Square Taper or HT2 cranks?

Im guessing the main difference is that HT2 would be stiffer and lighter than square taper.

Im aware of the various issues of people on here posting about HT2 bearings, etc which is kind of putting me off a bit. Ive always used square taper, so is there any reason for me to change?

BTW cranks/bb may need replacing so not a upgrade for the sake of it.

Definitely HT2 — stiffer, stronger, lighter, more durable bearings (due to bigger balls and less leverage on the bearings), well sealed, easy to maintain. I have put close to 1000 miles of aggressive offroading in mostly wet conditions on my current HT2 BB and it still shows no play. In the same conditions I have completely demolished what was supposed to be super-heavy-duty freeride BB in the course of less than 200 miles.

The one thing to do when fitting HT2s is to carefully remove that little bit of black plastic that says ‘do not disassemble’, remove the bearings, and grease them with good quality water-resistant grease (Shimano for some inexplicable reason really skimp on the grease). I also regrease the bearings time from time, it takes about 10min to do.

aannnnnndddd in the Red corner…..

Ive gone back to Square Taper.

Ive ridden 4 different external bearing systems (Truvativ, Race Face, Shimano XT and Aerozine) and respective external BBs and apart from the one on the Pompino that doesnt get taken off road (Truvativ) I’ve got no faith in them whatsoever. Shite sealing means rubbish life expectancy of the bearings. Great design for dry dust and sun, just not the solution in the UK.

Sourced a NOS UN72 BB to put an old set of XT cranks on. Will still be going strong come the Rapture.

Sure they’re not as stiff as Hollowtec cast arms and drawn axles, but frankly for the difference in pedal feel Id choose bearing life any day. As for strenght, well Ive never broken a SQT axle, and I dont know anyone else who has riding XC or godforbid even “All Mountain”.

Another one for Square Taper – just bought my second un54 after 11months of hard SS abuse including solo 12s, solo 24 etc and the guys in the bike shop said I’d been “unlucky”. £15 per year is still not bad tho’ IMHO

I found my external bearings has seized up a few months ago so started to look at what to replace them with but decided I may as well use my Octalink XT cranks, which I’d kept for spares and never had a problem with, for the winter. No problems so far so suspect I’ll carry on doing this in the future and use external BB cranks in the drier months, assuming we get some sometime….

yep, square taper here too. had sp taper for years, went to ht2 for about 18months and went through 3 bbs so have got a nice set of middleburns and a UN72 bb. got them about 2-3 months ago and havent noticed a difference in strength or flex etc. if it aint broke, why fix it.

Square taper – Bottom brackets lasts for years, my problem was always cranks coming loose which destroys the crank arms.
Hollowtech II – Bearings badly sealed so need frequent attention. Everything else about the design is an improvement over sqr taper.

Square Taper…..never known any reason to have anything else. Oh, I have a spare 68MM 110 UN-72 if anyone needs one 🙄

Only recently had problems with my HTII, non-drive-side only, bearing has gotten stiff (but not gritty) after a period of several weeks being left uncleaned and unloved. Been on the bike for a couple of years I think now, not overly used but seen its share of river and lake crossings recently, which is probably what’s caused it. But I went through ST ones about the same rate, so I cant complain, other than cost. I’ll find some cheap bearings and do a swap soon.

Another vote for square taper. Got some old XT crank arms on one bike and Middleburns on the other, then UN54 bottom brackets for both. They just keep going and, when the BB do go, only cost £15 to replace. HT2 stiffer? Probably but not noticable enough for me to consider swapping.

Cheers lads, think i’ll keep with the old skool square taper.

Square taper if you just ride around. Can bust the axle, can wear out the tapers. Usually get long lasting bearings

External bearings if you like to get airborne occasionally and you want to pedal home, pay for it by not having the bearing life…

Choice is yours.

Another vote for Square Taper and in particular Phil Wood. Not cheep but last for ages. The cartridge bearings are easy to change when the time comes.

I’ve gone for the stainless steel but I bought a frame second hand from the states. It arrived with a titanium PW BB. The bearings were utterly munted probably due to pressure washing. I replaced the bearings and it was good as new. It’s since done 1500 miles offroad and is now beautifully run in. 4500 miles on my commuter in all weather – lots of wet sand in winter, and that one is equally run in.

I admit I’ve never even tried outboard bearings due to the poor rep on here and because I’ve had such good experience with PW. I’d be interested to know if anyone has tried the PW replacement bearings for outboards to see if the claimed improved sealing makes a difference?

HTII bigger bearings stiff axels, replacement cups are about £30. Easier to remove to change chainrings or clean. Hopes new ceramic bearings should last for years, my average HTII last 12months + and I have a set on all 3 of my bikes