Tom,
MAVIC 501s and their variations are one of my favorite hubsets ever. I have three of them in racing wheelsets: one each for mountain, road and cyclocross. I weigh around 180 and have never broken an axle in one. As racing wheelsets, they see relatively limited use, but the use they get is hard. That said, my frames are all steel and not particularly stiff, which probably helps.
I think they are fine for off-road. I can't say whether they would be ok for loaded touring, especially off-road. That might be pushing it.
Since the axles are aluminum, alignment of the dropout faces is key to longevity. Make sure they are square and stay that way.
Greg Reiche CyclArt Vista, CA USA
-----Original Message----- From: classicrendezvous-bounces@bikelist.org [mailto:classicrendezvous-bounces@bikelist.org]On Behalf Of Tom Dalton Sent: Wednesday, February 20, 2008 11:29 AM To: Classic Rendezvous Subject: [CR]Mavic 501 hubs question
Do these hubs have strong axles? I'm considering using a 501 rear hub on a set of wheels I plan to build. These wheels will get a little bit of offroad use, and a small protion of that use might see the bike loaded with panniers. I think a casette hub would really be the way to go, but I'm considering keeping it old school (and avoiding buying more crap) by using a Mavic hub I bought for $5 at a swap meet.
I imagine that these axles are not up to Phil Wood or Maxicar standards, or whatever, but I'm wondering if they are significantly better than Campy... which do tend to break when used for 6 or 7 speed spacing.
Tom Dalton Bethlehem, PA USA
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