Long Haul Trucker/XT-LX Rear Hub Question
 

Getting a Surly LHT soon.

Upgrading to Dyno hub on the front

Bike shop recommends new wheel/hub combo-they can get prebuilt wheels from United less than they can sub the dyno.

On the rear hub they want to put the next step down-LX I believe-hub because they said that replacement parts for the XTs can be hard to find, and they experienced a case of a Trans AM rider who broke down and Austin was the only store that a the replacement part for the XT.

Any thoughts on that?

Hubs don't wear out that often. I'd not worry too much about it and just stick with the XT.

Gram counting sells , so Aluminum axles get used, do current XT still have steel axles?

Up until 2010 there wasn't much difference physically between XT and LX, or even Deore hubs for that matter. The parts were interchangeable. Supposedly the bearing cup and cone are made of a harder material on XT and LX, which theoretically translates to longer hub life.

The latest XT hub is internally different from the way these hubs have been made for the past 20 years. They've gone from a 10x1.0mm steel axle to (i believe) a 14mm diameter Al axle with end caps, and the ball bearings went from loose 1/4" to caged 3/16". They did this to make the axle more resistant to bending, save some weight, and perhaps to market the hub better.. However, reduced ball diameter sounds like a bad idea, since generally they don't roll as well or last as long. I've read a few reports of new XT freehubs dying after very low mileage due to the bearings. They should have put some decent cartridge bearing in instead, then you could replace them if necessary. You can't replace the pressed-in bearing race (cup), which is usually the life-limiting component of this series of hubs barring misuse, or rust from immersion (the seal is water resistant only).

So, anyway, I'd use older (<770 series) XT freehubs or just use LX or Deore.

IIRC LX is now obsolete for 2 years, replaced by SLX.

Besides Shimano, DT hubs are nice and not too expensive, and Hope hubs are really worth a look but harder to find.

Front hubs will normally outlast rears by about 3:1 due to wheel weight distribution. Nearly any front hub will work well for touring purpose. All hubs and rims (and every other bike part) are ultimately consumable, in that if you ride >3K miles a year you'll experience everything ultimately wearing out or breaking. Even frames and those mythical "lifetime" Brooks saddles.

About a year ago, I was accumulating parts to build up another touring bike. At that time I researched parts and decided to use an older XT hub (M760) because it had a steel axle. In my research I noticed that Surly was using an older steel axle on their Big Dummy cargo bike and the newer aluminum axle on their LHT. Presumably the cargo bike needs a better hub, so I took that as an endorsement for the older design, thus I avoided the newer (M770) rear hub.

There is a lot more discussion at this link, it is on recent (M770) rear XT hub issues on a forum for Long Haul Trucker owners. On that forum I am known as Loaded Tourist in Madison
http://groups.google.com/group/surly...37f23f2a2b554d

Surly 2011 catalog lists Deore as the current rear hub used for the Big Dummy cargo bike.

My LHT has been running on LX hubs for years now with no troubles. I should open them up and rebuild them - can't recall if I have done that yet.....given my laziness probably not. I wouldn't hesitate to use a new set of LX hubs on a touring build.