[Closed] Philcentric EBB

Druidh has one. He seems as of yet to be unconvinced with its arrangement but it is early days.

I am sure he will be along soon. I will post this on his FB so he sees it anyway.

You need the special tool for alignment and they only supply shops with that.

That would be a real pain whenever you needed to adjust or replace anything - into the shop for a simple job.

Do they work with a granny ring?

Some of the places selling them seem to suggest they supply the alignment tool with the BB but I'm waiting for confirmation of this - perhaps there has been a change of heart as not many LBSs would be willing to buy in a special tool for what is likely to be a one-off job?

Andy

Now - you've specifically asked for non-Fatbike, SS stories, so feel free to ignore all of the following.....

I got one of these for my 9:zero:7 Fatbike and an Alfine. I reckoned that an EBB was more weather-proof than a tensioner.

I got a "special" special tool as it's longer than the usual due to the wider BB shell. I asked the shop (Chain Reaction - Anchorage) to supply it, they asked Phil Wood & Co and it arrived.

The tool is only required for initial installation of the BB shell. Any further adjustments take place with the shell [i]in situ[/i].

So far, my reaction is mixed. I was a little surprised to read the fitting instructions and to find out that the shell is only held in place by 4 dabs of red loctite (supplied).

My first attempt resulted in a loose chain when the whole DS shell decided to unscrew itself. I blame this on my usual practice of installing it with some grease on.

I've since re-fitted it (grease-free) and it's done around 100km with - so far - no problems.

The adjustment is only around half a links worth, so you might need a half-link to get a good tension.

The eccentric shell is far wider than a normal BB shell, so you might need to look at the inner chainring fittings to make sure they don't foul the shell. I had to change from a Mr Whirly crank to a Raceface FR to get around this (but then the Mr Whirly is a bit odd anyway).

Overall, it "bothers" me - the same way that carbon components "bother" many riders. It just doesn't seem like a well-engineered solution, although the proof is in the riding.
If I can help with photos or anything, please let me know.

Druidh, I'm running my 907 with an Alfine on a magic ratio. Just happens to be the right gearing for me. Think it's 32/22, but I can check if you're interested.

I've got a Trickstuff Exzentriker and a similar one to the Phil Wood by Forward Components. They both "bother" me too, so in the meantime I'll stick to Magic Ratio, especially as I prefer square taper cranks (on a PW BB).

epicyclo - Thanks for the offer, but there's no guarantee our 907s are the same, especially as mine is one of the newer version. I'm also considering alternative ratios, possibly using an Extralite 30T front chainring. That probably puts me outside Shimanos recommendations, but I'm a light, bimbly rider, so I'm sure it'll be fine 🙂

Does this 'being bothered' feeling relate to full size EBBs as well? I had a custom frame done and ended up speccing the Forward Components version rather than full EBB or sliders, both of which 'bothered' me. Despite having 100s of miles with no problems on the FC mini EBB I find the same feelings of being bothered encroach even now. I've already said to myself that if it plays up then I'll just use a tensioner.

On a new frame I have specced the Paragon Rocker dropouts, they don't offend me aesthetically like the sliders did. But I can only wait and see if they bother me, at least I can go back to square taper.

Oh, on the OP, the Philcentric was off putting for me due to the shop only tool bit, but it seems that's not as strenuous as their website led me to believe.

By the way I know two Excentriker users that have had no problems.