Generally I find that 'you get what you pay for' is a fairly good rule of thumb but I was wondering if anyone had any experiences with some of the very cheap hubs like those from Niagara Cycle? They have both steel loose ball and sealed QR ones for $5ish. Any horror stories? Theoretically these would be going on "city" bikes for friends (commuters/'round town bikes) or flips. Cheers,

Pat

The wheel set on a road bicycle have a tremendous impact on ride quality, in my opinion. With that thought in mind, and assuming that you believe it to be true, why would anyone seek out the cheapest hub set available?

For my money, I seek the best hub I can find, lace them to the best rims I can find and use stainless steel spokes to do so. I have a great assortment of hubs, to choose from, so I am rarely in a pinch to build up a wheel set when I choose to do so. The problem is, by the time I add shipping costs, I can't sell the wheels for a reasonable price.

On the other hand, hubs have the least impact of any of the wheel parts. Lot of work for a cheap part though. I have found lower end sealed hubs to be pretty good most of the time, low end cup and cone...shudder.

I completely agree with the wheelset having maybe the most impact on ride quality , and ideally I'd never skimp on hubs/rims. However I'm already having friends ask me about acquiring bikes , doing repairs, replacing parts for as cheaply as possible (they're all uni students, and most of them mennonites so yeah... cheap) For the most part if I was buying a hub this cheap it would be replacing a cheap , older, beat up hub.

$5!
I though my $40 pair novatecs were cheap.
I suspect they are mechanicaly capable but have little tolerancing. Out of the mold and polished.

I wonder if those Niagara "sealed" hubs simply have that rubber seal/gasket covered the bearings and cones, rather than actually using sealed bearings.

Neal

These look identical to a set of black hubs used for a wheelset on a Trek 800 mtb, about a few years old.
I came into possession of them and overhauled them and installed them on my son's new ride. They are cup/cone, not polished smooth mind you, but there weren't any pitting. A rubber cup seal like Shimano Deore/Parallax type hubs adorn the axle ends. A cheaper version may have a large 'washer' wedged onto the cone to serve as 'seal'.

They work well enough for the cash.

Cheapest route is probably Complete built wheels from Niagara Cycle for under 30 bux each.
If you replace a hub you'll just have to replace spokes as well unless you luck out and get the same flange size. Even if you get a good deal you're gonna spend 15 bux on spokes and nipples.