Originally Posted by
Sinn
I don't knwo about pro cyclists. I just know that when I slap on a pair of Formula cartridge bearing hubs, my speed maintenance and my ability to pick up a quick burst on a high-cadence sprint is somewhat lower than when I ride my Suntour Superbe pros. the difference is not huge, its not like moving from cheap flimsy cranks to Sugio 75s or something, but there is a difference. Now, maybe if I really shelled out the cash for a nice set of cartridge bearing hubs -- Phils for example -- which I may have to do if I move to a rainy climate, then there may be no difference. But I have no experience with these as of yet. As of now, I'd rather shell out a little less for the Dura Ace hubs which I know will consistently run smooth than pay more for the Phils which may give the same performance.
But, of course, one should always take all my ramblings in this forum with a large chunk of IMO salt.
One doesn't normally "slap on a pair of hubs". I don't know if you literally meant that, but changing hubs, usually involves many other factors such as a different wheelset, possibly different tires, different gearing, or in some cases, a different bike altogether, or even riding in a completely different area.
Unless your hubs were severely maladjusted, I doubt they were slowing you down to a degree that you could really feel and attribute to the hubs themselves.
Consider this:
My track bike has a formula rear hub with the original bearings. If I grab the axle with my fingers, it certainly feels slightly more draggy that my high end white industries road hub (which is insanely smooth-smoother than any looseball hub I've ever owned). The tires rims and spokes of these two wheels are the same, so that eliminates several other variables. If I remove the chain (so that the drivetrain of the track bike is disengaged) and spin the wheels with my hand the formula hub wheel stops just barely before the white industries hub wheel.
In the above experiment, only the the rotating momentum of the <1kg wheel was counteracting the drag of the bearings. Now consider that when you are actually on the bike, you have your own bodily mass, in addition to the mass of the bike, and the rotating momentum of the wheel itself counteracting the tiny differences in drag between the two hubs. The real world effect of slight variations in drag would be exceedingly miniscule if even measurable. Other factors, particularly aerodynamics, are much more significant.