Cheap wheelset - Sealed Bearings

[Rich Worrall]

Getting fed up of having to keep cleaning, readjusting my 'cup&cone' Shimano RS10 bearings after getting rainwater in them and sounding gritty all the time.
What are the cheapest 'sealed bearings' 700c wheelset out there? Not too fussed on weight as its only on my hefty winter bike.

 

[Hacienda71]

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/WPFUL...uiGPXOLK_b2Hg8mX-8aAgLNEALw_wcB#WPFULR900-S11
Good wheelset excellent price.

 

[Blue Hills]

I hope you've thought carefully about this OP.
Must say I like Mr shimano's continued embrace of the humble ball bearing.
I don't find the service requirement too great a problem.
I do hope you won't be back in the future begging for info on quite which super easy cartridge bearing you need for a changeover.

If you aren't bothered about weight I'd get some sputniks from spa with decent Shimano hubs.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Cup & cone bearings are the only type i will entertain using. You can keep all the cartridge rubbish. My hack bike lives outside in all weathers, has unsealed cup & cone bearings, and I don't have any problems with them. I just squirt a bit of lube down the side of the cones every few rides, or if the bike has been stood for a couple of weeks or more, before going for a ride.

 

[DCLane]

I'd normally recommend Superstar Components wheels, which are really good, but even with their 40% discount it'd cost you £180 for a wheelset: https://www.superstarcomponents.com/en/

 

[cougie uk]

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/WPFUL...uiGPXOLK_b2Hg8mX-8aAgLNEALw_wcB#WPFULR900-S11
Good wheelset excellent price.

Nice enough wheels but my bearings needed replacing after less than 5000 miles.
Is that what you'd expect or not ?

 

[raleighnut]

Pack the bearings with plenty of Grease, all this only use a smear cos it will slow down rotation is twaddle

A cup and cone bearing is designed to be self lubricating, as they rotate in one direction they also turn slightly in another due to the uneven size of the 2 tracks this picks up more Grease but only if its still there to be wiped onto the fresh surface of the ball. Plenty of Grease also helps stop Grit getting in there.

 

[alchurch]

I notice that some hubs are really expensive , way of £100. do you think it is worth spending a lot on hubs?. My last 2 wheel sets were built around miche hubs and I never looked at them once, the rims wore out before the bearings.

 

[Blue Hills]

I notice that some hubs are really expensive , way of £100. do you think it is worth spending a lot on hubs?. My last 2 wheel sets were built around miche hubs and I never looked at them once, the rims wore out before the bearings.

Even in these god cursed times you can still I think get perfectly good Mr Shimano hubs for £15 to £20. I don't see any reason to spend more for general cycling. Spare money can be spent on quality ball bearings if you need them. And a tub of grease.

 

[fossyant]

Nice enough wheels but my bearings needed replacing after less than 5000 miles.
Is that what you'd expect or not ?

Bloody terrible.

 

[fossyant]

Cup and cone can be amazing, if you have decent kit and look after it, which to be honest, most folk don't.

Cartridge is the same, but mostly you can get away with new bearings, unless you are the usual cup and cone lot, ant the bearing cases spin on the axel.....

I like Cartridge for my MTB that does the in the swamp mode, i can replace them.

 

[gbb]

Cup and cone are great...but only if you can keep them in good order, that only really means strip, clean, lube, adjust. But its something plenty of people dont want to...or can do well. My R500s lasted years of all weather commuting before needing serous adjustment but equally, my Fulcrum 5s, bearings can be changed quickly, easily and while the originals arent high quality, once changed to quality bearings, have got thousands of miles on them, still silky smooth.

 

[Ian H]

'Sealed' bearings are not sealed, merely shielded. Good quality hubs with cassette bearings have additional seals to protect the bearings from direct exposure to the elements. Having said that, the bearings are pretty much always standard sizes and available off the shelf from your local stockist.

 

[mpemburn]

Hadn’t even realized that they still make cup-and-cone. There was a long gap in time between my old racing bikes (‘70s) and the bikes I have now. I know how to fiddle with the old stuff, but I don’t even think about maintaining sealed bearing hubs. Should I?

 

[iluvmybike]

Hadn’t even realized that they still make cup-and-cone. There was a long gap in time between my old racing bikes (‘70s) and the bikes I have now. I know how to fiddle with the old stuff, but I don’t even think about maintaining sealed bearing hubs. Should I?

Well you need to keep an eye on them - like any bearing they will wear over time and the grease gets driven out by the wet. This is best done by checking for any play whilst in the frame and then removing the wheel from the bike and holding the axle in you fingers spin the wheel to feel for any roughness or sticky spots. If you overly neglect them then when they do need changing you could have difficulty in extracting them (unlike cup & cone) as they are a press fit into the hub. Care needs to be taken when tapping them out as the outer metal rim of the bearing can be well stuck into the hub - the rest of the bearing will come out leaving you with the task if trying to get that remaining band of metal out. And fitting new ones needs care (and good grease) to ensure they go in straight and not skew-whiff.