Hubs

BMX race hubs: the heart of the wheel, front and rear

The hub carries the wheel on its axle and, at the rear, puts everything the rider feeds into the cranks onto the track. Three figures settle the choice before anything else: axle diameter, drilling and, at the rear, the type of freehub body. Shell material, bearings and finish are questions of price level.

Front hub and rear hub: two different jobs

The front hub sees no drive torque: what counts there is low weight and bearings that keep spinning season after season. The rear hub takes every acceleration out of the gate, so it has to resist torque and engage quickly. Two families share the market: pawl hubs, where the number of engagement points sets the dead angle at the pedals, and silent clutch hubs such as Onyx, with near-instant engagement and no freewheel noise at all.

10, 15 and 20 mm axles: how to choose

• 10 mm axle: the historic standard, fitted to most frames and forks, front and rear.
• 15 mm axle: the in-between format, mainly at the front on recent forks.
• 20 mm axle: the oversize through axle, the stiffest of the three, reserved for forks and dropouts built for it.

This is not a matter of taste: the bike dictates it. Measure the fork opening and the rear dropouts before ordering, or use a reducer when the build allows one.

28H or 36H, freewheel or cassette

A 28H drilling takes weight out of the wheel and suits lighter riders, from Mini to Expert. 36H remains the safe answer for heavier riders, the Pro classes and Cruiser. Hub and rim must share the same drilling, no exception. At the rear, a freewheel hub takes a threaded freewheel, a cassette hub takes a cassette driver with a separate sprocket — lighter and available in smaller tooth counts, but specific to the hub brand.

Compatibility to check before ordering

• Frame and fork: axle diameter and over-locknut width (100 mm at the front, 110 mm at the rear on 20").
• Braking: an IS 6-bolt or Centerlock disc mount if you run disc, a plain shell for V-brake.
• Rim: identical drilling, and spoke lengths recalculated as soon as the flanges change.
• Wheel build: any hub change means checking your BMX spokes and your rims again.

The hub brands we stock

Onyx is the reference for instant, silent engagement. Pride covers the whole spectrum, from the training hub to the race hub. ICE is a French manufacturer well placed on disc builds. Forward and SD Components offer light, stiff hubs widely used in Expert and Pro. Excess and Box Components hold the entry and mid range. Being multi-brand means we can compare real over-locknut widths and driver bodies, which are not interchangeable from one brand to the next.

Care and service life

A hub is maintained mainly through its bearings: side play, a rasping noise or a rotation that catches all call for replacement. After a wet season or muddy tracks, strip, clean and regrease rather than wait for a seizure. The shell itself lasts for years provided the bearings are changed in time.

The BMX RACING advice

Tell us your frame brand, your fork and your braking system: we confirm axle diameter and drilling before you buy, and work out spoke lengths if you are building the wheel yourself. Dispatched within 24 to 72 hours, you can spread the cost over 2 or 3 payments.