michaelmc

I'm looking for opinions from people real-world experience with DT Swiss 240s or Chris King Classic hubs. I'll be building up a wheelset for both training and racing with Velocity Aerohead and O/C rims, DT Competition spokes, and brass nipples for longevity. My hub choice is narrowed down to the two above hubsets.

Head-to-head:
Price: Even (more or less)
Weight: DT Swiss by 60 g
Sound: The King WHIZZZZZZ could be a pro or con depending on state of hangover, so Even.
Appearance: Even (I like both, for different reasons)
Company values: Chris King
Longevity: ****************************************???

King hubs, according to their literature should be maintained every 6 mos - 1 year, and, if done properly, will last a long long time. I have no idea about DT Swiss hubs, so that's what I want to know. Also, if you have experience with both, which do you prefer and why?

michaelmc

Anybody?

jamiewilson3

DT swiss is the current weapon of choice in the pro peloton for the lightweight wheel builds, according to their website.

BikeWise1

I love the Kings, but they're are overkill for the road. 240s' are much quieter and easier to service.

onkey

240's are da best. i have 3 sets and will score a fourth soon.

fyi, 240's are used on those super expensive reynolds carbon wheels also.

onkey

btw,

i've never tried chris king hubs.

dekindy

I have those rims on White Industries hubs built by Dave Thomas of Speed Dream Wheels. He calls them the AR-20. I bought used on E-bay and so far like them a lot. They are supposed to be noisier than Shimano and DT but not as noisy as Kings. I can vouch for the Shimanos and Kings noise level but have no experience with DT. I think that if I was building a wheelset from scratch I would choose between Shimano Ultegra and DT Swiss. Shimanos are so quiet.

michaelmc

Thanks, BW. In what way do you mean that they're "overkill" for the road?

michaelmc

Thanks, onkey. How many miles do you have on them? How often have you had them serviced?

BikeWise1

By that I meant they have redundant seals and are designed to function even with water intrusion. They are intended to deal well with very adverse conditions, such as one might find when riding off-road a lot. The DT Swiss hubs are a better choice for the road, IMO. You can pull the freehub body off and clean and lube the mechanism with no tools, and I believe there's a little less drag as well.

DigitalRJH

have had the 240's on my x lites for over 2 years now, no problems.

nate14

DT stuff is, by all accounts, pretty excellent stuff. I don't have personal experience with it, but I do have personal experience with King. I absolutely cannot recommend it enough. The stuff is chiseled out of granite. All the drive mechanisms are heat-treated steel, and it takes 800lb-feet of torque or something to overpower the ratchet mechanism (what is that, like 2 corvettes?). The hubs, as Bikewise mentioned, are literally designed to function fine with water sloshing around inside. Go to a shop and hold one--the machining, fit, and finish are gorgeous.

That being said, they're a bit draggier because of the sealing. I doubt it amounts to much in the grand scheme of total bicycle efficiency, but your wheels won't spin for 3 minutes after you flick them, if you're into that sort of thing. And it's hard to shell out a month of mortgage payment for a PART of a wheelset.

Anyway, you're not going to go wrong with either hub, I'm just a gigantic King *****. But they will last 10 years with minimal maintenance, and that's damn impressive.

Bob_Chase

Mike,

Not to 'jack your thread, but I'm also thinking of going a similar route and was wondering how much $$$ you'll be shelling out for the set.

Thanks.

HAMMER MAN

i have C/k hubs laced to mavic open pros,they are an excellent hub and as far as i am concerned very little maintenance involved.

Yes they make a buzzing noise but not a big enough factor to drive anyone crazy.

I also looked @ the Dt Swiss 240's and just felt the money and longevity leaned more towards the C/K hubs.
There was very little difference in the weight in replacing my D/A hubs and the C/K hubs.
about 30 grams. The Dt's are some what lighter though.

michaelmc

Our local wheelbuilding guru has quoted me right around $700 for the set with either the 240s or CK Classics (there's about a $10 difference in the hubset), which is in line with other shops at which I've inquired. I've checked prices on the internets and can get them for something in the $600s (not including shipping), but I'm inclined to buy local as this guy has a great reputation and I have a good relationship with him. He really takes pride and ownership of his work, so I can be sure I can always go back to him with a problem (though, honestly, I don't expect there to be one with his work) and it'll be squared away right quick.

ADDED: Since you're in Langhorne and so close to Philly, I can't recommend it enough: Bicycle Revolutions on South 4th Street, just below Bainbridge (1 1/2 blocks below South St.). Bryan, the owner and wheelbuilder, is a super guy, and was more than happy to sit with me and talk wheels for some extravagant amount of time. Just tell him Michael with the Fuji sent you.

Ryleeryno

My DT Swiss 240s hubs are the smoothest hubs I've ridden. They are easy to maintain and more appropriate for road use compared to Chris King hubs.

Why I like the 240s:

- They are one of the lightest hubs you can get (without breaking the bank)
- DT Swiss products are all highly praised by most wheelbuilders
- The rear hub has a cool ratcheting system that makes a distinctive sound.
- Freehub takes 2 seconds to remove.
- Very easy to maintain
- Customer Service

Brian_1

DT 240 user for + three years, and last year I laced my pair of these hubs to DT rims. Zero maintenance on the hubs so far.

As nice as the DT 240 hubs are, the DT rims are just as nice, I believe they are the nicest alloy rim out there for hand-built road racing wheels.

Pau11y

Sorry for bringing back such an old thread but I've been investigating the drag in the Kings. I managed to disassemble a spare King bearing. They're meant to be loaded from one side and can be "opened" from the other. The plastic ball retainers in each bearing I think are the culprit. I'm going to replace it w/ a full ball pack using ceramic grade 5 balls up front and use the steel ones removed from the front to do the rear. By removing the plastic ball retainer, the surface that rubs on the seal is also reduced. I'm going to also put some 400 grit on the inner edge of the seals to reduce contact pressure on the inner race. It's for a road hub so sealing from inside the hub body isn't too much of my concern. I'll post results in another thread.
All my wheelsets (3) are King Classics laced to DT R1.1s w/ one set laced w/ DT Aerolites in front. I also have a set of DT 1450 Limited which uses 240 hubs. The comparison between the Kings and DTs are rolling. I'm hoping the mods will even things out as the 1450s roll like crazy. DT's use standard sized bearings while King bearings are custom. You can get ceramics for DTs while you'll have to do what I'm doing to the Kings to make ceramic bearings.

michaelmc

FWIW, I (the OP) ended up picked up a set of DT Swiss RR1450s at a sweet bargain at the Trexlertown Swap Meet, and I love them. Maybe my next set of wheels will be Kings, but that won't be for a while.

workscollective

Both will do well for you. DT's are great lightweight hubs.

As to the Kings, if by overkill, people mean that they can be ridden for 10+ years without any major overhauls then the kings are overbuilt.

A friend of mine has a set of red king hubs that he rode into style, they are pink now. he's been using the same wheels for 10+ years and uses the same wheels on his cyclocross bike too. I'm on 4 years of mtn use for one of my sets and 2 for my road/cyclocross set, absolutely no problems whatsoever.