# Servicing Bontrager Road Hubs



## johnstone3 (Feb 3, 2007)

I just repacked and regreased the bearings in my hubs on my vintage wheels on my vintage Trek, and was then wondering about doing the same on some road Bontrager Race Lite wheels I have on a newer Trek, but someone told me the hubs were sealed and to not try to service them. Is this correct? These Race Lite hubs have about 10,000 miles on them, but still seem perfectly smooth, so they probably don't really need service, but I am wondering about this sealed thing. Can't the bearings be replaced and greased, and then the seals replaced if there are seals? When, if ever, should you expect to service them?


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## kneejerk (Feb 2, 2007)

For the modern wheels anything "Race" and above are sealed cartridge bearings. Pretty much just replace them when they get rough. This can be tricky as a special press tool is recommended. Plus the rear hub can be a little tricky to set up. 10k miles doesn't sound all that much unless water has penetrated the seals of the bearings or you have a rough one.

Sometimes the cartridge bearings fail because the hub / axle have improper clearances, which usually will make a new bearing set fail in the same manner. Determining this condition can be tricky.


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