Levo damaged freehub and seized wheel bearing

[Taffyteg]

Had a great ride at Cannock on Sunday only to find last night that the wheel bearing had seized / become very stiff in the rear hub. On stripping down the rear hub I also found that one of the pawls within the freehub has sheared and so is only latching on 2 pawls, images below show good and bad. Bike is just over a year old, I hope things are going to start failing now!!!!
Ordered a new wheel bearing and freehub kit from Specialized, I think I might start saving and look at investing in some new Hope wheels.

Bad bit

Good bit

 

[Eckythump]

That's a shame as Roval wheels are normally pretty good.

 

[ccrdave]

Roval traverse wheels are good rear hub is dt swiss, roval wheels have specialiseds cheapest hub which in my opinion is heavy and not so goodbut having said that i have two sets of roval wheels and they have been very good, just swapped them out for roval traverse ( dt swis rear hub) which are much lighter for weight saving exercise

 

[Taffyteg]

Hope hubs use 4off pawls so the loading on each one will be a little less than the 3off on this one - or currently down to 2off ?

 

[kcarbon]

thanks for posting taffy!! a guy here in Australia had something similar happen to rear gear set tooth broke? but did not show pic's and I only read post not first hand. but he said lbs replaced under warranty. was only a few month old comp carbon 2018.

 

[Taffyteg]

thanks for posting taffy!! a guy here in Australia had something similar happen to rear gear set tooth broke? but did not show pic's and I only read post not first hand. but he said lbs replaced under warranty. was only a few month old comp carbon 2018.

No worries. They wouldn't do mine under warranty, it is Just over a year old

 

[Taffyteg]

Replaced both bearings in the rear hub as well as the freehub tonight. Wheel feels better now than the day I had it ?
Off to Llandegla tomorrow and Coedy Sat / Sun so it is going to get a hammering ?

 

[kcarbon]

Replaced both bearings in the rear hub as well as the freehub tonight. Wheel feels better now than the day I had it ?
Off to Llandegla tomorrow and Coedy Sat / Sun so it is going to get a hammering ?

good stuff!! will give mine a check out.

 

[Mission MTB]

My Kenevo freehub literally exploded yesterday at Glentress Skills Park. Bike in turbo, cranked down too hard... Twang! I thought I'd broken the chain but no, the whole thing had popped off on the drive side. I just took it out to have a look and I have zero pawls left. All gone! Oops.

 

[Taffyteg]

My Kenevo freehub literally exploded yesterday at Glentress Skills Park. Bike in turbo, cranked down too hard... Twang! I thought I'd broken the chain but no, the whole thing had popped off on the drive side. I just took it out to have a look and I have zero pawls left. All gone! Oops.

Any pics?

I have gone to Hope Pro hubs now - can't fault them

 

[Mission MTB]

Any pics?

I have gone to Hope Pro hubs now - can't fault them

I forgot to take a picture, sorry. When I get the new one I'll take one. I have Hope wheelset on my enduro bike. I l really like em.

 

[Donnie797]

I clearly asked my spesh dealer what part on the bike I will probably break at first (I'm a bit heavier and do have strong legs), if it's the bearings, the hub or whatever and he said it probably will be the rear hub. I destroyed the rear hub on my non-e fullsus bike after 4 months of riding and switched to hope pro - problems solved.

 

[Mission MTB]

I clearly asked my spesh dealer what part on the bike I will probably break at first (I'm a bit heavier and do have strong legs), if it's the bearings, the hub or whatever and he said it probably will be the rear hub. I destroyed the rear hub on my non-e fullsus bike after 4 months of riding and switched to hope pro - problems solved.

Wow, your legs must be like a pair of Rolls Royce Merlin Engines - I'm very tempted to switch to some Hope Hoops.

 

[Kernow]

Hope may not be any more reliable , I had the same problem , with hope , although there are two inner bearings in the hope , if the inner one fails the broken bits will take out the freewheel pawls , and likely damage the soft alloy freehub body into the bargain , you’ll also lose the indexing as the hub becomes loose and if your not careful throw the chain into the spokes . Because there are two bearings you won’t notice any play as an early warning .
My advise is to buy the steel hope freehub if your buying hope , especially for an ebike ,, and listen to it and remove it regularly for servicing ,
the bearings most likely have been a bit noisy for a while but unless your aware and in tune with it it’s often too late . First sign of hope problems can be the noise stops or gets quieter ie the signature hope clicking is lost .
It only takes a drop of water left in the freewheel to put a rust spot on the inner bearing during storage .

 

[ccrdave]

the higher spec wheels fitted to specialised bikes including levos but as far as I can see not kenevos have a DT Swiss rear hub with some kind of star ratchet system, would you consider this a stronger option?

 

[Taffyteg]

Hope use 4 pawls whereas the Levo has 3. It's had some good use up to now and (?) so far so good....

 

[Donnie797]

Wow, your legs must be like a pair of Rolls Royce Merlin Engines - I'm very tempted to switch to some Hope Hoops.

hell yes, i might have ^^ It was on another steep uphill climb where the cassette got bent - but it was a Deore - the XT cassette is made from stronger metal and works fine now

I'm happy with my hope pro 4 hubs - but they're just one year old. They still sound excellent but i will take them apart in winter and have a look...
If i have to replace the hubs on the Kenevo on day i would definitely go for the hope steel freehub.

 

[Kernow]

the higher spec wheels fitted to specialised bikes including levos but as far as I can see not kenevos have a DT Swiss rear hub with some kind of star ratchet system, would you consider this a stronger option?

