Opinions/experience with Quando hubs? Relacing prices?

[CanAmSteve]

There seem to be lots of inexpensive Quando-hubbed replacement wheels around these days. Cheep and cheerful or trouble? I've purchased a few pair but try and find Shimano in the belief their hubs are better. My Quandos tend to come needing grease and adjustment. One bolt-on 27" wheel had a strange (to me anyway) wheel nut (IIRC, 10mm extra-fine, with 14mm flats). I swapped in another axle.

The people selling Quand say they have no more problems/returns than others, but then they would, wouldn't they? I don't expect these to be bulletproof, but for a casually-ridden bike (the more you have the less you ride any one) they seem to work and look OK.

I'm not quite to the point of relacing wheels myself. What sort of price can I expect for a straight wheel rebuild with new SS spokes?

 

[Joe of Loath]

Never used one myself, but if you want to upgrade, replace the whole wheel. It's not worth relacing a cheap rim with new hub and spokes.

 

[rienster]

I got a rear wheel from a friend when my old one gave up. The Quando hub worked fine for a few years and hasn't given up yet. Its a bit heavy I believe, but nothing unusual for its price. Runs a bit gritty now, but so would a deore hub after the same abuse.
I agree with the previous post though, wouldn't start relacing an old wheel with these.

 

[CanAmSteve]

Sorry - I was thinking of having the old wheels relaced to get rid of the old corroded spokes. But It's probably not cost-effective unless I do it myself.

 

[Joe of Loath]

Even then it's not cost effective unless the rim is really nice.

 

[Jonny69]

I got a set of budget 27's with Quando hubs. They haven't done a million miles but they've never been a problem. As Joe says though, it's cheaper to buy a whole wheelset than it is to pay to have your existing ones re-laced. Unless you have rims or hubs that are specifically worth keeping, it's not work it. That said, a set of spokes and a spoke key is even less and there's a guide how to lace wheels on Sheldon Brown if you want to have a go. I've built a few sets using that guide

http://sheldonbrown.com/wheelbuild.html

A set of eBay straight stainless spokes is about £12-16. I think double-butted ones from Cycle Basket (by far the cheapest - and nice spokes) work out about £25 with the postage. It's a couple of hours work even for an experienced bike shop, so that's where the cost is.

On the sizing of hub axles - there are a few sizes around. Some of my older nutted front wheels have had a nut slightly bigger than a 13mm but too small for a 14mm spanner. It was a Whitworth size (3/8" Whitworth maybe?). Also, the axle on my metric size track hubs (15mm nuts) is too big for two sets of my forks (70's bikes) and I had to file slight flats on either sides of the threads to get them to fit. I've found bearing locking nuts have been all sorts of sizes, so I just made sure my bearing adjustment spanners are double-ended and cover a range of sizes.

 

[CanAmSteve]

Educate me on how to choose the correct spokes? Looking at my existing wheels, there seems an endless variety. I suppose I could replace one at a time, then if not true enough ask an LBS to do the final work?

 

[Joe of Loath]

You have to use a spoke calculator. There are loads online, some have databases of hubs and rims. This is my favourite http://leonard.io/edd/

Seriously though, for the price of a new hub and new spokes (plus any labour) you'll be well over the price of a new wheel which has the same hub and spokes but a better rim. You can get a Shimano R500 for £50 or so.

 

[velomaniac]

Quando hubs do everything the shimano hubs they've copied do just at a heavier lower build quality level. I have loads of quando hubs and never had a squeak of bother from any of them.

 

[Spokesmann]

I have them on my Mauve Carlton Corsa - trouble free and attractive. Do the job.