TimmyBoston

I recently purchased a fixed gear conversion with a suicide hub. It's my first fixed gear and I'm having a blast, but there is a fair amount of wobble in the rear wheel when I'm riding. Fortunately I haven't had any issues with it yet. But I want to be sure it's safe. Will any like shop just look at what it is and work on it without rebuilding the entire rear wheel?

Thanks!

Tim

vespoli

Don't be a ******. Get a proper hub. Also, in the meantime, I hope you have both brakes attached.

wroomwroomoops

Well, the wobble might be from unadjusted cups, or perhaps a wheel out of true (the two wobbles feel quite different, but it's hard to tell which one it is, from your description). Adjusting the cups or truing the wheel are both issues logically orthogonal to how the cog is connected to the hub. That is, it doesn't matter one way or the other. They will not have to rebuild your wheel.

Raiden

If you're afraid they won't accept your bike out of fear of liability, either just ask them straight-up, or remove your cog and hand them them wheel alone.

cnnrmccloskey

If you have both brakes theres nothing wrong with a properly assembled suicide hub, don't be a food trying to act like an expert.

stillanimal

lol!!!

filtersweep

That is a useful reply--- do you have any clue what you are talking out? Any direct experience with suicide hubs? Many of us have logged thousands of miles on suicide hubs and lived to tell about it (using a front brake). I would argue that a suicide hub with a brake is a safer choice than a "proper hub" and no brake. And all of this in a forum where I estimate that less than half of all riders use helmets regularly... and red lights are treated as mere suggestions....

LoRoK

Wouldn't this be a better question to ask the bike shop?

Scrodzilla

Guys, do you think the sandwich shop across the street from the bike shop where I work will put a little less mayo on my roast beef sandwich next time I go there for lunch? I mean...I asked for "light mayo" today and got gobs of it.

WoundedKnee

You have two jobs now?

Scrodzilla

Yes, but that way off-topic of what we're actually trying to discuss here dude.

LoRoK

Do you think that if I went to the bank they would let me open an account?

Scrodzilla

Maybe, depending on whether you're looking to open a proper fixed account or suicide account. Whatever you do, ask for light mayo.

LoRoK

I was thinking about a tandem fixed-speed account.

WoundedKnee

That's hilarious.

artimus

When that happens to me, I get them to strip all the veg off so that we can start again. Hate me or not, better to pay attention the first time.

BassNotBass

If you were to bring it into the shop, sure I'd work on it. But I'd also have to give you an earful of advice and tips and make a note of them on the work order for the sake of liability.

frymaster

first: i am pro-suicide hub and have also ridden thousands of miles on them.

however, the thing to note here is that the op bought the bike as a conversion and the rear wheel has notable problems (wobble &c.). now, a suicide hub is perfectly safe if it is done properly and i completely trust the suicide hubs i have made myself, but the hub in question appears to have been made by somebody who did a piss-poor job of un-dishing the wheel and that makes me wary of his or her mechanical competence or commitment to doing a good job in general... and that makes the safety of the hub, in my mind, suspect.

wroomwroomoops

Let's just not conflate the issues: his wheel's wobbling has probably a lot to do with the hub (or the rim being out of true in some major way) but nothing with the cog or the way it's fixed to the hub. If a suicided cog gives way, wobble is not exactly one of the symptoms.

mihlbach

You people worry too much. Assuming you are running a front brake, what's the worst that can happen?...the cog will unspin from the hub. This isn't going to prevent you from stopping, its going to prevent you from going forward. I can't understand in any way why a shop wouldn't work on your bike. In fact, you might ask them to make sure the cog is installed tight enough. Its your bike. They can't confiscate it or force you to buy something against your will. At the worst, they might suggest you buy a different rear wheel. There is absolutely no reason why they wouldn't work on your bike.

frymaster

i'm not saying it is. i'm saying that anyone who does a bad job of undishing the rear wheel probably does a bad job of loctiting the cog.

wroomwroomoops

I guess I can't argue with that.

It would be nice to hear TimmyBoston's epilogue to the story.