# Which Coaster Brake Hub Is Your Favorite?



## BASHER76 (Feb 25, 2016)

.


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## rhenning (Feb 25, 2016)

The one in the bike I am riding at the moment.  Roger


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## rustjunkie (Feb 25, 2016)

Out of these I'd vote for Komet. Roller-clutch, brass brake shoe, super smooth rollers on German steel bearing surfaces.


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## fordmike65 (Feb 25, 2016)

You should probably add Morrow for the Schwinn guys


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## rustjunkie (Feb 25, 2016)

But that's a "coast-or-break" though, Mike!


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## THE STIG (Feb 25, 2016)

fordmike65 said:


> You should probably add Morrow for the Schwinn guys



 use a trash can icon


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## BASHER76 (Feb 25, 2016)

fordmike65 said:


> You should probably add Morrow for the Schwinn guys




I knew I was forgetting one major one! my favorite is a New Departure model D. Easy to rebuild and they have great braking power.


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## Obi-Wan Schwinnobi (Feb 25, 2016)

fordmike65 said:


> You should probably add Morrow for the Schwinn guys



They came on other brands too home skillet.... 

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk


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## Obi-Wan Schwinnobi (Feb 25, 2016)

I love morrow..... the thing is with Morrow, is that you need to have half a brain to know how to work on them. Think cave man fine tuning a Swiss watch is why many don't like them...krog no like square peg not go round hole.... Krog get new departure :* 
Plus, I've never had a morrow squeal like a pig boy when braking. ....

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## cyclingday (Feb 25, 2016)

Interesting info, Scott.
 I had a 1960 Schwinn Tornado that was the cheapest bike in their lineup, but it rode like a champ.
 I always figured, that Komet hub had to be one of the least expensive hubs available at the time to be spec'd on that bike, but it was one of the smoothest rolling hubs I've ever ridden.
The whole bike only cost $27.00 dollars brand new, so that hub must have only been a couple of bucks at the most.
The Komet would get my vote, except I've had way more experience with the tried and true New Departure, and the replacement parts are plentiful.
So for me, It's the New Departure Model D all the way. plus you can convert to a two or triple speed if you like. How can you beat that ?


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## THE STIG (Feb 25, 2016)

Obi-Wan Schwinnobi said:


> pig boy when breaking. ....
> 
> Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk



that would be Braking on a ND.....  Breaking is for Morrow


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## Obi-Wan Schwinnobi (Feb 25, 2016)

THE STIG said:


> that would be Braking on a ND.....  Breaking is for Morrow [emoji14]



Auto correct... but thanks for the spelling lesson.... definitely more people on here that need help with that then me lol

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## cyclingday (Feb 25, 2016)

Don't forget to vote, Jason.
 Morrow is posting a goose egg at the moment.


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## Obi-Wan Schwinnobi (Feb 25, 2016)

cyclingday said:


> Don't forget to vote, Jason.
> Morrow is posting a goose egg at the moment.



Meh....give it time 

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## rustjunkie (Feb 25, 2016)

No hard feelings I hope, it's all in good fun 
Here's how I see it:
The Morrow and musselman have the "flaw" of a non-renewable braking surface.
Musselman is wonderfully simple but getting the braking right can be tricky.
Morrow is heavier, has an overly complicated design that produces no measurable benefit,
and has the inherent longer throw from brake to drive that some find disconcerting.
The Model D is lightweight, not complicated, all of the braking comes from easily replaced parts, not the hub shell itself.
All of the wear problems I've seen with the D have come from incorrect or insufficient service. The squealing brake is a problem that can be solved.
To me the Morrow is beautiful, Musselman elegant, but New Departure won the race fair and square.


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## bikewhorder (Feb 25, 2016)

I like the ND Model A but that's based purely on exterior aesthetics,  I've never taken one apart, or even ridden a bike with one for that matter. I just think they're purdy. Its what's on the outside that counts right?


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## 37fleetwood (Feb 25, 2016)

Huffman tended to favor Morrow, as Jason mentioned, others used Morrow.
a well maintained Morrow is a wonder to ride. I've converted a few people to Huffman, but the real credit might belong to a well adjusted Morrow out back.


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## Jeff54 (Feb 26, 2016)

Has to call out the Bendix because, Back in the day, 60-70's, building coaster brake bikes, Bendix brakes were the easiest to rebuild and, or, for the most part, never needed rebuilding just a good cleaning. Tough, durable and simple always gets my vote.

The greater of the competition then, 60-70's  was NP, and in comparison, it was crap!


