# Can I quite my Mavic Ksyrium Elite Free Hub?



## edsnooper (Oct 13, 2007)

Hello,

Can I quiet my free hub?

I just got an awesome deal on a brand new 2008 Giant TCR C1.... rides like a rocket, but the only thing I don't like is the loud free hub when coasting. Sounds like when I was a kid and clothes pinned a playing card between by spokes... I know I bought a semi-race bike, and that the sound is functional during a race, but I am not competing against anyone but myself.

I have heard that you can dump oil into the hub? True? How? How much? Any potential consequences that aren't good?

Thanks for your help
Keith


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## fleck (Mar 25, 2005)

they are loud because of the stregnth of the engagement pawl. It snaps down after pulling over the ledge. If you took a rotary tool and filed down the ledges into smooth ramps you wouldn't get the clicking. Of course you might then also have a dual directional freewheel. A heavier grease might quiet it down a bit but it might also create a dangerous situation. Use only what the manuf. recommends. (not brand, but weight of oil or grease depending on the hub) Those hubs are known for their clicking. You really don't want to do something to impact that as it will impact the function. Just stop coasting.


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## edsnooper (Oct 13, 2007)

Ok, thanks... but why did my old Shimano 105 hubs not make any sounds? 

Are there any wheels as light as the Elites that don't make the loud free hub sounds?

Keith


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## fleck (Mar 25, 2005)

the shimano's use a diffrent engagement style. Mavic and Hugi are known for their earth shattering loud opperation. Chris King make a humm likened to a bumble bee. 

just about every hub is slightly diffrent in sound. most typical is similar to your shimano.

noisy hubs tend to only annoy me on my MTB. On road there is a bit less coasting or if there is i'm doing a fast downhill and am getting other noises anyway. (helmet ect.)


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## edsnooper (Oct 13, 2007)

Could you recommend another wheelset on par with the Elites that doesn't make all the noise?


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## unobtainium (Feb 28, 2005)

*Mavic Noise*

By servicing the freehub and adding some gear lube (or even motor oil) you will quiet down the noise to a whisper or even less. I do not think that grease should be used as it might be too thick for the pawls to engage.


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## ipaul (Feb 16, 2004)

All my Mavic freehubs quiet down greatly after I add just a small amount of pedro's road lube. You'll hear the difference and should see no difference in performance.


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## Peanya (Jun 12, 2008)

Just don't coast so much! Spin at a higher gear so you don't get tired and feel the need to coast.


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## fleck (Mar 25, 2005)

edsnooper said:


> Could you recommend another wheelset on par with the Elites that doesn't make all the noise?


a pair of hand laced wheels from a good LBS are hard to go wrong.
ultegra hubs, mavic open pro rim, double butted spokes, alloy nipples
2x up front, 3x in the rear

good solid wheelset nothing fancy but you can ride them longer then you might get out of your frame.


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## edsnooper (Oct 13, 2007)

Thanks.... Can you tell me where on the hub you add the oil? Do you have to take apart the hub? Or is this something a non-mechanic can do?

Keith


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## edsnooper (Oct 13, 2007)

Where do you add the oil? Can this be done without tearing apart the hub?


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## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

you need to disassemble the hub to lube the freehub. mavic recommends using mineral oil for this, or their race techs have used dumonde tech also. there is a bearing on the outside of the freehub body, but just a phenolic bushing on the inside, which is why you need to lube them frequently. mavic recommends agains using lubes w/ teflon in them, apparently they cause the bushing to swell and drag. be careful when pulling the body off the hub...it's likely the pawls and springs (2 of each, verrrry small springs) will pop out and get lost instantly.


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## JustTooBig (Aug 11, 2005)

edsnooper said:


> Where do you add the oil? Can this be done without tearing apart the hub?


Mavic has good info on their website addressing freehub body maintenance issues. Good illustrations, etc...

If you cannot find it, Google "Mavic freehub maintenance". 

Even if you do need to dismantle the hub, all it takes is a couple hex wrenches.


