Not sure this DT Swiss hub should be doing this 40 miles in.

[capposteve]

Was just casually riding us a grassy bank, well pulling a weelie to be exact and then lost all drive. Let’s see how long it takes to sort it out. Was only 5 miles from home but mostly all up hill. Luckily it eventually recovered enough that I could ride it home but it’s not great for 45 miles on the clock.

 

[Bones]

Probably just the drive gears sticking on the grease

 

[capposteve]

Probably just the drive gears sticking on the grease

hoping so but like most free hubs grease should not be used for this very reason. Tempted to open it up and have a look or just get them to sort it under warranty.

 

[Bones]

Well seeing as it should just pull off, I'd have a look first

 

[capposteve]

Well seeing as it should just pull off, I'd have a look first

yea ill have a look

 

[levity]

If it’s a star ratchet hub (e.g., DT350)

the red stuff, used to come in a small 20g tub

 

[capposteve]

Well seeing as it should just pull off, I'd have a look first

taken it off and looks pretty bad. alot of the teeth edges have gone or are rounded over.

 

[Bones]

That doesn't look good . At least it's easily sorted providing you can get the bits through warranty

 

[RustyIron]

taken it off and looks pretty bad. alot of the teeth edges have gone or are rounded over.

Yikes!
Luckily, DT Swiss is GREAT for sending out replacement parts. Send them an email and be sure to tell them that it's on a new bike that is no longer ridable. Be sure to include the serial number of the hub.

They'll send you the parts and a tube of their fancy grease. The instructions say something about applying a thin film ONLY. I think the grease is a little thick for this application, and use an NLGI 0.

 

[levity]

Never heard of an 18t ratchet failing like that.
We’re the ratchets clean and dry as shown when you removed them?
If so, someone forgot to lube them!

 

[Mikerb]

Assuming it is DT Swiss!! You do not show the other parts in your photos...another spring and an axle sleeve. You would also be better removing the freehub from the cassette.
Specialized do not specify the brand of hub/freehub on the Levo Comp. It is a DT Swiss star ratchet design but on a 350 hybrid hub the star wheels are usually 24t and steel. Yours looks to be 36t and ally. You may need to refer to Specialized rather than DT Swiss.

For the star wheels not to mesh firmly either they were not free to slide on the hub axle or the freehub was loose on the hub. The star wheels were certainly not assembled using DT Swiss Special Grease ( which is red) and whatever grease has been used is far too much. A good way to guage is the freewheel noise. If it is virtually silent there is too much grease...............when it gets very loud, its time to service it ( ie with Dt Swiss Special Grease)

 

[capposteve]

Never heard of an 18t ratchet failing like that.
We’re the ratchets clean and dry as shown when you removed them?
If so, someone forgot to lube them!

its a 36tooth

 

[capposteve]

Assuming it is DT Swiss!! You do not show the other parts in your photos...another spring and an axle sleeve. You would also be better removing the freehub from the cassette.
Specialized do not specify the brand of hub/freehub on the Levo Comp. It is a DT Swiss star ratchet design but on a 350 hybrid hub the star wheels are usually 24t and steel. Yours looks to be 36t and ally. You may need to refer to Specialized rather than DT Swiss.

For the star wheels not to mesh firmly either they were not free to slide on the hub axle or the freehub was loose on the hub. The star wheels were certainly not assembled using DT Swiss Special Grease ( which is red) and whatever grease has been used is far too much. A good way to guage is the freewheel noise. If it is virtually silent there is too much grease...............when it gets very loud, its time to service it ( ie with Dt Swiss Special Grease)

yes its a 2022 levo pro with roval carbon rims so i think it could be a roval issue. The grease looks to be correct as on the back its red. I hope they arnt alloy ones as seems silly with the amount of torque going through that area on the drive train. Ill Have to speak to Certini in the morning to see what they are going to do about it. I did look on their website but showing all of these kits to be out of stock.

 

[capposteve]

Assuming it is DT Swiss!! You do not show the other parts in your photos...another spring and an axle sleeve. You would also be better removing the freehub from the cassette.
Specialized do not specify the brand of hub/freehub on the Levo Comp. It is a DT Swiss star ratchet design but on a 350 hybrid hub the star wheels are usually 24t and steel. Yours looks to be 36t and ally. You may need to refer to Specialized rather than DT Swiss.

For the star wheels not to mesh firmly either they were not free to slide on the hub axle or the freehub was loose on the hub. The star wheels were certainly not assembled using DT Swiss Special Grease ( which is red) and whatever grease has been used is far too much. A good way to guage is the freewheel noise. If it is virtually silent there is too much grease...............when it gets very loud, its time to service it ( ie with Dt Swiss Special Grease)

 

[capposteve]

Never heard of an 18t ratchet failing like that.
We’re the ratchets clean and dry as shown when you removed them?
If so, someone forgot to lube them!

if you look at the other pics it will show how they looked when removed.

