996

Hi All,

I have a 2015 Specialized Roubaix SL4 Expert - Great bike with full Ultegra other than the crank set which is a BB30 FSA Carbon set. Specs of the bike are below in the Specialized Archive link:

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/ro...r=174564-65415

My goal is to upgrade my BB setup. I have heard about MFG conversions and whatnot, but I wanted to post to see what my options are. Preferably want to mitigate risk of a damaged and or creaky BB, and just get a stronger more reliable BB setup.

Has anyone had experience in a conversion like this? I prefer to get away from press fit...

Thanks!

smashndash

If you are keeping the crank, and this is a true BB30 crank (short spindle, no spacers past the bearings), you’re locked in. You can get “nicer” bearings but within a certain range, there’s hardly a difference in quality or performance IMO.

If you get a Shimano crank, your options will open up and you’ll be in the same boat as me. From crappiest to best, you’ve got BB30 bearings with reducers/spacers, a thread-together BB like Wheels mfg or Praxis, or a one-piece BB like BBinfinite or Hambini.

996

Thank you for the response. I just recently found about about Hambini. What did you end up going with? What frame do you have?

Best,
996

smashndash

I have a Specialized Allez Sprint with OSBB/BB30. Using a Shimano Hollowtech II crank (pretty much all Shimano cranks are HT2) with a Hambini racing BB. I like it a lot, but I would go for the regular one if I lived in a rainy area or cared more about saving money.

Maelochs

Wheels Manufacturing makes thread-together aluminum BBs which are heavier than press-fit, but bullet-proof. You can get them in about any size.

996

Thank you. I reached out to him. Appreciate the response.

996

Thanks for the input. Have you had experience with one of these? If I were to go this route, I may just do a full Hambini BB, but am reading around about the Wheels Manufacturing thread together bb's as well.

Maelochs

I have Wheels BBs in three bikes and they are pretty much bulletproof. Easy to install and also to remove, which is handy if you have internal cables. No squeaks, creaks, grinding … nothing at all. They aren’t as light as press-fit, but they are “Install/forget.

I haven’t researched the Hambini …. Whoops! Those babies are pricey. I guess they are the best, and if that is what you need, that is what you have to get. I think Wheels are between about £50–£70 for regular or angled bearings. Hambinis run £170.

If you have the budget, why not? I guess.

996

Awesome - thank you again for the response. Any of them in an OSBB/BB30 bike? Which bearings would you recommend? Also is the bearing quality decent? Will I be able to keep my BB30 FSA Carbon crankset with the Wheels BB?

Thanks!

Maelochs

I *think* but am not sure, that the FSA is SRAM spec, that it, it has a 24 mm drive-side and 22 mm left-side spindle. You need to make sure.

The guy on the Hambini site says the same thing I hear everywhere---ceramic bearings are great for turbochargers on cars, but useless for bicycles---they benefit comes at ultra-high-speed rotation, many 10s of thousands of rpm, not the 90-120 rpm you get with bikes. Further, the bearings erode the races and end up not being any better.

I doubt there is a real difference between the angular and regular bearings. I cannot say for sure, i have no math to back it up.

I have a Wheels with angular bearings on my rain bike/work bike, and it gets used in the worst circumstances---high loads, water, insufficient maintenance. Never a problem.

In any case I think all your options are on this page: https://wheelsmfg.com/bottom-bracket...-outboard.html

996

Awesome. Thank you for the feedback. Will keep the thread posted with my decision.

996

I ended up going with a BB Infinite bottom bracket for the Roubaix. So my frame is an OS BB frame, but from 2015 and on, Specialized started inserting aluminum cups which made the bike technically a BB30 frame with different measurements. BB Infinite was the company that had the right fitting bottom bracket. Rides like a dream. Fit perfectly with the aluminum cups. They also have great customer service and are very responsive over email. I had a bunch of questions for them prior to purchasing to make sure I had the right part - they were on point.

Thanks all for the help.