Chris King ceases production of Campagnolo freehub bodies

[mcteague]

Chris King ceases production of Campagnolo freehub bodies

Not that I ever considered King hubs, but still.....:(

https://cyclingtips.com/2020/05/chris-king-ceases-production-of-campagnolo-freehub-bodies/

Tim

[AngryScientist]

yea, CK just cut back a lot of their production of lesser volume stuff. the move away from campy probably is also associated with the move to 12 speed and uncertainty with fitting their current campy hub standard, so they would have needed to re-engineer and possibly retool to stay in the campy market anyway, so it was probably an easy decision to cut that from the line as part of the larger sku purge.

i remember wanting pink king hubs SO badly back before they made campy freehubs at all. i immediately dove in and bought a set of pink hubs as soon as they announced they were making a campagnolo freehub. still have them :)

[oldpotatoe]

Chris King ceases production of Campagnolo freehub bodies

Not that I ever considered King hubs, but still.....:(

https://cyclingtips.com/2020/05/chris-king-ceases-production-of-campagnolo-freehub-bodies/

Tim

Another reason to not use a CK hub laced to a mavic rim...no great loss..far better and less expensive hubs out there..

https://www.aivee.fr/en/12-hubs

CK complexity and proprietary guts seemed like a $50 answer to a $5 question when looking at their hubs..

[oldpotatoe]

yea, CK just cut back a lot of their production of lesser volume stuff. the move away from campy probably is also associated with the move to 12 speed and uncertainty with fitting their current campy hub standard, so they would have needed to re-engineer and possibly retool to stay in the campy market anyway, so it was probably an easy decision to cut that from the line as part of the larger sku purge.

i remember wanting pink king hubs SO badly back before they made campy freehubs at all. i immediately dove in and bought a set of pink hubs as soon as they announced they were making a campagnolo freehub. still have them :)

Pink is easy at 1/4 the $...Bitex.........CK certainly aren't 4 times more better..not even twice..maybe not 'better' at all...:eek:

[AngryScientist]

Pink is easy at 1/4 the $...Bitex.........CK certainly aren't 4 times more better..not even twice..maybe not 'better' at all...:eek:

Bitex hubs are nice, i agree - but the quality of the finish isnt even close to CK.

I get that some people dont really like King, and consider the hubs an over-complicated system, but hey - they are a US company employing bike nuts and paying them a livable wage, continue to engineer and innovate, and produce products to exacting engineering standards.

their stuff is expensive yes, but at least when you plunk down the money, you know where it is going.

i'm a chris king fan, and i have a lot of miles on CK hubs, over the years, i anecdotally find that they have the best bearing sealing system. riding through muck and wet grit, these hubs seem to survive longer.

anyway, options are good!

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K_YyK2TlHdQ/XfvCcDKRF6I/AAAAAAAADZ8/ZcgWfXARmTgcMbyByOLXVY-wDQOgg4caQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1200/IMG_4855.jpg

[Veloo]

Note to self - stop hoarding toilet paper, start hoarding Chris King Campagnolo freehub bodies.

[oldpotatoe]

Bitex hubs are nice, i agree - but the quality of the finish isnt even close to CK.

I get that some people dont really like King, and consider the hubs an over-complicated system, but hey - they are a US company employing bike nuts and paying them a livable wage, continue to engineer and innovate, and produce products to exacting engineering standards.

their stuff is expensive yes, but at least when you plunk down the money, you know where it is going.

i'm a chris king fan, and i have a lot of miles on CK hubs, over the years, i anecdotally find that they have the best bearing sealing system. riding through muck and wet grit, these hubs seem to survive longer.

anyway, options are good!



It's the guts that count.

Without a 12s Campagnolo rear hub..:eek:

Yes they are but seeing CK take the decision out of YOUR hands is obviously a $ decision, not a 'passion' decision. For CK, who seems to be struggling some, do this makes sense, $ wise but even tho small, they will lose some market share in the 'hub' market, which is already small. I imagine the headset market for them is shrinking too.

I predict CK will go the way of Merckx, Colnago, mavic, etc..and be sold..