 

[Mikerb]

this site has the 36t kit in stock and the steel 24t kit due in soon

DT Swiss 24 Tooth Service / Upgrade Kit

- Designed for DT's Hybrid E-MTB wheels, these steel 24 Tooth ratchets are super tough & ideal for use on E-bikes, tandems or any bike that sees sustained high-torque and where reliability is paramount - Compatible with all DT star ratchet based hubs

www.sjscycles.co.uk

 

[Mikerb]

if you look at the other pics it will show how they looked when removed.

Both my bikes have the DT Swiss full hybrid wheelsets and they have been faultless. I suspect the Levo is in fact using a DT Swiss ratchet freehub but not the hybrid version which DT Swiss specify for EMTB use due to the high torque they have to sustain. I dont think Spesh use DT Swiss hubs otherwise why would they not detail that in their specs. I have never heard of the DT Swiss ratchet system failing in that way. They had trouble with their newer EXP version but I think that ( single star wheel) design has been restricted to road bike use now.
The replacement star wheel service kits are easy to source from lots of online sites because they are sold mainly as upgrade kits...ie upgrade from 18t to 36t or even 54t. Dt Swiss however specify that whilst more teeth makes for quicker engagement it also reduces the contact strength and durability..........their recommendation for Ebikes is 24t.

 

[capposteve]

Both my bikes have the DT Swiss full hybrid wheelsets and they have been faultless. I suspect the Levo is in fact using a DT Swiss ratchet freehub but not the hybrid version which DT Swiss specify for EMTB use due to the high torque they have to sustain. I dont think Spesh use DT Swiss hubs otherwise why would they not detail that in their specs. I have never heard of the DT Swiss ratchet system failing in that way. They had trouble with their newer EXP version but I think that ( single star wheel) design has been restricted to road bike use now.
The replacement star wheel service kits are easy to source from lots of online sites because they are sold mainly as upgrade kits...ie upgrade from 18t to 36t or even 54t. Dt Swiss however specify that whilst more teeth makes for quicker engagement it also reduces the contact strength and durability..........their recommendation for Ebikes is 24t.

strange isnt it. I did think it was weird when looking at the specs for the pro that it didnt mention anthing regarding the hubs. However it does say on the hubs they are dt swiss 350, However they are roval carbon wheels so who knows. all i know is is it came new out of the box with these hubs.

 

[capposteve]

this site has the 36t kit in stock and the steel 24t kit due in soon

DT Swiss 24 Tooth Service / Upgrade Kit

- Designed for DT's Hybrid E-MTB wheels, these steel 24 Tooth ratchets are super tough & ideal for use on E-bikes, tandems or any bike that sees sustained high-torque and where reliability is paramount - Compatible with all DT star ratchet based hubs

www.sjscycles.co.uk

just found them in stock here and a little cheaper too.

DT Swiss Service / Upgrade Kit for star ratchet hubs 24 teeth Hybrid

Designed for DT's Hybrid E-MTB wheels, these steel 24 Tooth ratchets are super tough and ideal for use on E-bikes, tandems or any bike that sees sustained high-torque and where reliability is paramount Compatible with all DT star ratchet based hubs

www.bikeparts.co.uk

 

[capposteve]

Parts arrived today and fitted. Cleaned all the old channels out of the old grease and metal shavings and re-installed the new 24 tooth parts, easy peasy.

 

[Spiff]

EDITED: According DT Swiss instructions, the red lube should be used only for the ratchet teeth, brearings and the rest of the hub should be greased using the white general purpose grease.

 

[Beanz]

Mine (same bike) did exactly the same thing at 5 miles in - coincidence or were Spesh using the wrong grease...?
Either way, good recovery - Spesh promptly replaced my wheel (possibly due to parts availability at the time) and the new one's been fine.

 

[Chairman]

That looked bad. Got aprox 10k on mine and couldn't be happier. Never a sign of slippage but it does tell me it's about time I had another look inside

 

[Tony4wd]

According DT Swiss instructions, the red lube should be used only for the ratchet teeth, the "side" teeth should be greased using the white general purpose grease. But probably it won't hurt using red grease too.

In the servicing video DT shows red grease being applied to both sets of teeth and new complete hubs are supplied with red grease all over the ratchets.

 

[Spiff]

In the servicing video DT shows red grease being applied to both sets of teeth and new complete hubs are supplied with red grease all over the ratchets.

You are right, I edited my post to reflect this.

 

[Mikerb]

The reason for using the red grease is that it has a stronger bond to the metal surfaces than a normal multi purpose grease. It can...and should...be applied very sparingly. I apply it with a tiny artist brush. The small pot or tube DTSwiss sell is expensive but will last for years of servicing. I use it on both faces of the ratchet wheels and the ratchet rings. The only place I use the general purpose grease is on the axle.
Servicing needs to be done when the freewheel becomes noticeably louder. You will typically find no water or dirt ingress provided the end cap is properly sealed and a snug fit......and the red grease will have turned black. Cleaning and regressing is typically a 10 minute job. I do that service typically every 400 miles or so.

 

[irie]

taken it off and looks pretty bad. alot of the teeth edges have gone or are rounded over. View attachment 125433 View attachment 125434 View attachment 125435

Ooh, that's not pretty!