around 15-25 each, they are the same as a veloce hub only not as polished. i purchased a few that way so I could have some spares if needed.

I purchased the Veloce front hubs also. they just press out and and in. Any bearing shop should be able to get the size in them.

On the rear hubs you can get some mirage hubs on ebay right now for around 15-25 each, they are the same as a veloce hub only not as polished. i purchased a few that way so I could have some spares if needed.

Good, Thanks!

I can't seem to find the Campagnolo part number FH-MI113 anywhere. Is the generic 6901 2RS equivalent?

I like the look of the hub and don't want to chuck them.

Gotta love it; State-of-the-art sealed bearings on the low-end stuff;
Antiquated cone-and-ball on the high-end stuff.

Cartridge bearings are hardly state of the art. It's a cheap off-the-rack solution.

Cup and cone bearings are found on high-end gear cause it's a proper high-end way to do it, particularly if replacement cups are available.

Fussing with hub bearings isn't something that ever takes me much time, but I always find it inordinately satisfying... an adjustable bearing is a thing of beauty that doesn't assume you're an idiot, and doesn't expect to be simply replaced at the first sign of trouble.

And it uses less steel.

I can't seem to find the Campagnolo part number FH-MI113 anywhere. Is the generic 6901 2RS equivalent?

I like the look of the hub and don't want to chuck them.

All you need to do is meaure the bearing OD, the ID and the width. Compare that to the specs on the 6901, which is a real common bearing. You can get that bearing in many versions, that start at a few dollars each and go on up in price, depending on the precision of the bearing and the type of balls and race chosen. A 6901 bearing has a 24mm OD, 12mm ID and 6mm width.

Gotta love it; State-of-the-art sealed bearings on the low-end stuff;
Antiquated cone-and-ball on the high-end stuff.
That is why I went with Centaur hubs on the Litespeed I built last spring.

In 1997 I had ColoCyclist build a new pair of wheels for me with Phil Wood sealed-bearing hubs. The rims have been replaced several times since then. I have never touched the hubs. They are still as solid and silky-smooth as the day I received them. Why the hell would I want to go back to the obsolete design. I have better things to do with my time than fuss with hub bearings.
There is nothing state of the art about radial bearings or ceramic bearing on a bicycle. Cup and cone are serviceable and last longer. Radial bearings need servicing also and are more difficult to work on.