It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost five years since Project 321 launched their magnetic drive system at NAHBS. Now, that clever magnetic pawl system has found a new home—in the shells of Stan’s new M-Pulse hubs. Developed to eliminate freehub drag while coasting, Stan’s is completely invested in the idea and will offer it on almost all of their mid to high-level products.
You may be asking yourself, “OK, magnets. But how do they work?” Instead of a traditional pawl spring design, where tiny springs physically push the individual pawls into the engagement ring, these hubs use magnetic pawls. The six hardened steel pawls are fitted with neodymium rare earth magnets which pull the pawls into the hardened steel drivering rather than push.
Both Project 321 and Stan’s point out that this provides the system a unique advantage over traditional springs. The magnetic force on the pawls gets stronger as they get closer to the drivering and weaker as they coast, which helps to reduce drag. On the flip side, traditional spings are weakest when they’re extended, pushing against the drivering, but stronger when compressed. Because of this, Project 321 and Stan’s claim that this system offers a significant reduction in drag and friction with reliable engagement.
And at 216 points of engagement which works out to 1.66° of rotation, they’re very quick to engage as well. Those who are familiar with the Project 321 system may notice that Stan’s isn’t offering a ‘quiet version’ of the pawls. Instead, they’re sticking with the louder versions which offer more teeth on each pawl for more secure engagement with the drivering.
Rather than the typical press-fit end caps, Stan’s has chosen an adjustable preload system with a burly 17mm 7075 aluminum axle with custom-filled Enduro bearings. Extensive testing resulted in a double-row main freehub bearing which was found to offer more durability, and all bearings are shielded, keeping all of the bearing seals hidden from the elements.
For the Stan’s M-Pulse hub build, all freehub body shells, magnetic pawls, ratchet rings, spacers, and axles are manufactured in Bend, Oregon at Project321’s CNC shop. The hubs are then assembled in Big Flats, New York at Stan’s headquarters using Asian-made hub shells. The result is a high-quality hub with US-Made guts and a 5-year warranty from Stan’s.
