XD Freehub Diagnosis & Compatibility Questions

SLug

Well-Known Member
I recently bought a beautiful second-hand Pivot Les with a Stan’s Neo Wheelset (boost 148). It appeared to be immaculately maintained, so I thought I’d try and ruin it by cleaning and lubing the freehub body before a race weekend for my son (it’s his bike). Taking it to the shop is always an option, but I really like to tinker and understand the mechanics of things I use a lot and speaking with people (especially in person) is a struggle and very challenging/exhausting for me. Here’s the issue:

I removed, cleaned with brake cleaner, and lubed the freehub body with Dumonde freehub oil; cleaned and LIGHTLY (Parktool) greased the axle wiped the spacers and inside of the hub, but didn’t use brake cleaner. Finally, added parktool anti-seize compound to the freehub body threads before carefully reinstalling with the pawls/leaf springs intact. When I shifted to the smallest cog after it was reinstalled, I found out that the spacers I reinstalled were in the wrong order. I removed everything and figured out the correct order for the spacers. When installed again, it was shifting perfectly, the brake rotor didn’t rub the pads in the caliper, and the wheel turned for a couple of minutes before stopping. Everything seemed good.

The result:
IMG_5675.jpeg


We made it through race weekend without an issue, but our last time out, the hub didn’t engage and a couple of pawls fell out.

My diagnosis is that I should have used A LOT more grease on the axle. It was, basically, frozen to the inside of the bearing case of the freehub. Does that diagnosis seem correct?

Now I have to replace it, but this model is no longer made. There is a compatible replacement, Stan’s e-sync, but I would like to have options. Here are my compatibility questions I had a difficult time finding answers for on the forum and google:

  • Are all XD (not XDR) freehub bodies/bearings the same size/dimensions, no matter the brand?
    • If so, are they all interchangeable?
  • How much of a difference does the amount of pawls make?
  • Does the angle of the pawls make a big difference? The angle of the pawls on the Stan’s e-sync is 8.18 degrees, but I didn’t see it for the Neo XD driver.
 
Last edited:
I recently bought a beautiful second-hand Pivot Les with a Stan’s Neo Wheelset (boost 148). It appeared to be immaculately maintained, so I thought I’d try and ruin it by cleaning and lubing the freehub body before a race weekend for my son (it’s his bike). Taking it to the shop is always an option, but I really like to tinker and understand the mechanics of things I use a lot and speaking with people (especially in person) is a struggle and very challenging/exhausting for me. Here’s the issue:

I removed, cleaned with brake cleaner, and lubed the freehub body with Dumonde freehub oil; cleaned and LIGHTLY (Parktool) greased the axle wiped the spacers and inside of the hub, but didn’t use brake cleaner. Finally, added parktool anti-seize compound to the freehub body threads before carefully reinstalling with the pawls/leaf springs intact. When I shifted to the smallest cog after it was reinstalled, I found out that the spacers I reinstalled were in the wrong order. I removed everything and figured out the correct order for the spacers. When installed again, it was shifting perfectly, the brake rotor didn’t rub the pads in the caliper, and the wheel turned for a couple of minutes before stopping. Everything seemed good.

The result:
View attachment 251685

We made it through race weekend without an issue, but our last time out, the hub didn’t engage and a couple of pawls fell out.

My diagnosis is that I should have used A LOT more grease on the axle. It was, basically, frozen to the inside of the bearing case of the freehub. Does that diagnosis seem correct?

Now I have to replace it, but this model is no longer made. There is a compatible replacement, Stan’s e-sync, but I would like to have options. Here are my compatibility questions I had a difficult time finding answers for on the forum and google:

  • Are all XD (not XDR) freehub bodies/bearings the same size/dimensions, no matter the brand?
    • If so, are they all interchangeable?
  • How much of a difference does the amount of pawls make?
  • Does the angle of the pawls make a big difference? The angle of the pawls on the Stan’s e-sync is 8.18 degrees, but I didn’t see it for the Neo XD driver.
No, all XD driver are not compatible.

The amount if pawls increase the engagement, less degrees rotation before the pawls catch the teeth.

Pawls and the ring with the teeth are designes together. You may get another brand that fits but it may not wear well
 
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