A replacement or upgrade hub can give your bike a performance advantage with lighter weight and better quality bearings available in aftermarket units.

However the type of hub you choose will depend on many factors including bike type, axle dimensions, riding type and budget.

MTB Hubs

The right one for you will depend on the type of riding you do – a lightweight alloy racing hub, for example, will not be able to cope with the punishment dished out by a dirt jump or downhill rider – your frame and fork dimensions, your rims and your budget.

Road Hubs

Good-quality bearings, sealed and protected from dirt and water, are the key to long and healthy hubs. Older or less expensive hubs may use cup and cone bearings, which contain two rings of loose ball bearings that sit in 'cups' inside the hub body, and are secured in place by conical nuts known as 'cones'. The balls can rotate freely between the cup and cone with each unit making up one bearing. Cup and cone bearings have the advantage of being easily serviced at home – new bearings and a dollop of grease once in a while are all you need to keep then running smoothly – but they can be tricky to adjust perfectly. Many newer hubs use cartridge bearings, where the steel balls or needles rotate in a single cartridge unit that can be easily removed for servicing, or replaced once worn out. Many riders prefer the convenience of cartridge bearings – no more tedious micro-adjusting or hunting for stray ball bearings mid-service – but they are more expensive to replace.

Road wheelsets being generally subject to less punishment than their MTB cousins often tend towards the minimalist in order to shed weight. You may find road hubs designed for fewer spokes (24h as opposed to 32 or 36 hole) and for straight-pull spokes, which shave vital grams by being shorter than the j-shaped standard spoke. 

If building a wheel with a hub like this at the heart, ensure that your rims are compatible.

Manufacturers of high-end wheelsets aimed at competitive riders have also in recent years taken advantage of developments in materials technology to offer carbon fiber hubs, super light axles and lighter-weight, long-lasting ceramic bearings in place of steel balls. These improvements offer weight savings and corresponding performance advantages under the right rider, but come at a price.

BMX Hubs

The standard BMX axle size is 14mm (especially for rear axles), although some race wheelsets or front wheels may use a 3/8” (10mm) axle that is lighter, but more prone to bending. Your axle choice will be determined by the size of the dropouts in your frame and forks, so check before you buy or upgrade.

An important element of your rear BMX hub is the driver or freewheel, which is turned by the chain and translates your pedal stroke into movement.

BMX hubs can be further divided into three types depending on the driver/freewheel type used: cassette, freewheel and freecoaster.

Cassette hubs

– These use an internal, independent driver that presses into the hub shell, and can run sprockets as small as 8 teeth, offering a weight saving owing to less materials

Freewheel hubs

– The use an external freewheel that threads on to the outside of the hub shell, requiring the use of larger-circumference bearings and freewheel. Because of this, the smallest gear size available with a freewheel is 13t, necessitating a larger front chainwheel in order to achieve optimum gearing, and adding weight.

Freecoaster hubs

– These use an internal clutch system to enable a bike to roll backwards without the need to back pedal at the same time.

Other BMX hub variations include the option of switching between left-hand and right-hand drive (as per rider preference), or ‘flip-flop’ hubs which carry different-sized freewheels on each side, and can be ‘flipped’ to offer a choice of gear ratios (e.g. 15t on one side, 16t on the other).

Hub Spares

Keep your front and rear hubs running smoothly with our selection of spare parts including replacement bearings, freewheel bodies, sprockets, ratchets, pawls, springs, axles, conversion kits and more.