Hope Pro 4 Rear Disc Hub 28H QR 135mm Black: Customer Review

Like most things on a bike, there are a lot of forces being put on the components on any given ride. The hubs are one of the key pieces that are expected to work without breaking down, while still being able to take a hard beating on a ride. Check out Chris Maiorano's review on his Hope Pro 4 rear hub below.

Overview

At the time of review, I got 15 miles of rocky and rooty New England trail with about 60 miles of dry Tahoe area riding on this new Hope hub so far. My other rear hubs for comparison include DT Swiss 350 and 240 hubs with 54T upgrades both of which I have many miles on. I also recently demoed another 50 miles in Tahoe with the Reynolds rear hub made by Industry Nine. The 240 hub with the 54T upgrade and the Reynolds/Industry Nine have a similar smooth feel to them, as does the 350. The 350 has a standout feel at the point of engagement. A very solid and in my opinion, a satisfying engagement that feels indestructible to me.

The Hope hub has a different feel to it. Not as silky smooth as the others, but I don’t mean that in a bad way. It’s as if my feet can feel the gears of the hub turning as I pedal. I liken it driving a stick shift automobile, you can feel the engine in your hand through the stick which makes the driver feel a little more connected to the vehicle compared to an automatic transmission. That’s what I get from this hub. Engagement is good. All of the mentioned hubs engage really well in my opinion and it is never something I think about when I ride which leads me to believe that for my riding (mostly technical terrain where engagement can really make a difference), the engagement differences are fairly negligible to feel.

Final Thoughts

Now consider the Hope comes at a substantial discount to the others, which was why I ultimately chose it for this wheel build. To me, it’s the best value on the list. Plus they come in an array of colors, they are easy to convert, and they have a reputation for low-maintenance reliability, like DT Swiss which is very important to me.