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It's completely logical (same process for all models) even if I never think about converting them.
I'll look for converting all my "low-cost" hubs.

Actually, it's funny you mention the shoulders, I was going to post back again about that exact thing.

I found that the axles with threads all the way across and no shoulders actually move around inside the inner race a little bit, which is not ideal.  I thought I could get away with building them like a Profile bottom bracket - bearings with a sleeve in the middle to keep them spaced right, riding on an axle.  It doesn't work though - the tolerances aren't close enough, so the best thing to do is find an axle that's the right spacing with shoulders and a machined surface for the bearing races to sit on.

I've gotta rebuild mine the right way now, just as soon as I find axles that fit.

Last edited by El Gecko (2015-03-03 7:25am)

my LBS used to have a bunch of NOS loose ball mohawk hubs, should have grabbed them.

Airborne Vic wrote:

Can I do the dame to my high flange Mohawks.  Will the same bearings your described work on my hubs?

You would need to measure the id of where the bearing rest in the hub, but I don't see why you would have any problems with converting them.

has anyone tried this with the sealed mech superlace hubs?

I have a slight problem with this sealed bearing urgrade thread.
Look at how much more aluminum is surrounding the cartridge bearing,
on the stock sealed bearing hub.

Probably good reason why there is so much meat around the bearing on stock hubshells.

All the converted hubs have little supporting the cartridge bearing, as not designed for such bearing.

Last edited by stonie (2015-07-03 11:10am)

eric12 wrote:

stonie wrote:

I have a slight problem with this sealed bearing urgrade thread.
Look at how much more aluminum is surrounding the cartridge bearing,
on the stock sealed bearing hub.

Probably good reason why there is so much meat around the bearing on stock hubshells.

All the converted hubs have little supporting the cartridge bearing, as not designed for such bearing.

Good point, but i think it depends on the type of riding you do if it will be an issue or not. Still a good thread.

Oh, I'm not saying the thread is bad or anything.

Just adding more info to the thread, that's it!!   

Just would suck if someone put all that time & effort into it but not
realizing the limitations of the application.

Probably wouldn't want to jump with those converted hubs.
Look at how little material is surrounding the freewheel side bearing.
Basically only have aluminum freewheel threads supporting the bearing, not much there   

adamdawson wrote:

if it works with a regular unsealed setup, making it a sealed setup doesnt change anything. wont make it any stronger or weaker than what it was

The original steel cup is installed further into the hubshell, which is thicker aluminum.
The farther outward the thinner the aluminum becomes   

Check some of those pictures, their cartridge bearing is hanging out   

DemonGT wrote:

how are you guys getting the loose ball races out of the hub shells?

If you put the hubshell in the freeze, sometime, just sometimes it will pop out
with a few good wacks of hammer/punch.

Most times a dremel will be required, as per my past experiences.

I have abandoned ever trying this again, as for the reasons I mentioned previously.
Too much time and effort, not to mention new axles and bearing cost.

just like popping out a bottom bracket for me

These started as unsealed black hubs in rough shape. I stripped them down, removed the anodizing, polished them up. I followed the conversion instructions in this forum with a few changes. They spin great.


Hubs were given to me for free, so between axles, bearings, shims, lock collars, and nuts I'm in for just over $60. Better than paying well over $150 for a NOS pair.


Finished product. I know it's not an accurate representation of actual sealed bearing GT hubs but I think they're awesome.

elfdoublecross wrote:

These started as unsealed black hubs in rough shape. I stripped them down, removed the anodizing, polished them up. I followed the conversion instructions in this forum with a few changes. They spin great.
http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t190 … 151650.jpg

Hubs were given to me for free, so between axles, bearings, shims, lock collars, and nuts I'm in for just over $60. Better than paying well over $150 for a NOS pair.
http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t190 … 11049.jpeg

Finished product. I know it's not an accurate representation of actual sealed bearing GT hubs but I think they're awesome.
http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t190 … 094529.jpg

Nice job!  Was the inner bearing race tight enough on the axles?  I tried it with 10mm threaded axles too and there was still a bit too much play for my liking.  I still need to find a set of axles with shoulders and a machined bearing surface to tighten up the tolerances.