SON hub bearing replacement?

[mickle]

Took Mrs Mickle's Thorn Tandem front wheel into my local this a.m. as it was making a godawful grunching noise which points to an internal fail of something. I trust their abilities more than my own in the area of hub internals. They've never worked on one before but I have every faith that if they do screw it up they'll make good.

So I've done a bit of reading up and can't believe some of the stuff I've found. It seems likely that I'll have to send it back to fricking Germany to have the bearings replaced. But get this: Early ones not only had to be sent back to the factory for bearing replacement but also had to have the spokes removed. WTF? Why would you go to the effort of designing - what they claim to be the best dynamo hub in the world - but not make it user, or at the very least, LBS serviceable?

Der.

 

[andrew_s]

You'll almost certainly have to send it back to Germany.
There's a 5 year warranty so it shouldn't cost. Email Schmidt.

The trouble with dynohubs is that there are very thin and easily broken wires making their way out past the bearings, between generator inside and the external contacts. Ham fisted bike shop mechanics are too likely to just wreck the hub for the manufacturers to make it easy.

Newer Schmidt hubs (and Shimano) have a screw-out section on one side that can be undone to get at the innards. There is a special tool for unscrewing this, but Schmidt don't give it out easily. St John Street may have one, but generally it's a case of send the wheel back to Germany.
Old Schmidt hubs with the black centre section have the hub flanges pressed into the fat steel body, and you need to pull the flanges off the hub body, hence the need to un-build the wheel. With no screw threads, you are OK with the contacts on either the right or the left.

Shimano hubs are officially not serviceable on the contact side. You can if you are careful enough, but the word is that the bending involved in unthreading the wires through the bearing results in them breaking on about the 3rd time you try.

 

[mickle]

Thanks for that. As I suspected.. what a pain in the harse.

The hub is older than 5 years I think, though their (Schmidt's) servicing costs look very reasonable - 40 Euros for a complete service - it'll be the shipping to Germany which will break the bank.

 

[mickle]

Yes, it's going back to Deutchland. Ridiculous.

 

[spandex]

Mickle if it helps I have a Son Classic almost new that I built into a new 700c Sputnik for my tourer but I am not going to use it now. If you have not sent Miss mickle's back yet? I will be happy to build it into your 26" rim for you or J can do it if you would just like the hub?