Originally Posted by
DannoXYZ
Replacement cones aren't a problem if you have one of these.
Simply put, no.
The absolute one place on a bike that requires heat treatment is cones. Being able to machine cones without heat treatment isn't really a solution. Cones that work through the thin layer of heat treated metal (thousands of an inch usually on Campy cones anyway) quickly degrade through the "death spiral." No matter how many times you replace the outer cone or put in new ball bearings, the inner race will transfer the marring, scoring, and roughness to the new balls and then to the new cone, which will all in turn continue to wear and destroy the inner race.
Cone/loose bearings on bicycle hubs are just a bad design that has everything to do with manufacturing efficiencies and economies of production, and nothing to do with being good kit. Any hub that needs a replacement outer cone on it, almost by definition has such a marred, scored and damaged inner race that machining a new outer cone and putting new balls in it is almost pointless. Polishing out the inner race doesn't do anything but make the tolerances more sloppy, and removes more of the thin remaining heat treatment remaining on the race (if any).