Druber...thhe stroy of Chris King Bottom Brackets

[CBaron]

Druber- your King BB is at the HH shop.

Lost27- Your woodchipper bars and BB7 brakes are in too.


Come and get'm
CJB

[druber]

Cool.  I'll try to pick it up sometime this week.

[druber]

That CK BB is butter.

If it lasts as long as their warranty (5 years), it is a new standard piece of equipment (along with the CK Headset). 

[bear]

I can believe it. I can't believe how good condition the internals on my CK headset are (seven years old and counting, internals in primo condition, no thanks to yours truly).

Now that I live in the Land of Water and Mud I'm really intrigued by the CK shell with the grease port. Will look forward to your further reviews E.

Of course, being that I seem to get 12-18 months out of the $35 RaceFace BB it would have to last at least five years to be able to make it a sound "investment."

[druber]

I can believe it. I can't believe how good condition the internals on my CK headset are (seven years old and counting, internals in primo condition, no thanks to yours truly).

Now that I live in the Land of Water and Mud I'm really intrigued by the CK shell with the grease port. Will look forward to your further reviews E.

Of course, being that I seem to get 12-18 months out of the $35 RaceFace BB it would have to last at least five years to be able to make it a sound "investment."

You got 12-18 months from your RF?  I think my RF lasted all of 3 months.  After that, I started using the Shimanos.  On average, I think I replace them every 6-8 months.

[bear]

You got 12-18 months from your RF?  I think my RF lasted all of 3 months.  After that, I started using the Shimanos.  On average, I think I replace them every 6-8 months.

Yeah, think how surprised I was.

With the old XT non-externals I was getting 6-9. With the externals this changed to 3-6. My first external type was an FSA crank, which was okay until the arm bent and I decided to go Big on the crank to prevent a replication of that. This resulted in me getting the Diabalous crankset from RF.

*NOT* Suggested for most as it weighs more by itself WITHOUT rings than some frames.

However the bearings spec'd for it have very deep cups and that makes for a super solid and seal-able frame interface. The first bearing set on that lasted ten miles. I got caught in rain at RhR and the crap kickup went straight to the bearings. I was getting silly frustrated with them and considering strongly getting a Middleburn and switching back to Old School when the 2nd Diabalous bearings went in. I can't actually remember for sure which year that was, no more recent than 08 but possibly 07. Those bearings got replaced just this past January. The non-drive side was crapped out. Strangely, the drive-side still spun perfect. I remember noting that when I received those that the package specification has been changed and RF started using Phil grease and had changed their seals. Apparently to good effect.

We'll see how long this third set of bearings last. If they don't make it to summer I'll be strongly considering the CK set though.

[AntonioGG]

How many miles is that and do you guys repack often?  What makes your headsets last so little?  Lots of ledges?

[Matt]

How many miles is that and do you guys repack often?  What makes your headsets last so little?  Lots of ledges?

These guys are talking about their BB only lasting X months.

Both ride lots and lots of miles in that time. Druber has a limited amount of time to devote to bikes, so he spends that time riding not so much cleaning, so his stuff dies faster (he also has aluminum corroding sweat).

I never had much luck with the bearings in RF BB's lasting very long. Shimano lasted much longer. Phil Woods seem to last the longest. From there I like the Enduro Zero Ceramic that I have right now. They never will sieze up, but they need repacking more often than standard steel. Though again they should last much much longer.

As a heads up, I have a Phil Woods BB tool, so I can swap bearings with ease for folks. You don't need a new BB everytime, new bearings can be had for 20$ish plus install.

[bear]

Antonio,

While in Austin my annual mileage was in the 2000 range for an annual average over the last 7 years. I rode all year long, mostly avoided wet rides BUT would ride City Park when wet and muddy, and did a fair amount of races that ended up icky.

I was actually on the path to getting the Enduro bearing tool and going with their replacement bearings when I had that last one last soo long that I didn't ever end up getting the tool. Now, living in NE-PA, it's going to be either that or (more likely) the CK shell if/when I decide I need to move up.

It's funny, but the XT level shimano outboard bearings just didn't do it for me, maybe the XTR is better? Dunno.

I gotta say I'm also intrigued by the new (2010) RF X-Type Team XC as it's been designed to be be field-serviced instead of replaced. A first for the "mass market" suppliers as far as I know.

[Matt]

My thoughts on bearings and the King BB.

Please note I have not ridden one, just installed them. I have not had to service one yet, so I am blind on the effectiveness of the grease tool.

What kills a BB? sure Torque, maybe. Really though what kills a BB? Grit, grime, not enough lube. The same thing that will kill all bearings. So what makes the kings better? Well if they are using their labyrinth bearings then that should help. Better seals are half the battle. Add to that an easier method for keeping the bearings lubed should help too. But what happens when you let it slide a little bit and forget to clean up after a race or in the heat of the moment you ride through that too deep puddle/BCGB high tide. Crap is gonna get in the bearings eventually. So then what happens? This is why I don't buy into the concept of more bearings being all good. More bearings does distribute the load but also reduces the amount of space between the bearings, effectively limitting the amount of crap you can get in your BB before it gets 'clogged' up and feels like sand.

So will the injector push that sand out? probably not. not without a way for it to escape/a place to go.

So how about this; when you build your own BB you are not beholden to anyone or anything, the only requirement is the threaded end has to fit in a BB and the hole in the center has to fit a crank. So couldn't you make the bearing portion larger, use less bearings, make them stronger, and give more space between bearings for crap to build up before it feels bad. The added extra space buys you easier flushability with fresh grease. Man I want credit for this when sombody does it.

I don't know if any of this makes sense, but I put it out there anyway. This is the internet and I am an outlaw.

 

[bear]

If you were really an outlaw you'd get with Russell and make that happen.

[AntonioGG]

Oops!  Sorry I hadn't noticed it was BB's you guys were talking about.

FWIW I think my Shimano lasted about 1500 miles but only died b/c I did the Super-6 race in the mud THEN I power washed my bike (expensive lesson to learn with my vintage BMC fourstroke03).  I think it was the power washing that killed my rear suspension bearings and the BB.

[Moondog]

I still think the simpler and old school approach to outboard bearings are the ones you can pull off by hand and repack without any tools.

The Coda/Magic Motorcycle BB I have has had the same $20 NSK bearings for over 7 years.  Of course these BB/Cranks are only available on ebay these days....

[bear]

The Coda/Magic Motorcycle BB I have has had the same $20 NSK bearings for over 7 years.  Of course these BB/Cranks are only available on ebay these days....

word.

[Bizarro]

I still think the simpler and old school approach to outboard bearings are the ones you can pull off by hand and repack without any tools.

The Coda/Magic Motorcycle BB I have has had the same $20 NSK bearings for over 7 years.  Of course these BB/Cranks are only available on ebay these days....

for sale?  I need them. 

all this BB talk...well, coming back from AZ...BB shot. Actually found out the day leaving of the trip my BB was shot...oh well, it worked fine..but now I need some love on that thing. New one? Or maybe like Matt said..new bearings if I come up there?  Maybe in one day? I think I got off one day next week. Got XT cranks on the Knolly DT.