[jimoots]

Not entirely on topic but this triggered me... My entire life I yearned for a CK hubset.

Finally made it to the point where I could splash out, and honestly they’re the most unreliable hubs I’ve owned.

Like I said. Not in topic. Had to vent.

[AngryScientist]

Not entirely on topic but this triggered me... My entire life I yearned for a CK hubset.

Finally made it to the point where I could splash out, and honestly they’re the most unreliable hubs I’ve owned.



i have to understand what you mean by that out of curiosity. my experience is that the hubs are extremely reliable. what has been the trouble?

[Velocipede]

It's funny the press release mentions the Edco conversion cassette. They aren't that great shifting wise. I would go for someone else who makes a truly compatible freehub vs a conversion.

[p nut]

Not entirely on topic but this triggered me... My entire life I yearned for a CK hubset.

Finally made it to the point where I could splash out, and honestly they’re the most unreliable hubs I’ve owned.

Like I said. Not in topic. Had to vent.

I agree. Very nice/finished hubs, but had the most trouble with them as well. And that’s comparing them to old, trashed Shimano, Campagnolo, and no name hubs.

Customer service was good though. Tech walked me through a lot of the troubleshoot steps. Same with the headset for rebuild.

DT has been the best for me, so far. Easy maintenance, zero failures.

[Rada]

Don't use Campy so arrivederci.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Don't use Campy so arrivederci.

Gorlami.

[EB]

Echoing the bad experiences - CK look and sound great but they were by far the worst hubs I have owned.

[FlashUNC]

Never owned a more finicky set of hubs. Way better options out there imo. No great loss on this front for Campy users I think.

[crankles]

I like CK. well, I agree the hubs are a bit much...most times I'll go dt, hope, i9 these days. Bitex are just Meh. The bearing are shiite... Like ABEC -5...easy upgrade though.

but headsets and BBs....still running decades old ck.

...and they are just good folks. I'll support them.

[jtbadge]

"There, there. You're too good for them anyway"

[Johnnysmooth]

Never owned a more finicky set of hubs. Way better options out there imo. No great loss on this front for Campy users I think.

Have CK hubs on my now retired Titus RacerX. Hated them for a couple of yrs as it seemed to take forever for rear hub especially to break-in. Always had to keep taking apart and adjusting (IMHO, they were extremely easy to service) Once they got through that break-in period, they have been rock solid.

Would I buy again, are they worth the price? - nah.

[bshell]

6 sets of King hubbed wheels (one pair @ 23 years). All flawless except for the set w/ Campagnolo drive shell.

It's an engineering/material issue between Campy cassette/spline size and King hubshell/bearing size. The drive shells split. I've gone through 3 aluminum and 4 stainless steel. :-(

[mulp]

Didn't CK campy hubs have an issue when they were first released, where the hub placed the cassette too close to the wheel spokes causing the RD to get caught in the spokes while riding when not adjusted properly?

[Bob Ross]

CK complexity and proprietary guts seemed like a $50 answer to a $5 question

And a 50dB SPL answer as well!

[jimoots]

i have to understand what you mean by that out of curiosity. my experience is that the hubs are extremely reliable. what has been the trouble?

Have had to replace both front and rear bearings at considerable cost, as well as having an issue with the freehub that was fortunately covered by warranty.

I wouldn't have owned them longer than a year and have had them serviced twice over that period preemptively and still had the issues occur. I don't wrench myself but do trust and know well the mechanic that services them.

My use case may be a little tough in that I'm an all weather rider, but still I've had Shimano and DT hubs that have done the same job gracefully without so much as needing a service at 12-18 month intervals.

Initial post was definitely a trigger reaction but honestly after spending my entire life looking at Chris King hubs with a massive halo, I now have no love for them at all and as a brand a lot of the shine is gone.

Don't meet your heroes I guess.

