I've seen a few pictures of broken hubs and hear people talking about "rebuilding"

How often do these things break?
What kind of conditions does it fail under?

Thanks

 

pretty rarely. most people just rebuild them before they put them on, it's pretty much just taking them apart and regreasing their internal parts

 

Yup, I dont think I've ever heard of any breaking...

 

dont know, MY Superwinch one just broke the other day, so i had to put my warn ones back on.

 

Depends on what kind of hub it is and what kind of use/abuse it is getting. Aisin hubs (stock Toyota hubs) are pretty beefy. Some of the well-known aftermarket hubs are a lot less reliable, even though they have less moving parts. It also probably depends whether or not you have a locker, big motor, etc.

 

aisin hubs are the best ones you can get for toyotas, period.

the only cases i've heard of them breaking in is when used on the rear axle in a full float application. drive flanges are better for that. most of the time, the studs and dowel pins will get sheared off, and the hub will remain intact. but that's something 99% of people here will never have to worry about