Boyd 85 hubs
 

Does anyone have any experience with these?

I'm in for feedback as well.

I do!
But I bet you want feedback from customers! Ha ha
They're still a fairly recent hub but we are starting to get a lot of them out there.

But if you have any questions, just feel free to ask.

Big one on my end, freehub body material? I am hoping for some sort of steel because aluminum is subpar for the application.

I'll start torturing a set this weekend, I'll let you guys know.

It is a hard anodized aluminum freehub body. The hard anodization helps with gouging as does the 5 degree engagement as the freehub body does not have enough time to ramp up to speed before engaging.

Small gouging can still occur, but I do not view this as a bad thing as it can actually allow the cassette to bed in multiple areas on the freehub body. This holds the cassette in place very well and eliminates vibration. Vibration on metal parts is what can kill longevity and so these very small gouches can actually help chain and cassette lifespan

Seriously?! Sure sounds like BS.

Boyd is good but this does sound like total BS.

I was skeptic of Red cassettes at first, but they do address the issue of cassette gouging better than anything Shimano has come up with. I will be slowly replacing my cassettes with Red from now on. Expensive, but since I replace chains and keep my drivetrain clean they last a long time.

As far as the hubs, I've spoken to Boyd about them and the design does look promising. They have the interchangeability of DT so it's easy to move a set of wheels around to different bikes.

i'm not sure if boyd above was being serious with his remarks that cassettes gouging freehubs actually extend chain and cassette life due to reduced vibration - but that statement can not be taken seriously.

i think the american classic mousetrap for freehub gouging seems to work well with the "anti-bite" bars installed. i have changed cassettes (due to ratio changes, not worn out cassettes) a few times and have no gouging issues on them.

titanium freehubs, like white industries or dura ace are also excellent solutions.

http://www.discountcyclesdirect.co.u...hub_body_1.jpg

I was being serious about reducing vibration and extending cassette and chain life. It's not dramatic, like years difference or probably even months. But holding metal moving over metal without vibration can improve longevity.

In all honesty, keeping the chain well lubricated will have more affect on this.

But the main point is the tiny gouges (not super deep ones that can throw off the gear indexing), is not necessarily a bad thing. I have not been a fan of the one steel spline as it gives one point of contact between the cassette and freehub body. I know it works for reducing gouging, but there is a benefit to having multiple points of contact.

I can see how a cassette that's inbedded into the freehub can reduce vibration. However, I think any measurable difference in wear of cassette, freehub and chain will be so little that its not worth mentioning.

Bingo. I'd rather be selective about the cassette than limit my wheel choices based on freehub material. With the Red cassette, it doesn't matter. And the lighter system weight doesn't suck...

I have some wheels with these coming, interested to try them out, I am sure they will be great.

Boyd can certainly answer with specifics, the freehub of his new hubs look similar to his Quest hubs. I have just under 1000 miles on a set of Quest hubs. While I can not lay claim to multiple 1600 watts efforts, I can lay claim to plenty of rain, mud, sand, and plenty of 1000 watt efforts.
The freehub has some very minor gouging. Not even sure I would call it "gouging". It has been a non-issue. Been running Shimano cassettes.