[peanutgallery]

I like the colors and what not and when I have had issues King has bent over backwards...but for the $? Something to be said for the simplicity of a DT hub. Super easy to service, just plug and play. I have many sets that I've never touched and ridden for years. The King's... don't get me started.,.it's like my VW that has the sunroof open and the car alarm go off every time you go over a bump or get too close to a cell tower. Finicky, but oh so cool. Got another set on the way, just waiting for the disappointment:) again

[eBAUMANN]

Gorlami.

:beer::beer:

From a price/performance/serviceability/adaptability standpoint, there is no better hub design than the DT star ratchet system.
Period.

Chris King is nice and all but if I was buying American...i9 all day, every day.
Still complex (compared to DT) but way easier/cheaper to convert to new/different standards...which the industry likes to change with their haircut.

[Jeff N.]

Chris King ceases production of Campagnolo freehub bodies

Not that I ever considered King hubs, but still.....:(

https://cyclingtips.com/2020/05/chris-king-ceases-production-of-campagnolo-freehub-bodies/

TimThey also discontinued anything/everything for 1" steerers.

[AngryScientist]

it's interesting to me to read some of the reports and stories of poor performance of king hubs. this has not been my general experience, but i absolutely do not discredit the first hand experience of others. i know a LOT of you ride a LOT more miles than i do, and in a lot more challenging conditions.

hopefully i'll continue to get lucky.

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ai6gDckH4yw/XnU7KpHdMzI/AAAAAAAADko/SpYKDHJTszw0-XPZgsD2ojRihhBQ00uiwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1200/IMG_2670.jpg

[Velocipede]

They also discontinued anything/everything for 1" steerers.

This one kills me. People are reaching out all over the place trying to find 1" 2 Nut headsets. Especially in silver.

[Jeff N.]

This one kills me. People are reaching out all over the place trying to find 1" 2 Nut headsets. Especially in silver.
...and they ain't cheap when you find them....new or used. Spacers too.

[Toddykins]

Mine always performed fine but they were super finicky, very often developing play and requiring preload adjustment. I will never buy another set of chris kings...

Onyx (blissful silence and instant engagement!) and White Industries ftw. Never once had to think about either of these in thousands of miles, which is exactly what you want.

[ColonelJLloyd]

This one kills me. People are reaching out all over the place trying to find 1" 2 Nut headsets. Especially in silver.

Simply because they want those bold, black letters on it? Because I think silver, threaded CC110s in 1" are still being made in NC.

[peanutgallery]

1 inch steerers? That's Rip van Winkle territory right there:)

[Velocipede]

Simply because they want those bold, black letters on it? Because I think silver, threaded CC110s in 1" are still being made in NC.

I'm not a fan of the King headsets, but a lot of people are. I would prefer a Cane Creek 110. I've been a huge fan of their headsets since they started the S Series ones in 94. Which turned into the Solos and then the 110.

[deluxerider]

I’ve had 7 different sets of CK hubs (man and road) over the years and never had an issue with any of them. They were all tough as nails. Upgrading them to new freehub body standards is where they have started to lose me. Too damn expensive. It is so easy and relatively inexpensive with DT hubs to swap and that makes for even better long term value. I’m still a big fan of CK and use their headsets and bb’s whenever I can.

[Jeff N.]

My only complaint is that infernal buzzing, Stuka Dive Bomber/Angry Bees sound CK hubs make when coasting. But, as someone once told me, don't stop pedaling and you won't hear it! As for 1" steerers, there's still plenty of Steel out there that take one inchers (headsets).

[nickl]

The CT article states that tabs on the 12 speed Campy cassettes cannot be accommodated on current CK hubs. Is that a problem with any other hub manufacturers? I was under the impression that all Campy 9-12 speed cassettes were interchangeable on compatible hubs.

[Mark McM]

The CT article states that tabs on the 12 speed Campy cassettes cannot be accommodated on current CK hubs. Is that a problem with any other hub manufacturers? I was under the impression that all Campy 9-12 speed cassettes were interchangeable on compatible hubs.

