Getting fed up with going through BB’s one a year so thinking about a long term replacement. Assuming Chris King headsets are as good as I think they are (ie excellent) are the BBs as good in longevity terms?

Puts kettle on……..

3 1/2 Years old pic taken in March 2012

Avg 500-600hrs yearly training and racing(marathon mtb), gets a strip down clean and lube every year and some fresh grease pumped in every few months or when it feels like it needs some. Contacted CK about some new rubber seals as the original seals were starting to look a bit worse for wear, they sent me a few over FOC 😀 it’s seen some pretty grim conditions i.e. 2011 Kielder 100, still running sweet as the day I fitted it.

that’s what I was hoping to hear…

And I think they just started doing press fit. Very tempting next time my cheap Shimano fails (I.e. winter)

jimmy – Member

are the BBs as good

Do they cut a big slot in your cranks?

Nah, they’re very good- and no royalties to be paid on the external BB design so no absurd designed-in failures.

Are they better than Hope ceramic BBs?

Based on my low (no) servicing routine no more so than a Hope BB. I’ve killed a CK in the same amount of time as a Hope BB. BUT the CK Headset just lasts n last whereas any other headset dies at some point.

I’ll buy another CK headset if I get another bike, but for a BB the Shimano ones have reached the point of price and life that its not worth Hope or CK.

I have King and Hope and the difference is not really noticeable. I did manage to somehow cack the Hope on up after a particular muddy ride, which the grit somehow got into the bearings ( no jetwashes to be seen !!), but cleaned the bearings and regreased and off we go again.The only gripe is the plastic disc on the Hope that the grit gets behind and sounds nasty until cleaned, which the King doesnt. The King one, I religiously take the seals out and pack some fresh grease in twice a year. No King grease machine, just done by hand and is still smooth as 3 years later. I do need a new bottom bracket for my road bike and if I was honest , will probably go for the Hope one, just out of being cheaper and also not going to be affected by the mud and grit like an MTB.

On topic but have had good experience with the fsa ceramic ones here but wonder what longevity is like with these fsa ones?

Anyone done lots of mileage in all conditions on one?

I’ve been running an FSA ceramic bb now, getting on for 3years. The non-drive-side did seize once, so I serviced the bearings as per the FSA instructions. Brought it back to life, and it is fine, but not silky smooth like my Hope cermaic bb that is 2 and bit years old.

It beats me WTF we can’t have bottom brackets designed to be injected with fresh grease in situ like we had back in 1990…

Good to know strike member,
😀

@Russel96 – do you mean the Shimano ones are now cheaper, more durable, or both?

DoctorRad – Member
It beats me WTF we can’t have bottom brackets designed to be injected with fresh grease in situ like we had back in 1990…

Like…er… the Chris King ones?

CK BBs are like their hubs, which, unlike their headsets, are brilliant for as long as you look after them. They aren’t fit a forget. I you don’t service them they will die just as quickly as the next product. But look after them and they should last the five years they’re guaranteede for.

And yes you can Get (and do need) a grease gun injector tool to service them.

The theme for all these long lasting BB’s is servicing & maintenance, give a cheapo Shimano one the same attention and it too will last, fit & forget any of them & they won’t.

cheapo shimano arent really user serviceable.
8hrs of DH in Leogang torrential rain & filthy conditions a few years ago. my friends shimano saint BB seized up. while my king BB felt rough, a simple regrease with the required tool & it felt like new again.

How do you “service” all these bb’s? Is it a question of removing all the seals, re-greasing with your finger and some grease and reassembling?

I think I paid about £20 delivered for my XTR BB cups from Rose about a year of claggy riding ago and they are still perfect. even if they die tomorrow they are still a very good deal and I certainly haven’t performed anything so tasteless as maintenance on them. I think there is a feeling that Shimano must be crap but I think their higher range stuff is usually pretty durable and very good value when compared with exotica that do the same job for a lot more money.

The King one, I religiously take the seals out and pack some fresh grease in twice a year. No King grease machine, just done by hand and is still smooth as 3 years later.

Thrustyjust- thanks that’s useful to know – been looking at BBs on and off while my stock of Shimano’s dies off (fast.. XTR, XT all the same inside and last as little as 3 months on the SS if they’re not re-packed before use. Junk, at any price.)
So is that a job you could do without tools if you were on a long tour, if the cranks were off and the BB was in the frame? Do you need to remove the plastic shim to do it / how easily do they pop out? Cheers

I am unconvinced that XTR is the same as XT internally. I know they look the same, and side-by-side I couldn’t see any real difference (besides the colour, of course) but my XT ones lasted < 3 months each, and the XTR one is now 18 months old and still going strong. Maybe it’s coincidence.

I picked up a S/H one off here, just over a year ago, for £30 (IIRC).
(Its pink!!!) 🙂
Was spinning smooth enough but took the cups in to my LBS (Swinnertons) who purged the grease, for £7. (Hardly worth lashing out £50 for the tool).
Didnt exactly restore it to uber smooth. I think perhaps it missed a regrease before I got it. But its smooth enough, & has gone on to give a year of service, running SS. Has developed some play I noticed the other week. Not much, just a tiny bit. Not sure if its just the pre-load on the cranks thats maybe relaxed a bit, but I cant seem to find any info on adjusting play out. I read somewhere about some shims but I keep meaning to email CK.
The grease can be purged in situ if the cranks are removed.
The complete bearing can be stripped for a proper clean if needed. Might give mine a bit of TLC.