Originally Posted by
cyccommute
... there are far better hubs out there than Shimano. The cup and cones of the Shimano means that the hubs need regular and rather frequent maintenance. They also need to be adjusted properly to roll smoothly and that they can go out of adjustment rather easily if not properly assembled. A cartridge bearing hub similar to the Aksium's bearings don't have to be serviced as often...if ever...and in my experience roll much more smoothly than the Shimano hubs. The best ones I've run across in terms of smoothness is any of the White Industries hubs. The MI5 or T11 are excellent choices. The T11 has a slightly higher flange on the driveside which allows for shorter spokes where you need them. As an added bonus both come with titanium freehub bodies which significantly reduce the wheel weight...
Cartridge bearings are great, but make maintenance, even if it is less frequent, less user-friendly. Cup-and-cone are generations old and can be rebuilt with two tools and (if necessary) no extra parts. If the cones wear out, they are available as replacements, if the hub needs adjusting, it is designed to facilitate that.
Furthermore, Shimano freehub bodies are available as a relatively low-cost replacement if they do go bad years down the road. And since they are steel, rather than Ti, they are generally stronger to begin with.