It’s hard to say where our Gen 4 hubs will fit in the pantheon of other great generations, like the Greatest Generation who fought in World War II or Star Trek: The Next Generation (sure at first you were like Jean-Luc Picard is no James T Kirk, but eventually you were like, nah, for sure he is though).
The point is really just that we have a new hub system.
This new hub system's main changes are universalized drivers and axles. This is not a performance-based evolution. You don’t have to panic that you need to upgrade all your stuff in order to get faster than you are now. With Gen 4 hubs you will continue to need to ride harder to get faster.
The unique features that make our hubs ours remain the same. King’s signature bearings and RingDrive™ system are integral to Gen 4, but these hubs make service and upgrades easier and less expensive, with the intention of lowering the overall cost of ownership and increasing the useful life of each hub.
King hubs have changed a lot over the last few decades. We were doing good stuff like reducing drag and improving engagement, but we were also chasing new hub standards from Shimano and SRAM. Gen 4 is really just a consolidation of all those gains with a fresh perspective on how to make more of the parts cross compatible, easily swappable, and less expensive both to make and to replace.
Specific improvements with Gen 4 include:
- Brand new driver/axle system
- Improved compatibility/ease of changing Driveshell types
- Lower-priced conversion kits
- Better XDR user experience with threaded Driveshell end cap
- Easier assembly and disassembly (no axle wedge)
- Simpler preload adjustment (no spacer spring to compress)
- More versatility due to universal axle and internal parts
- More cross-compatibility due to common bearing sizes
- Backwards compatibility with previous generations of King hubs
- Gen 4 R45D hubs utilize an updated adjusting clamp that allows for disc removal without the need to remove the adjusting clamp.
Basically, we took our Boost CenterLock/6-Bolt, R45D and R45 hubs and collapsed the specs into a design that allows for a universal axle and internal parts. Once outfitted with the Gen 4 system, transitioning to different drive systems will cost just $80. This represents a significant reduction compared to our previous conversion kits priced at $380 in 2023.
