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I've recently noticed that my front hub is bent, or at least the parts that connect to the fork (any name for this?). It's not a huge bent, but it's clearly visible with your eyes.

It fits the fork without any problem, but I'm wondering if I should keep these, or if that may damage my fork somehow (as a fork is probably more expensive than hubs...)

See the highlighted part in the picture? That's the bent part. It seems to be bent through the whole length of the hub, not only the external part. Actually, when I rotate the wheel, I can see this part moving from side to side.

Illustration of the damaged part

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    Are you referring to the axle? Oct 22, 2013 at 16:44
  • Probably yes :-)
    – Antoine
    Oct 22, 2013 at 17:37
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    Can you post a picture?
    – jimchristie
    Oct 22, 2013 at 18:11
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    If the axle is bent, the fork would only be my second concern, right after my teeth. Bent axles might have (miniature) cracks that might lead to catastrophic failure, i.e. biting the handlebar. Axles are quite cheap and easily replaced on most hubs, so why risk it?
    – arne
    Oct 23, 2013 at 4:39
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    Yes, that's an axle. Oct 23, 2013 at 9:09

1 Answer 1

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The part you've circled is called the axle, even if it is not solid, and if it's bent you need to replace the axle, or the hub, or the whole wheel, whatever is cheapest. It can likely cause minor damage to your fork, but more importantly, if it's bent then it can fail- potentially in a catastrophic manner. Get it fixed, cheap insurance.

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