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2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs set new benchmark for lighter, stronger road & MTB wheels with Ratchet EXP internals

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement
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Benchmark DT Swiss 240s hubs get a major performance boost thanks to revised Ratchet EXP construction resulting in a new lighter, stiffer & more durable 240 hubset. Beyond the simplified Star Ratchet v2.0 mechanism with fewer parts and wider bearing placement inside, even the name is simpler dropping that vestigial s… Now simply DT Swiss 240, but with increased bearing life, less weight, decreased wear, and even improvements to its benchmark ease of maintenance….

DT Swiss 240 EXP overhauls core road & mountain bike hubs

While DT Swiss has grown from drawing spokes as early as the start of the 20th century, to making premium tubeless carbon road & trail wheels now – reliable high-performance hubs have been at the heart of the brand. And no hub has offered a better balance of premium quality, long-life & solid value than the 240s. Never cheap, now the new 240 gets the same performance improvements we saw debuted in the expensive DT 180 hubset last spring, just at more attainable price levels.

This is more than just saving money on expensive custom wheelbuilds. A large number of bike companies OEM spec 240-level hubs on their premium road, gravel, cross & mountain bikes. And just as many production carbon rim/wheel makers offer 240 hubs as a top performance option. So the overhaul of the 240 means a lot more cyclists are going to reap the performance & durability improvements brought by these latest DT Swiss hubs.

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement

One such example will be me, pretty soon… DT provided us with a set of the new hubs since we wouldn’t be seeing them this coming weekend due to a COVID-cancelled Riva del Garda BIKE fest. But not just hubs, we got a whole kit of parts – 30mm internal DT XM481 rims, DT Comp spokes, ProLock nipples & washers that we’ll build up over the coming days into a workhorse set of alloy Boost 29er trail bike wheels coming in around 1890g.

DT 240 Ratchet EXP details – just like the more expensive DT 180

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement

Remember last spring when DT Swiss took Star Ratchet parts out of their premium 180 hubs… going from 7 down to 5 ratchet components for the new Ratchet EXP? Those same improvements trickle down to 240, and it means lighter weight & improved durability again.

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement

The secret to DT’s Star Ratchet drive has always been the large surface area between the mating parts – much greater than any combination or number of pawls. Now, with one side of the Ratchet securely threaded into the hubshell, there is a more secure power transfer fully engaging the Ratchet ring that floats inside the freehub body. The result of the complete ratchet engagement area is lower surface pressures between the mating parts, which is why DT says their system delivers such long-term reliability. Plus, now the only sliding part is in the freehub… which can quickly, easily & cheaply be replaced when it eventually wears out.

240 EXP – Tech details & actual weights

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement

Like the 180, the new 240 hubs are simply lighter because of the overall reduction in the number of parts inside. Plus, the new alloy hubs shells simply get more precise machining to shed more grams. Less weight is always good, but at the center of the wheel you also get less unsprung mass, also helping handling & suspension performance.

So how much weight is saved? Likely almost 50g less on the front & another 30g off the rear, based on the official DT weight claims of the two generations – 240s vs. 240 EXP. Looking at the 240 EXP in classic MTB, the new front starts as low as 113g, and the rear from 208g for conventional lacing. Straight-pull MTB saves another 18g total, down 10g more than that for straight-pull road. (FYI, that’s about 20g heavier, but saving you ~325€ over a comparable 180 hubset.) For real world reference, our 240 EXP Classic MTB Boost hubs weigh 145g + 236g.

Maybe the biggest benefit to the new EXP hub configuration is it allows for wider placement of the bearings in the rear hub – moving the driveside bearing over ~7mm towards the dropout. Increased bearing spacing means improved rear wheel stiffness of around an extra 15%. Of note, the move from regular to Boost spacing only increased bearing separation by 6mm total, and since bearings were moved on both sides, it only actually move the driveside bearing 3mm away from center, closer to the dropout. So this update should give noticeably more stiffness improvements even than the move to Boost!

