how long to run hubs

[37mod]

I have Wilwood starlite 55 hubs on the front and rear. I bought them used and have ran them for 3 years with no problems. How long does everyone recommend running before replacing them?

[TALON75]

I don't think there is a standard time for replacement . It would obviously depend on how hard they have been used, how many races are on them, how many wheel hits have been taken ect... Now if you race 50+ races a year then I would say it would be wise to replace them, and keep them for spares if needed, if you race 20 races or less I would say you could squeeze a bit more life out of them safely . A good thorough inspection would be a good idea .

[FlatTire]

I had some that had 75 races on them before I quit using them and there was nothing wrong with them.
I've bent one before, but never had one fail or heard of it.

[lovinlatemodels]

I have well over 100 races on a set of Winters, have had new bearings and races put in them twice over a 7 year period. So I guess you run them till you feel uncomfortable with them.

[hpmaster]

I agree with the above view. Like most everything in racing if you check them and feel comfortable with them run them. Hubs you can check pretty well if you take the time to. I am more worried about axle tubes with hidden cracks in the bells where the bolts went thru, but thats because I have broken an aluminum tube and flipped the car.

[DRTRCR22]

I have suffered rotor mount bosses break off when applying brakes hard during a race, which obviously put me out of the race and tore up a bunch of stuff, but never a wheel stud boss... so keep a close eye on the rotor bosses looking for any stress cracks (or loosening of bolts).

[shopteacher]

With a wheel hub there isn't really a standard time frame for replacement as they are not a wear item. I would check them closely each week for cracks, being especially careful to inspect around the rotor mounts and the connection points from the "arms" to the center of the hub. On the rear hubs it's a good idea to take off the drive flanges and check those periodically too, adding a little anti-sieze to the splines when you reinstall them. In six years of driving and over twenty of working on late models I never had an issue with a hub failing, but I have seen them break on other people's cars so I know it does happen. Just make sure that inspecting them weekly is part of your regular routine.....do it while you're bleeding the brakes and checking the rotor and caliper bolts......you're doing that weekly, right?

[Sprint76]

We were always told to use grease and not antiseize on the axle splines. The anti seize will wear the aluminum splines in the drive flange and grease won't.

[hucktyson]

Agreed , anti seize has metal in it and acts like sand paper between the aluminum flange and the steel axel ...

[hucktyson]

I've never seen an aluminum hub break ... On the other hand I have seen tons of mag hubs with cracked ears mostly from having lug holes too tight and the wheel going on at an angle and getting pulled straight with the lug nuts

[37mod]

Thank you for the replies. Now, I currently run the good tapered bearings with spacers are the angular contact ball bearings or ceramic bearings better or just a gimic to get my money?

[Lizardracing]

My opinion says that spending the extra money on tires or shocks or a driving class will net you more than ceramic bearings.