While that's usually true for Campagnolo hubs, that's not always the case with 3rd party hubs. Wheel strength/stiffness is improved with wider flange spacing, particularly for dished rear wheels. Some 3rd party hub manufacturers would space their driver side flanges out as far as they possibly could without interfering with the cassette & derailleur, even further out than on Campagnolo's own hubs. But as Campagno cassettes have added sprockets, they have slowly pushed the biggest sprocket further and further inboard. So a hub that had just barely enough clearance for a 9spd Campagnolo cassette, might not work with a 10spsd cassette, a hub that barely had clearance for a 10sp cassette might not work with an 11spd cassette, and hub that barely had clearance for a 11spd cassette might not work with a 12spd cassette.

In the case of Campagnolo hubs, their drive side flange was not very far outboard even for 9spd cassettes, so there was enough clearance to work with 10spd, 11spd and 12spd cassettes*

*Note: This is true for Campagnolo's standard rear hubs. They did have a few models of wheels with specialty hubs (such as their HPW hubs), which wouldn't didn't always have sufficient clearance when more sprockets were added to the cassette.

By the way, this isn't true just for Campagnolo hubs. When Shimano when to 11spd, they had to move the drive side flange inboard to make space for the additional sprocket, so many 8/9/10 speed wheels won't work with some 11spd cassettes.

[Mark McM]

Chris King not supporting Campagnolo freehubs is not a new thing. When Chris King first starting making freehubs, they were not compatible with Campagnolo cassettes for many years. The wider Campagnolo cassettes require more closely spaced flanges, and because Campagnolo free spline grooves are deeper, it leaves less space internal to the freehub for bearings. Chris King believed that too many compromises to the their freehub design would have to be made to accomodate Campagnolo cassettes, so they didn't make Campagnolo compatible freehubs. It was only many years later that they finally relented, and made Campagnolo compatible cassettes.

To accommodate 12spd cassettes, they could modify their hubs and move the driveside flange inboard. But they probably feel that this would be too much of a compromise to do this to all their rear hubs, and the market for Campagnolo 12spd hubs isn't large enough to make a special rear hub design just for Campagnolo freehubs.

[tylercheung]

I'm not a fan of the King headsets, but a lot of people are. I would prefer a Cane Creek 110. I've been a huge fan of their headsets since they started the S Series ones in 94. Which turned into the Solos and then the 110.

I mosey'ed over to their wikipedia page...I didn't realize they used to be Dia Compe USA!

[Velocipede]

I mosey'ed over to their wikipedia page...I didn't realize they used to be Dia Compe USA!

Yep yep! They were Dia Compe USA and when they were closing, they bought it out, did an employee owned company and created Cane Creek. And make a bunch of their stuff in the US! Great group of people there. Excellent products.

[nickl]

While that's usually true for Campagnolo hubs, that's not always the case with 3rd party hubs. Wheel strength/stiffness is improved with wider flange spacing, particularly for dished rear wheels. Some 3rd party hub manufacturers would space their driver side flanges out as far as they possibly could without interfering with the cassette & derailleur, even further out than on Campagnolo's own hubs. But as Campagno cassettes have added sprockets, they have slowly pushed the biggest sprocket further and further inboard. So a hub that had just barely enough clearance for a 9spd Campagnolo cassette, might not work with a 10spsd cassette, a hub that barely had clearance for a 10sp cassette might not work with an 11spd cassette, and hub that barely had clearance for a 11spd cassette might not work with a 12spd cassette.

In the case of Campagnolo hubs, their drive side flange was not very far outboard even for 9spd cassettes, so there was enough clearance to work with 10spd, 11spd and 12spd cassettes*

*Note: This is true for Campagnolo's standard rear hubs. They did have a few models of wheels with specialty hubs (such as their HPW hubs), which wouldn't didn't always have sufficient clearance when more sprockets were added to the cassette.

By the way, this isn't true just for Campagnolo hubs. When Shimano when to 11spd, they had to move the drive side flange inboard to make space for the additional sprocket, so many 8/9/10 speed wheels won't work with some 11spd cassettes.

Thank you for clarifying.

[PieOrchard]

I'd only ever buy one of their headsets anyway, my support for their products mostly ceased after hearing from friends how poorly they treat(ed?) workers.