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## bricycle (Feb 26, 2016)

..back end of a car always stopped me pretty well. :eek:


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## bairdco (Feb 26, 2016)

I love Musselman hubs. They look awesome with those cooling fins, and every one I've had stops perfectly.

ND hubs are ok. Had some that worked good, some that worked lousy, but never had one I'd trust bombing hills all day.

Bendix are the go-to, cheap hub that usually works great. The red bands are usually trouble-free and go forever without servicing. The 70's mexico versions I'm not a big fan of. I had a couple of them where the pressed on spoke flanges un-pressed themselves and my wheels exploded. This was on first generation bmx bikes.

Had a few Fichtel Sachs hubs. Komet, torpedo boys, super komets... these usually work good,  but had a few where after braking, would freewheel forward 180° or more before engaging into gear again. One was an NOS komet and no matter what I tried, it was never rideable. I've also had the brake cone that holds the arm chip chunks off, causing the arm to flop around.

Perry hubs and the Mark IV that schwinn used were ok, but I've toasted them going down big hills.

Early Suntour hubs (70's-80's) worked great, but when they switched to suntour.com hubs they were junk.

Newer Shimano hubs (CB E-110) work great, the best were the 70's Shimano BMX hubs (which was the same as the CB D-110)

All chinese hubs, KT, Falcon, Hi-stop, etc are absolute garbage.  They creak when new, and break shortly after.

Best coaster brake hub on the planet is the Durex hub, made in Germany in the 50's. The brake shoes are 3 times the size of any hub, and were used on mopeds and tandems. 

Excellent braking, perfect modulation, and like everything else the germans built, simple and indestructible. I have a 135mm on my DX klunker...


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## bairdco (Feb 26, 2016)

Here's my Durex. Like the condom of the same name, it never fails...


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## fordmike65 (Feb 26, 2016)

I've found that the Corbin on my '02 Napoleon has proven to be quite exciting when someone pulls out in front of you unexpectedly:eek:


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## rustjunkie (Feb 26, 2016)

Not the greatest hub for Monrovia


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## BASHER76 (Feb 26, 2016)

cyclingday said:


> Interesting info, Scott.
> I had a 1960 Schwinn Tornado that was the cheapest bike in their lineup, but it rode like a champ.
> I always figured, that Komet hub had to be one of the least expensive hubs available at the time to be spec'd on that bike, but it was one of the smoothest rolling hubs I've ever ridden.
> The whole bike only cost $27.00 dollars brand new, so that hub must have only been a couple of bucks at the most.
> ...





How does one simply convert a ND model D into a 2 or 3 speed?


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## catfish (Feb 26, 2016)

New Departure !!!!!!!!!!!


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## cyclingday (Feb 26, 2016)

BASHER76 said:


> How does one simply convert a ND model D into a 2 or 3 speed?



In 1938 New Departure issued a conversion kit that could be fitted to a standard model D coaster brake hub, and in 1950 they one upped that little gem by issuing a similar conversion kit that boosted the standard model D to a triplspeed.


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## morton (Feb 27, 2016)

Bendix every time.  Cinch to rebuild, parts easy  to find,  and they work well!

New Departure, ugh!  24 or 26 or 28 stupid little discs(I forget how many) and you better get em in the right order.  Gotta clean each one, and must be shaken not stirred ....forgot, wrong subject.......oiled not greased.....all for marginal stopping power....Rube Goldberg would be proud.

Not on the list, but I've done later models are Shimanos (70's-80's I believe) and they work well and are an easy rebuild.

Don't have enough experience with the others to comment.


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## Intense One (Feb 27, 2016)

bikewhorder said:


> I like the ND Model A but that's based purely on exterior aesthetics,  I've never taken one apart, or even ridden a bike with one for that matter. I just think they're purdy. Its what's on the outside that counts right?



The innerds are a might purdy, too.......purdy simple!


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## Intense One (Feb 27, 2016)

morton said:


> Bendix every time.  Cinch to rebuild, parts easy  to find,  and they work well!
> 
> New Departure, ugh!  24 or 26 or 28 stupid little discs(I forget how many) and you better get em in the right order.  Gotta clean each one, and must be shaken not stirred ....forgot, wrong subject.......oiled not greased.....all for marginal stopping power....Rube Goldberg would be proud.
> 
> ...



First time I pulled open a Model D I wasn't careful and things started coming out of from where they belonged....I remember the different discs, some round centers, some D shaped....figured the rounds stayed together with other rounds and the D's to themselves until........I found the hub didn't brake.   I found a schematic of the New Departure Midel D on line.....oops ....didn't quite look like the way I re-assembled mine...well, a little re-assembling and poof...that bad boy worked again....so proud!   so relieved!


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