Im kind of getting a bit sick of all the parts on my bike letting me down. Today Ive had a very loud creaking from my Bottom Bracket and Im not sure whats causing it – Ive removed BB and will take it to a hope tech shop tomorrow and see if the bearings are shot – they feel fine ad roll smooth so no idea what it is.

However in the last 13 months since the bike was new Ive had:

A new XT Shadow rear mech – spring broke
New Inner gear Cables
New Outer Cables to go on this week
An RP23 fail
Orange Five Pivot bearings fail
Shock top hat bushings wear out
New cassette – warranty after Orange supplied a one that welded to Pro2 so that doesnt really count

Im needing a new 32T chainring as that looks about dead
A new XT Cassette needed as it is showing those burs on the trailing endge of the teeth and they are all worn into shark fin type shape.
A new Chain to go with chainring and Cassette.

Bloody bikes grrrrr 😈

carbon – i feel your pain

i doubt its your BB to be honest, if the bearings are running smoothly inside, give it a clean out and the likes but the bearings are fine if running smooth….

ive got a similar problem too though, my creak came back today….i thought it was the chain wearing superfast, now im not so sure 🙁 its definitely drive train related….

my chain just about sits in the .75 so isnt totally ko’d but is on its way….thing is though ive had this creak since i put it on new, and its the same noise…..

im gonna buy a new chain and cassette (goodbye 60quid) and truly hope that it is the cassette and chainwear thats causing it…

as ive tried everything else….even took the hope ceramic bb out today, and like yours its super silky smooth…

ahhhh, so frustrating 🙁

Thats not stuff failing,thats stuff WEARING out.
Its quite easy to stop though…..stop riding your bike and it’ll all last forever. 🙄
You better get used to it btw…in another 13 months you’ll have done it all again.
P.s don’t forget £200 for a fork and shock service which will due about errr now.
Bloody mtb’ers…….who expect everything to last forever.

Fork was ditched mid point for a coil lyrik – done the servicing on that myself.

The rp23 was replaced with hopefully a burlier van rc.

I think this is the problem with riding 3 times a week on natural trails and not the trail centres the manufacturers believe we all ride.

Quite a list though I think.

This creaking was vibrating the whole bike could even feel it through the bars. Got home and realised the BB wasnt tight tight and the crank bolt wasnt tight ish so tightened up and went for a spin out – seemed ok at first then it returned although knowhere near as bad.

Ill get these bearings checked at the tech centre and if its not that I dont know where to start.

I’m looking into getting a new cassette at the moment and a few people are saying the XT ones wear out quick and that some of the cheaper ones last longer without weighing much more. Something to consider if it’s the case.

I’ve had 6 punctures in the last 2 year, I feel your pain.

Don’t know what/where you ride but i ride off-road several times a week as apart of my commute, up to 15 miles each way.

I don’t wear stuff out at anywhere near that rate!

Trouble is giantgaunt, something cheaper than xt is gonna screw up the hope pro 2 hub 😕

Last 12 months;

Headset bearings
Front and rear wheel bearings
Rear gear cable
Front gear cable outer
XTR Shadow rear mech (lanced by a branch and torn apart)
3 chains
About to fit a third cassette
Frame pivot bearings about to be changed
Front chainset about to be changed due to worn chainring teeth and BB bearing wear
Destroyed a pair of pedals
Eaten quite a few tyres and sets of brake pads.

That’s all from a FSR Stumpy Elite bought new a week short of a year ago today. She’s seen over 2000 miles of off-road action and, apart from the rear mech, it’s all wear and tear so I’ve no complaints. I ride my bike hard and I ride it all year long and in all weathers. Things wear out.

Another one with what i think is a creaking Shimano BB. Only a few months old, its not gritty, but cleaning and regreasing it today, and not solved the problem even with a new crankset fitted. Unless its a pivot in that area?

5’s are prone to creaking from the pivot bearing joint so are you sure it’s not that?

Undo the allen bolt that holds the small rectangular piece of alloy in against the side of the bearing and remove the pice of alloy. Clean the newly exposed surfaces on the piece of alloy and the bearing, grease and refit.

MTBing can be an expensive way of life, I try and help all the people I can who normally wouldn’t be able to afford a bike, that said even I feel the costs of it sometimes, still I’d rather spend my money on my bike and biking, than almost anywhere else. 😀

MTB’ing in general can be cheap or expensive. My experience has been expensive, but luckily not due to parts breaking!

Running costs can be relatively cheap, or expensive, depends on the kit you want to replace it with. The same goes with parts that break, you can replace with cheaper or like for like or upgrade.

If you decide to do-it-yourself you have to buy tools to do the job, otherwise you have to get used to waiting for a free slot at your LBS.

I think I’ve nearly spent as much on tools this year as I have on parts, but at least it gets cheaper in the long run as I won’t have many LBS bills!

This is what wore out this year and was replaced:
Cassette, Chain, Middle Chainring, Bottom Bracket, 2x Brake Pads, Headset Bearings, Pro 2 Rear Bearings, Brake Discs
My BB seems to go 1-2 times a year, so this year it was changed for HT2 crankset. I don’t expect to have to replace all this next year, but it wouldn’t surprise me if I have to, although I would be a little annoyed.