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## tuscanybill (Nov 20, 2005)

As posted the info is available in print form, I see a video here 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzoBeJ5HaOI

that is very good that shows the dissasembly steps. As some have mentioned I have been using automotive gear oil 80/90 GL5 for a few years, I put just enough in the hub body that it doesn't run out when held horizontal. Doing this service about every 1200 miles keeps the noise down for me. No ill effects in the past 7000 miles 

Hope this helps --- Bill


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## Kerry Irons (Feb 25, 2002)

*Unlikely fix*



fleck said:


> you took a rotary tool and filed down the ledges into smooth ramps you wouldn't get the clicking.


It's highly unlikely you could do this well. The ratchet body is hardened tool steel, so would be very hard to grind down. And beyond that, it would very hard to get the many notches ground to a uniform and proper shape. Even as a theoretical, this is a pretty sketchy concept.


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## Bob Ross (Apr 18, 2006)

This is the weirdest thread...

I've been riding a set of Kysirium Elites for two-and-a-half years now, and I have *A LOT* of things I could complain about (so much so that I finally bought myself a set of Joe Young handbuilt wheels for xmas)

...but noise was never one of my complaints. In fact, my Mavic freehub may be the quietest I've ever encountered. I can roll up on people in total stealth mode. It's eerie how quiet these are.


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## edsnooper (Oct 13, 2007)

Why is this a weird thread? I am just used to shimano hubs that are whisper quiet. As I mentioned, I am not a racer, just a guy who liked riding long and fast, and enjoying the countryside without the headache of hearing the clackty, clack of the freehub across whatever percentage of my 3-5 hour ride!


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## edsnooper (Oct 13, 2007)

And also, what else is there to complain about the Mavic elite? It is a light, strong, sturdy wheel... or at least most of the road bike reviewers seem to say so!


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## Bob Ross (Apr 18, 2006)

edsnooper said:


> Why is this a weird thread?


It's just weird because your experience with the sound from Ksyrium Elite hubs is so completely antithetical to mine: as mentioned, "my Mavic freehub may be the quietest I've ever encountered. I can roll up on people in total stealth mode. It's eerie how quiet these are."

I'd be perfectly willing to accept the possibility that _my_ experience is the weird one, & that yours is more typical of Elite users...except I've never heard anyone else complain about excessive noise from Elite hubs.




edsnooper said:


> And also, what else is there to complain about the Mavic elite? It is a light, strong, sturdy wheel... or at least most of the road bike reviewers seem to say so!


Clearly I got a lemon set of Ksyrium Elites. I have had the hubs overhauled twice, the rear wheel completely rebuilt once, they need truing every 3-4 months, and individual spokes tend to twist -- completely negating their "aero" (sic) profile -- with alarming regularity. They require too much maintenance for a two year old wheelset. And I'm a 175lb rider who never takes these off-road or over curbs, so I don't think I'm being inordinately harsh on my wheels. In short, my Ksyrium Elites have _not_ been a particularly "strong" or "sturdy" wheel. And at 1790 grams (these are 2006 Elites, not the apparently lighter 2009 version) I don't think I'd call them particularly "light" either.


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## tuscanybill (Nov 20, 2005)

To the OP, hope you are getting at least a little help out of this thread. On the issue of spoke "twist" on issue I was able to uncover on a friends bike and later my own was the spoke nipples where they thread into the rim may need a drop of loc-tite, the best type to use is #290, this is a wicking product that is safe for aluminum. Just a drop will do it right where the threads are at the rim. On two rear wheels I have been exposed to we have saw pretty severe spoke loosening in very short time (50 - 200 mile) the loc-tite solved the problem.

If your wheels were rebuilt by somone else, it is very important to hold the spokes (with the plastic holder) while they are tightened.

The freehub is a bit noiser than the shimanos (I have both) but as stated shimano uses more paws with lighter springs. 

There is a washer that is very important to get in the right place when reassembling the freehub, it sounds as if you are getting your work done by someone, maybe a second opinion is in order.

Best of luck


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