Chris King R45 Front Hub
There is a reason the Chris King R45 shows up on so many of the wheels we get asked to rebuild: people keep the hub and wear out everything around it.
The Chris King R45 Front Hub is the version we are describing on this page.
We sell the R45 only inside a wheel we build. Pick the rim, spokes and nipples in the configurator and the wheel ships from Georgia laced, tensioned and trued.
Design and construction
The bearing races are cut from heat-treated, surgical-grade steel, machined in pairs on matched tooling so the inner and outer races wear together, and King's bearings are famous for getting faster with age as the races burnish.
The flanges are canted, which points the spoke straight at the rim and makes for a stronger, more even build.
The R45 is a road and cyclocross hub. King makes separate MTB hubs with 72-point RingDrive for Boost spacing; do not put an R45 on a trail bike.
A front hub is a bearing carrier with flanges, and that is the whole job of the front R45: two sealed bearings on a stiff axle, end caps for your fork's standard, and flanges spaced to give the spokes a good bracing angle on the rotor side. There is nothing to engage and nothing to swap. Everything written about freehubs and engagement applies to the rear hub only; what you get up front is the same shell quality and the same seals without any of the moving parts.
How it rides
On the road it simply rolls. A properly adjusted R45 with burnished bearings is about as low-drag as a hub gets, and the preload adjuster lets us set it exactly.
Front wheels on disc bikes take a beating from braking: the rotor side sees the whole braking torque and the spokes on that side run at higher tension. That is why we build the front R45 with the rotor-side spokes crossed and tensioned to the rim's limit, and why the hub's flange spacing matters more than its weight. Ridden on a rim-brake bike the same hub makes one of the lightest, simplest front wheels there is.
Specifications
| Position | Front |
|---|---|
| Axle options | QR 5x100mm Front |
| Drillings | 28h, 32h |
| Spoke head | J-bend |
| Brake | rim-brake |
| Left flange diameter | 40 mm |
| Right flange diameter | 40 mm |
| Left center-to-flange | 35 mm |
| Right center-to-flange | 35 mm |
| Spoke hole diameter | 2.6 mm |
| Weight | 105g |
| Material | Aluminum |
| Finishes | black, silver |
Which version this is
Version notes. Rim-brake rotor mount, QR 5x100mm, 28h, 32h, about 105g, in black, silver. If your frame or fork uses a different standard, the other versions of the R45 on this site cover it.
This is the rim-brake R45, with no rotor mount at all: a lighter, simpler shell for road, track and classic frames that stop on the rim. It builds into the lightest wheel the model can make and it is the version to choose for a rim-brake bike; the disc versions of the same hub have their own listings.
Sizes, fit and compatibility
The Chris King R45 Front Hub comes in the drillings listed on this page, with the axle options shown in the configurator.
We build R45 wheels on everything from HED Belgium and DT Swiss alloy rims to ENVE, Reserve and Boyd carbon. Straight-pull is not an option on this hub; it is J-bend, which suits the widest choice of spokes.
Put it in a custom wheel
Build a custom wheel around the Chris King R45 Front Hub — the link drops you into our Custom Wheel Program with this hub pinned, ready for you to choose the rest. It is set up for road rim brake, track and road single-speed and touring builds.
Chris King's testing and certifications
Chris King states it "has been domestically producing bicycle components of the highest quality since 1976" and is "the manufacturer, not just a design house, holistically locating all operations under one roof here in Portland, OR." Its hubs use bearings made in-house: sealed angular-contact bearings with "heat-treated, surgical grade steel races" machined simultaneously "to ensure perfectly matched inner and outer races"; Chris King states "Every single Chris King bearing is inspected and assembled by hand." A March 2024 factory visit reported the bearings are made from 440c stainless steel in more than thirty production steps. Chris King publishes no ISO 4210, salt-spray or bearing-cycle test figures.
Warranty and service: the King Lifetime Warranty states "Hubs, Headsets, and Bottom Brackets, including the bearings, are warranted for the lifetime of the original purchaser"; it is non-transferable and excludes misuse, crash or impact, lack of routine maintenance and normal wear. Chris King's hub manual states hubs "should be maintained every 6-12 months in normal and dry conditions" and "every 3 months in wet or muddy conditions" using Chris King Silver Grease; the company says its bearings "wear in and not wear out".
Chris King's videos
Certifications
- Made in USA (Portland, Oregon) — Chris King states it has been domestically producing bicycle components since 1976 with all operations under one roof in Portland, OR (source)
- King Lifetime Warranty — Hubs, headsets and bottom brackets including bearings warranted for the lifetime of the original purchaser; non-transferable (source)
- B Corp certification (2020, since lapsed) — Certified B Corporation in April 2020 (first US bicycle component maker); company later withdrew from recertification (source)
Sources on Chris King's site:
Everything in this section is published by Chris King. ProWheelBuilder is the wheel builder, not the tester, and the hub reaches us as the maker ships it.
Building it at ProWheelBuilder
Chris King makes the hub. ProWheelBuilder is an independent custom wheel builder in Georgia that lacing it into finished wheels every week, so we know the flange dimensions cold and cut spokes from the measured geometry rather than a catalog average. We set the bearing preload with King's adjusting clamp before the wheel leaves.
The configurator shows only rims and spokes that can be built with the drilling you choose, strikes through combinations that are not made, and prices the wheel live.
Warranty
Chris King's warranty. Chris King warrants hubs, headsets and bottom brackets, bearings included, for the lifetime of the original purchaser on items sold new since 1 January 2019. Proof of purchase is required, and King recommends registering within 30 days.
ProWheelBuilder. Built into a wheel by us, this part is covered by our own one-year wheel warranty on top of the maker's. For a year we replace broken spokes whatever caused them, and we cover the labor on the wheel - truing, re-tensioning, a rebuild if it needs one. If a rim or hub fails and its maker covers it, we run that claim for you; if the maker says no, you get an eligible replacement rim or hub at 25% off retail. You pay the shipping each way. Wheels built from parts you send us are excluded.
Full terms are on our Policies & Warranty page.
R45 Front Hub questions
Can I use this hub with disc brakes?
No - this is the rim-brake version and it has no rotor mount at all, which is exactly why it is lighter and simpler. It is the one for a rim-brake road, track or classic frame. A disc frame needs one of the disc versions of this hub, which are listed separately.
What is the difference between the R45 and the R45D?
The R45 is the rim-brake road hub; the R45D adds a disc mount, centerlock or 6-bolt. Both share the same RingDrive internals and bearings.
How often does a King hub need service?
Rarely. Bearings are adjustable and rebuildable rather than throw-away, and RingDrive needs a clean and a smear of King's ring lube every season or two. We can service it if you ever need us to.
Is the R45 suitable for gravel?
Yes. Road, gravel and cyclocross are what it is built for. For mountain biking, choose King's Boost MTB hub instead.
Is ProWheelBuilder the manufacturer of the Chris King R45 Front Hub?
No. The hub is made by Chris King; we are the wheel builder in Georgia who laces it into a finished wheel to your spec and stands behind the build.
Which axle spacing does it fit?
QR 5x100mm Front. Measure between the inside faces of your dropouts if you are unsure, or text us.
Does it need special spokes?
No. It takes standard J-bend spokes, which the configurator offers in every gauge and finish we stock.
Not sure? Text or leave a voicemail on 470-253-0929 or email info@prowheelbuilder.com — you will be talking to the people who build the wheels.