Plus, increased bearing spacing also means increased bearing life and less side loading on those bearings. So, 240 EXP promises to spin smoother, longer.

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement

Simplicity in the ratchet system also will decrease wear in addition to weight savings. Fewer parts, and especially the move to a single cylindrical spring so only one ratchet moves in and out to perfectly align its teeth, means that the two faces of the Star Ratchet should fully-engage more quickly. That means slightly quicker engagement, less wear between the ratchets & hub body, and overall improved reliability.

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement

And last but not least is DT Swiss’ long-held belief in simple tool-free maintenance. Simplifying parts inside means they should last longer, and outside of bearing themselves, regular wear items are accessible without tools. But even now that’s easier to manage thanks to a simple move to end caps featuring a notched end. With the notch, you can more easily pop off the thru-axles by hand (if you don’t want to use my nice, European-made Hub Genie). Just tug the end cap to access the bearings, or on the rear driveside to completely disassemble the new Ratchet EXP system.

DT Swiss 240 hubs – Pricing, options & availability

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement

Like the 240s before it, these new DT 240 hubs come in all the options a wheelbuilder could ever wish for – there were 66 different hub configurations in the catalog cuts we received.

Rim brakes get the fewest options, with just classic j-bend flanges, road widths, QR end caps, and the most common lightweight road wheel drilling.

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement

Disc brake hubs get plenty of options – in both road/gravel/cross & mountain variants. Pick 6-bolt IS or centerlock rotor mounting, non-boost, boost, or super-boost spacing, traditional j-bend flanges or straight pull, plus plenty of spoke drilling options, all the thru-axles, standard 36T ratchets (10° engagement) or the faster-engaging 54T upgrade option (6.7° engagement), then freehub body you can wish for (XD, XDR, HG, HG road SL, Micro Spline & Campy).

New 2020 DT Swiss 240 hubs, updated lighter stiffer more durable benchmark DT 240 road mountain bike hubset, with Ratchet EXP star ratchet engagement

To get a sense on pricing, new 240 mountain bike hubs retail from $221 / 150€ for the front and from $434 / 294€ for the rear, varying a bit depending on individual configurations. All new DT Swiss 240 EXP hubs should be available through regular DT distribution chains globally starting today. Happy wheel building!

DTSwiss.com

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c36c36
c36c36
3 years ago

Nothing on the Geometry? the DT have good internal, but their geometry us really behind and lead to flexier wheels than using some other options and that’s a major No-Go for whoever look into dynamic performance.
here a simple comparison and show how good a hub could be (taken from https://www.roues-rar.fr/en/content/33-rar-road-hubs-2018 )

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for Disc brakes (taken from https://www.roues-rar.fr/fr/content/45-moyeux-comparatif-freinage-disque?fbclid=IwAR3MMUvNS8YWVpHCDdCGNHRXbPViF_A6FauGwtEwao0HiOp_sSqTVnuBQhs)
comment image

Cheese
Cheese
3 years ago
Reply to  c36c36

And they’re not crafted by French artisans like the Rar hubs.

J'Anky Teal
J'Anky Teal
3 years ago
Reply to  c36c36

I’ll take decades worth of demonstrated reliability and interchangeable freehub bodies and endcaps over a marginal gain in wheel stiffness (which may or may not be beneficial). But the good news is that everyone can make their own decision.

c36c36
c36c36
3 years ago
Reply to  J'Anky Teal

Over the last 15 years I am on a bike I never had hubs problem, literally never, Shimano (std hubs and complete wheels), Campagnolo (complete wheels), Mavic (complete wheels), Corima (complete wheels), and DT (custom-wheels). obviously with different level of maintenance (shimano and campa or old Mavic free-wheel) but literally never had problems (if I had Zipp wheels ok I would have likely experimented some 🙂 ).

Wheel dynamics are something you “experiment” all along the ride, at each acceleration, day after day… I praise this more over ease of body swap (how often do you swap one?)

