my chainset (07 xt) has developed some play so i’m guessing that the external bb is shot. whats the general stw consensus on repairing or replacing?

repair: seem to recall some discussion a while back about removing and replacing the bearing races. how realistic is this?

replace: mine lasted 18mnths, though as i ride more than one bike actual use is way less. are any of the other companies versions (hope etc) worth the extra spend or indeed what about the chris king ones, worth the expense?

i took mine appart to re-grees them after a few shity rides in th mud without bottle bosses in (supringinly little water in the BB).

the shimano races are more like headset bearings than anything else, you can replace them with standard cartriges IIRC, but i sem to remember something baout certina batches being slightly different sizes and needing thicker bearings.

2 other things to considder, either;
*replace the bearings with the same size ones, and re-install the plastic covers. They wont be as durable as the bearings are smaller, but they wont ruin the crank axel when they develop some play.
* buy bearings that fill the entire space left by the bearing and cover. But when the bearin runs out you’l have to eplace it imediately to stop it ruining the axel.