This is the changes in a year, not including the above:
Front Suspension, Rear Wheel, Front Shocks, Tubeless Tyres & kit, Brakes (Hayes > Juicy), Grips

That’s not including all the stuff that goes along with MTB’ing, energy drinks, tools, lube, clothes, petrol & accommodation, entry fees, but again it can be relatively cheap or expensive.

On the other end of the scale my friend bought Scott Scale and has been riding it for over 2 years and is booking it in for its first service next week! He’s only bought spare pads and 1 spare tyre in the whole time he’s owned it.

Cheap/Expensive, this opens the debate of value for money, which imo is down to the indivual, if you think it’s a good buy, its a good buy. 😉

I know I wouldn’t want to add up how much I spend in a year on MTB’ing but like kaesae I’d rather spend it on something I have a passion for (MTB’ing) than pissing it down a drain. The time when I think about costs, is probably when I’m not enjoying it anymore, if parts broke a lot, then I probably wouldn’t be enjoying it as much.

New pivot bearings about a month ago. It’s not the Bb the hope tech shop man said Bb was fine.

I’m thinking it may be chainring or cranks coming loose on splines.

It only creaks during heavy load pedaling but cranks are race face evolve xc and a quick search suggests they have issues coming undone.

Decent maintenance regime and parts last a long time. thousands of miles a year here. One chain, one set of brake pads in the last year

Chains lubed with putoline chain wax, hope brakes with original sinterd pads. Octalink BB – been in the bike for several years, forks are stripped and lubed regularly, brake cables are lubed regularly so last years Tyres looking rather worn now so will need a new rear. Only been on the bike a yearish

And yes – I ride summer and winter

This thread is a fail. No-one has recommended the OP get a rigid single speed.

Maybe all the SSers are in their sheds polishing their chain links.

🙂

Its quite easy to stop though…..stop riding your bike and it’ll all last forever.

hmmm.. so far this week I’ve had to replace the headset bearings in one bike and strip and re-build a front mech on another – both from NOT being ridden for 6 months!!

Decent maintenance regime and parts last a long time.

I’ve been known to destroy hundreds of pounds worth of “well maintained” parts in a single DH run without even crashing!

I think this is the problem with riding 3 times a week on natural trails and not the trail centres the manufacturers believe we all ride.

Heh, dunno about you, but Welsh grit eating brake pads and chains/dust getting into bearings and generally hammering over rocks tends to destroy bikes pretty quicky 😉

That said, southern clayey mud does a smilar job in a slower, messier fashion

Ive got a rigid Steel SS – its crap but it never fails.

Last time my full sus frame was creaking i replaced the suspension bushes (the eyelet ones in the shock) and it stopped, i was convinced it was my raceface made of cheese bottom bracket but that is still holding up fine after 2 years!?!

Its a brand new shock, new pivot bearings too.

In fact Three Fish where are you – your a manitenance/parts genius.

Check your rear skewer’s done up well tight, you’d be amazed at the number of crank/BB creaks that are cured by doing this.

+1

I was going to ask if you’d changed your post-ride hosing habits. Given my experience of your bike, I’d say that you’ve nothing that a strip, clean and regrease won’t fix.

Oh, IHM…

Ive heard the creak in question, more like a crackle and LOUD! bit to much to be loose qr i think

I snapped the pin on my seat post tonight.

Horrible walking home uphill and a bit omg this is dodgy on the downhills.

it seems a lot of people are wearing out chains and cassettes at the same rate which shouldn’t be right.Iwas once told it’s better to get two or three half decent chains and rotate them at regular intervals (I’m sure someone will tell me I’m wrong) as this will extend sprocket and chain ring life considerably.or don’t bother checking your chain at all and end up having to replace the lot.its seems so many people ride exspensise gear and know nowt about maintainance then wonder why they £100+ bills from the LBS on drive train. This is not a dig at anyone just observasion.

It’s better to just stop pedalling so **** much 😉

I had creaking from my 5 for a while and it was the rear QR. It had to be done up ridiculously tight to stop the noise. Swapped it for a standard shimano QR and problem solved! I guess the sealed cam in the shimano ones works a lot more efficiently.

You ride off road, and things wear out / break, big supprise, in the last 9 months of pretty hard riding, have got through –

1 Suspension fork, stantion damage
1 rim bent in ice crash
1 rotor bent, in same crash
1 cassette worn out
couple of chains worn out
1 front ring, damaged
1 rear wheel damaged
1 headset, pitted races
4 tires, ripped side walls,& worn out
multiple brake pads
1 pair pedals worn out finally after 15 years on/off use
1 pair jocky wheels
1 HT2 BB

Thats riding 2-3 times per week, 2-3 hours per ride in all conditions

GW – Member

I’ve been known to destroy hundreds of pounds worth of “well maintained” parts in a single DH run without even crashing!

?????

?????

I’d start by lubing one thing at a time to eliminate creaks. I had one on my scott nitrous and spents ages tightening stuff until the point I put a bit of grease behind the replaceable hanger and it stopped. FFS…
Noises seem to transfer around frames too and I was convinced this was coming from the BB area.

Seatpost / seatclamp is a prime suspect too, take the clamp off the frame and a bit of light oil behind it often stops creaks.