Daniel Reilly
3 years ago

Hi, any idea of the redesigned 240 hubs will be utilized in the GRC 1400 Spline 42 and CRC 1400 Spline 24 wheelsets? If so, is there a know release date for the updated wheels?

Vincent Laignel
Vincent Laignel
3 years ago
Reply to  Daniel Reilly

Not for the moment

Eggs Benedict
Eggs Benedict
3 years ago

They need to but larger inside corner radii at the diameter transitions on the hub shell/body.

Patrick
Patrick
3 years ago

This whole article reads like a paid advertisement for DT Swiss. ie. Super small benefits (actually less user friendly in some ways, such as needing a tool to remove the inner ratchet whereas before you could simply remove it by hand) made into “OMG, Hey guys! look how much better these new hubs are!” And this is coming from a person who has DT Swiss 240/350 hubs on 4 out of 5 bikes…

blahblah1233445
3 years ago
Reply to  Patrick

As long as I can get freehubs and ratchets for the current models, I’m fine with it. Just bought F/R set of 240s Spline for around 230€, so I’m happy. 🙂

RCSpeed
RCSpeed
3 years ago
Reply to  Patrick

Exactly.
So much for “tool free” maintenance as the drive side bearing will now need a 3ft extension to break the ratchet out of the hub after it has been torqued in the hub over time.
Weights are quite impressive but if I had option 1 of 20-40 extra grams and no tools to access bearings/mechanism or option 2 of needing an additional tool to for much less weight… I will take option 1 any day.

Tyler
Tyler
3 years ago

thicc flanges

Craig
Craig
3 years ago

These changes sound great. I’m looking forward to when they bring this down to the 350 series as thats where my budget sits. I’ve been unimpressed too with the excessively tight spoke hole tolerances of the 240 series and much prefer the 350 in this regard.

Jack
Jack
3 years ago
Reply to  Craig

A few weeks ago I asked DT directly on ig when we could expect to see a 350-level EXP hub, and they said that there aren’t plans for that seeing as how the 350’s are so cheap already.

Jörg Hippo Thomsen
3 years ago

The hubshell looks to be much cheaper made than the that of the outgoign 240 series.
Very small radii on the transitions, flanges not angled… It will be rather difficult to built strong wheels with these hubs I reckon.

Surface finish is also rather dull.

I am not a fan of the noise which comes with all star ratchet mechanisms either…

IF you want to go for DT Swiss, buy “old” ones at a bargain price.

Patrick Cavender
Patrick Cavender
3 years ago

Jörg, you probably already know this, but keeping DT Swiss Star Ratchet lubed, keeps the sound very low.

thesteve4761
thesteve4761
3 years ago

The new ring nut (drive ring) is easier to remove than the old. On the old hubs you had to remove the drive ring in order to remove the ds bearing on most versions. Option 1 never existed.

You still do not need tools to clean/lube the system, or to swap endcaps and freehubs.

andreadam101 (@andreadam101)

really wish DT would get better industrial design – that hub looks like a body in the raw with sharp transitions
that seem to invite stress cracks – looks unfinished – also graphics are pretty homely

Stephen McCloskey
Stephen McCloskey
3 years ago

Like the new matte finish. But it’s ridiculous that the 54t ratchets aren’t standard at $400+

theseus
theseus
3 years ago

so c36c36 – shall we assume all of your riding is done on the road?

GatorDaddy
GatorDaddy
3 years ago

It is nice to see the integration of one ratchet with the drive ring (every time I serviced 240s I wondered why they were it wasn’t configured like this anyways)

Have to agree with the other commentators about the decrease in finish quality in both machining work, and going with matte finish. Aluminum hubs with matte finish require a ridiculous amount of work to clean and never looked that neat to me.

Have the bracing angles improved? With the previous version, this was the 240s primary disadvantage.

Andy
Andy
2 years ago

I’m having issues with this new EXP systems, lost engagement happened during training rides and also during last 50km race, it eventually comes back, but I’m taking the bike for a warranty claim as this is the 3rd time since purchase the bike end of July

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