I think it is , my daughter has run a set of these through the winter and it seems to be a very robust system and hasn’t yet required any attention , I’ve asked a few bike shop mechanics etc which hub they like best , and the DT Swiss is the most favoured , no knocking hope though it’s still one of the best and so easy to service if you buy the tools
Mavic has been the one that’s needed most attention for us , exept for the own brand stuff that cheaper end giant and spesh use and they seem to fit them to more expensive models where they have no right to be
I think one of the biggest problems we face with ebikes is manufacturers are using normal bike parts not stronger ebike items , look at the spec of the bikes and see how many manufacturers actually use ebike specific wheels and hubs etc , price or brand is not an indication of the quality iether sadly

 

[Yroc]

Broke a pawl on my 2017 Levo Comp. Anyone know where to get parts or what freewheel assembly I need? Lbs wants $50 plus install to put a new one in, and all I really need is a pawl that 'should' be sold separately for a couple bucks....

The only markings on the hub are a bunch of lines and 148mm

 

[escrs]

higher spec wheels fitted to specialised bikes including levos but as far as I can see not kenevos have a DT Swiss rear hub with some kind of star ratchet system, would you consider this a stronger option?

All Roval Traverse wheels found on Levo Experts and S-works use the cheap DT Swiss 3 pawl free hub not the ratchet free hub that DT Swiss use in the DT350 and DT240 hubs

I had a 2017 Levo Expert which came with the Roval Traverse wheels with the DT 3 pawl free hub body, those wheels were only fit for the bin!! replaced them with a set of Stans Flow rims built into DT Swiss 350 hubs and they were great

Been running Hope Pro 4's on my Kenevo for a year now with no issues

 

[Rich-Baillon]

TBH wheels are usually the first thing I upgrade on a bike. I looked at the rear hub on my 2019 Levo Expert yesterday expecting to be able to upgrade the star ratchet and found this was a sealed unit with 3 pawls. So thanks for the comments here that explains the rear hub, ok off to my wheel builder for some new hoops today then.

Used to run Mavic but have been running 3 sets of DT Swiss for 4 years now with zero issues on Mountain bikes, all 650B unfortunately.

 

[paquo]

All Roval Traverse wheels found on Levo Experts and S-works use the cheap DT Swiss 3 pawl free hub not the ratchet free hub that DT Swiss use in the DT350 and DT240 hubs

maybe the last generation levo but my new s works uses 240 internals with 54 tooth ratchet, bulletbroof

 

[escrs]

Opps looks like i made a mistake, so Experts come with the DT3 pawl freehub, the S-works from 2017 onwards come with the 54 tooth ratchet, my bad for not doing my research properly

 

[Yroc]

I ordered this...

DT Swiss Pawl Kit

 

[DanDilla]

Sure about the DT Pawls? as far as I know they are labeled formula hubs...

SPECIALIZED FREEHUB BODY FHB FORMULA XD DRIVER FREEHUB 11 SPD (FH-535HA)

if the dt fit, please report back!

are there 2 6903/61903 on the axle and 2 in the freehub? So 4 Overall? Want to change them all with better ones as at least a few are grinding hard after 4K km with my featherweight on them

as they are carbon rims but sure not the best I do not want to invest in new hubs, just some reliable bearings (Enduro ABEC 5 or SKF MTRX to have my peace of mind)

 

[Yroc]

Okay, I received the DT Swiss pawl kit, and while the pawls are not 'exactly' the same, they are very similar and do fit in the hub well. I wasn't able to use the new spring as it was too short, but the original spring is still good. I replaced all 3 pawls with the new ones, greased it all up really well with the included grease and went for a ride, it's smooth and seems to work fine...time will tell, but since the hub would have been garbage anyway, for $10 we'll see how long it lasts....but I see no reason for it to be any worse than the original pawls, so I think it will be just fine!!

 

[Yroc]

Pretty sure this would be the correct kit....

Pawl Set

 

[Horse1200s]

Hi all! Steve from Minnesota here. I went out for a rip last night and heard a couple of loud pops then thought my chain slipped. Quickly realized it was something else and I’m now guessing my free hub pawls gave way and broke. This is a 2020 Turbo Levo Expert with less than 100 miles on it, pretty disappointing. I’ll bring it to the LBS and I’m sure they will replace under warranty but what is to stop this from happening again? Is it worth it to upgrade to a better ratchet style free hub? I’d prefer to not be stranded again. Luckily I was close to home and dropped the seat post and rode it like my 2 year olds balance bike home. Is this common?
Thanks for the help! Steve

 

[tvandall]

Hi Guys 2.5 months in on a 2019 Levo Comp and my free hub went after a 40k road bike ride. Wasn't even pushing it hard. LBS will warranty parts but I expect similar results. I will investigate the Hope Pro, DT240, DT350 options. Anything else I should consider? whats the 54 tooth rachet model? Seems like a widespread problem as a buddy of mine had his two 2017 Levo's free hub's go. Awesome bike when its working. Reliability is definitely an issue.

 

[Swan]

Hi Guys 2.5 months in on a 2019 Levo Comp and my free hub went after a 40k road bike ride. Wasn't even pushing it hard. LBS will warranty parts but I expect similar results. I will investigate the Hope Pro, DT240, DT350 options. Anything else I should consider? whats the 54 tooth rachet model? Seems like a widespread problem as a buddy of mine had his two 2017 Levo's free hub's go. Awesome bike when its working. Reliability is definitely an issue.

DT350 and be done. Best bang of buck around.


Don't bother with the 54t ratchet, the 36t is plenty fine enough for an ebike and gives you bigger teeth with more meat on them. I have seen people destroy 54t ratchets on regular bikes, so definitely possible on a Levo.. I actually take my 54t out of my carbon wheels when they go on my levo and toss my 36t ratchets in to deal with the added torque.