Noticed that BETD will replace/upgrade the bearings in a HT11 BB for £22.50. Anybody done it and have any feedback? Better, worse, indifferent?

Better seals and bigger bearings according to them and as the existing cups are still ok it seems better to spend the money on this than pay £25ish for a whole new XT one?

Are they the Enduro Seals ones? If so they are shit.

Doesn’t mention if they are the Enduro seals? This is the blurb…

“Replacement upgrade bearing kit for most of the Hollowtech II cranks. The bearings are upgraded to bigger balls and better grease. The new bearing use 5/32” balls instead of 1/8” and the loading is also better, the new bearing load rating is 726 lbs, whilst the old style was rated at 563lbs. We also get rid of that awful nylon spacer and the bearing fits straight onto the hollowtech axle.”

We also get rid of that awful nylon spacer and the bearing fits straight onto the hollowtech axle

so if your bearing sieze you have to bin your cranks. great, thanks.

so if your bearing sieze you have to bin your cranks. great, thanks.

admittedly I’ve never had a bearing seize but I’m damn sure I could get it off if it did – were I silly enough to be using seize-prone HTII in the first place :o)

I had some and they were great. Used all through winter 8 hours a day. Probably still going strong now.

I’m using them..no problems so far.

so if your bearing sieze you have to bin your cranks. great, thanks.

If you don’t notice your bearings wobbling or grumbling a long time before they seize completely, you probably shouldn’t be performing such bb surgery procedures on your bicycle at all. The one enduro one I had fail started a wobble noticeable when pedalling or rocking the cranks by hand rather than seizing on.

There was another thread on here recently where most people said they were rubbish, didn’t last any longer than shimano’s own and had crap seals.
We did a group/bulk buy amongst mates a couple of years ago and all apart from one bearing (oddly enough, the ‘unloaded’ drive side on a gxp bb, usually the non drive side gives up first) are still going fine now.

I wonder if they have changed the seals since then? Definitely worth a look at the price though, if they fall apart early at least you didn’t spend twice as much on a ‘whole’ bb.

I have them on both bikes – non drive side on each crank. Cheaper from USA when you buy 3 sets, think mine worked out at £14 per set and fitted easily enough.

does anyone have a link to the tool, so you can bash out/press in the bearings yourself?

reggiegasket – Member

does anyone have a link to the tool, so you can bash out/press in the bearings yourself?

CRC Here and Enduro Here

I’ve been fitting Enduro bearings for 2-3 years now and get on really well with them, I purchased the gold tool direct from the States.

Works well for pressing the new bearings in but the extractor tool broke quickly, i now use the main tool body with a punch and hammer to extract the old bearings.

Due to the standard seal design it is also easy to re-squirt some new grease into the bearings and get a few more months usage.

Also some people have previous mentioned that the metal to metal contact of the bearing and crank shaft could cause seizing problems…. it doesn’t!!

does anyone have a link to the tool, so you can bash out/press in the bearings yourself?

Hammer and a drift to tap the old bearing out. Socket(or the old outer shell) and a vice to press the new one in.

Frankers – Member

Also some people have previous mentioned that the metal to metal contact of the bearing and crank shaft could cause seizing problems…. it doesn’t!!

I agree and it’s a red herring anyway, otherwise we would have plastic collars in every other bearings application, wheels, headsets etc. Its all because the 24mm id bearing is not a standard size and whoever designed the BB wanted 24mm dia shaft as the best weight stiffness compromise and got over the size mismatch with a collar.. If the 24mm id bearing was a standard size they would be cheap as chips, but it seems only enduro (or their manufacturer) make them.

With Deore BB cups available now for around £17 is the really any point knocking bearings out and pressing new ones into your old cups?

Yeah Simon I can see your point.. I hope the cost of bearings will come down to make it worth while. I do it out of a sense of accomplishment and the desire to not chuck good stuff away just because of cost. It’s a perfect illustration of rational vs irrational man argument in economics..

got them on my bike and they seem better sealed, they also run smoother. i will decide when they die if they last longer….