Cycling UK Forum

I’m no mechanic so am hoping to get advice from you experts on the Forum. I’ve just had my lovely old bike serviced and all was well apart from being told that the free hub was in need of replacement. It was given 6-12 months before it would likely fail. Unfortunately, that particular free hub is no longer available. The alternatives are a new wheel or a new hub with a different free hub laced into my existing wheel. Both alternatives will be relatively expensive. I am confident that the mechanic who serviced my bike is giving me his best interpretation of the situation. However, it wouldn’t be the best use of his time to search for the relevant part when his supplier (Madison) has told him they no longer supply it. I’m wondering whether buying a hub to get the free hub from it and fitting it into my existing hub would be a viable option. My current hub is a Shimano 105 (in a Mavic Open Pro wheel) and the part number I was given that needs replacing is y-32x 98040. Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.
Phill

I once had a Shimano free hub that started making a bit of noise, which turned out to be the lubricating grease drying up. Apparently that is common. Mine had a thin rubber O-ring sort of seal on the back, so after removing the freehub I was able to carefully ease that seal out, then get fresh lubrication in. Oil goes in easier than grease, but may need re-doing more often. The advantage of this fix is that it does not require opening up the unit. My unit has done a few thousand extra miles since this treatment and is still going.

Well it hasn't failed yet so presumably you still have a fully functioning back wheel, and can perhaps cross the bridge when you get to it! As the PP suggests, applying some new lubrication may well prolong its life. In any case it's likely to give you a bit of warning in the way of horrible noises before it fails.

Phill wrote: ↑9 Feb 2024, 3:49pm My current hub is a Shimano 105 (in a Mavic Open Pro wheel) and the part number I was given that needs replacing is y-32x 98040. Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.

Have you got a photo of the freehub ? and how many gears are on it?

As others have said it probably just needs lubed. Before I made the tool to dismantle them and grease them properly, I used to just drop the whole thing in some oil and leave overnight, the hub would be fine for the rest of the winter.

They always seem to give bother in cold weather, I guess the lube inside just becomes too viscous, and theres a thought, just heat it up with a hot air gun until its quite warm (50c) that may gets its juices moving.

I've had a quick search for the freehub on the Shimano website:
https://si.shimano.com/en/manual/search ... -32x,98040

The rear hubs that use freewheel body part number Y-32X 98040 are 105 FH-5501 & FH-5500, Sora FH-3300 & FH-3300-B, and Tiagra FH-4400. Their EVs show nothing on interchangeability with any other freehubs.

I'm not sure if this helps though. I had a quick google for spares, there's some NOS on ebay but they're not cheap.

A hand built 105 hubbed rear wheel is under £150 from Spa. Not exactly expensive considering the cost of parts and the work that goes into building the wheel.

Mostly for my own interest, I looked again to see if there was any interchangeability between the FH-5501 freehub body (part no. Y-32X 98040) with later freehubs. Sometimes there can be some backward compatibility in later components, that won't be evident in the interchangeability chart on the exploded view (EV) for the particular component one is interested in.

I did find that the FH-5600 freehub was a type A match (i.e. same part) for the FH-5501 freehub. Interestingly the part number for the FH-5600 freehub body is Y-3CJ 98070, yet the EV claims it to be the same part as the FH-5501 freehub part Y-32X 98040. The FH-6600 freehub body is a type B match (part no. Y-3C9 98050) for the FH-5600 freehub body (and presumably also for the FH-5501 freehub).

Here are links to the relevant EVs
https://si.shimano.com/en/pdfs/ev/FH-55 ... 1-2170.pdf
https://si.shimano.com/en/pdfs/ev/FH-56 ... -2458C.pdf
https://si.shimano.com/en/pdfs/ev/FH-66 ... -2348A.pdf

I mention this here mainly for completeness, but also because I saw a couple of FH-5600 freehubs on eBay.

That freehub body will be designed to be used with a specific rear right lock nut unit. The latter will include an appropriate cone and seal to match the cup and dimensions of the freehub. I **think** that the 10 spline hub shell interface of that freehub body is the same as many other 8/9/10 speed Shimano freehubs, e.g. see https://www.sheldonbrown.com/shimano-ca ... odies.html.

Therefore in your shoes I would probably buy a Shimano quick release MTB freehub with an 8/9/10 speed freehub body, e.g. https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m20b0s117p1 ... ub-FH-T610, and see if I could transplant its freehub body to your wheel. If it fitted, then similarly transplant the matching rear right lock nut unit. I am not certain that this would work, but I think it could be worth trying, providing the non-drive side bearing surfaces are not badly worn and approaching the end of their life.

NB You have not said what exactly is wrong with the existing freehub. Shimano do not provide instructions on how to do so, but it is possible to dismantle feehub bodies to service them, although the scope to actually replace any damaged/worn parts would probably be limited to generic items, e.g. the ball bearings.

There is more interchangeability between freehub bodies than Shimano claim. The trouble is finding out what works and what doesn't. Generally the freehub lasts so many years before going bad that the official spare part will have long been deleted from catalogues.

Steve wrote: ↑9 Feb 2024, 6:27pm Well it hasn't failed yet so presumably you still have a fully functioning back wheel, and can perhaps cross the bridge when you get to it! As the PP suggests, applying some new lubrication may well prolong its life. In any case it's likely to give you a bit of warning in the way of horrible noises before it fails.

Mixing oil & grease is a bad thing to do, it makes an efficient cutting compound, it won't do any thing for your bearings,
If you do want to oil the freehub , strip out all the grease , then oil.
But, I would counsel against such actions, grease is the better option.

Like someone else said upthread ,your better off with a new wheel, it might not match what you have on the front, but in my opinion, is get a new freehub and have it rebuilt into the current rim ,if it's in good nick. But rims wear out too, that's the dilemma.

When the freehub on my C201 hub packed up, SJSC wanted £22 for a new one, so I bought two new Deore hubs, front & rear for £17 from Roseversand.

I might actually have the same 105 hub on a wheel that the rim is no good but the freehub body and the axle/bearings are in decent nick.

Hi SwiftyDoesIt,
Would you be prepared to sell me the hub/free hub?
Phill

Phill wrote: ↑12 Feb 2024, 5:19pm Hi SwiftyDoesIt,
Would you be prepared to sell me the hub/free hub?
Phill

Sorry to get your hopes up, it's an FH-1056, with the older 8 (9 and 10) speed Hyperglide/Uniglide hybrid freehub, I thought it was a 5501
The part number for it is 3-31D98010 according to this NOS https://deadrats.co.uk/product/shimano- ... d98010-nos but also Y31D98060 for the 1056 C type

Ok. No problem SwiftyDoesIt