richbrown

I have a road-version hollowtech II bottom bracket (shimano 105 model - BB-R60). over the last couple of days i noticed a very slight clicking feeling as i pedalled.

removing the crankset i find that the left-hand side of the BB cup feels smooth and snug with no play. however the right sided cup has a very small amount of lateral play.

i last replaced the bottom bracket less than six months ago (at which point the old one had developed a significant amount of play after around 1000miles) and i would estimate that the new one has only done around 400miles since. These bottom brackets are non-serviceable, sealed units.

searching these forums suggests that it's not uncommon to get through these BBs pretty quickly, although this does seem odd to me as i thought that outboard bearings were supposed to be more durable and I have hardly ever had to service, never mind replace, the older BBs on my older bikes.

i'm about to leave in tour again (around 3000 miles) and I'm wondering how to interpret this small amount of lateral play

- is it indicative of impending BB doom? will it definitely get worse, and if so how quickly?

- should i just replace it now, or should i take another one with me and replace it when it has developed more play?

i'm also worried that this relatively new bottom bracket is already showing signs of wear.

- is this indicative of me doing something wrong during installation and/or usage?

it's worth noting that although the first bottom bracket came with the bike, i did replace the crankset a few hundred miles before before it started to show play so feasibly i could have done something wrong then; i could have possibly overtightened the plastic pre-load screw on the crank. the second BB didn't have an ideal installation as i did it at the side of the road on tour and there was a tiny tiny amount of drizzle, but i don't think i overtightened the pre load and if any water got into the shell it was only a minute amount.

as it's a touring bike it has also had a fair amount of use in the rain and with heavy rear panniers and the occasional rough road.

- is this a normal lifespan for these BBs? i.e do i need to be thinking replacing the current BB and taking another one or two spares with me for a 3000 mile trip? so far my BBs are looking like their average lifespan is going to be around 1000 miles and i'm planning on cycling 3000 over 3 months..

thanks for your help!!

Racing Dan

You can lubricate HT II BBs by lifting of the seal with a small screwdriver. There are video on YT on how to do it.

richbrown

Thanks - good to know

The bearings don't feel rough, just there is lateral play.. will grease help with this?

I'm reluctant to disassemble it given the instructions not to do so on the unit itself. Sure perhaps I would in a pinch on tour if I can't get a new one, but at the moment with only a tiny amount of lateral play I feel that I'm risking making it worse.

I guess what I really want to know is does this small amount of play and slight clicking feeling mean that I should be replacing the BB now, or can I leave it a while?

masi61

If it is clicking in addition to having play, I would be inclined to replace it now. Hollowtech bottom brackets sell for like $30, so the cash outlay is not that painful. Which specific cranks & what model number bottom bracket is it? The 6600 Ultegra ones I have on my road bike have 10,000+ miles on them and there is zero play & the bearings are perfectly smooth.

wschruba

All angular contact bearings have side to side play when they are not loaded--you just noticed it more in the one side, likely because it needs to be regreased. I would begin by following the service procedure above.

Other things to keep in mind:

-just as a square taper cartridge relies on the cartridge to locate the bearings/spindle, an external bearing bottom bracket relies on the bottom bracket shell itself. It is prudent to have the bottom bracket chased/faced with the proper tool, to guarantee alignment. Do not assume that this was done at the factory; the overwhelming number of bikes not from custom builders do not have this done, as it is a step that is typically done *before* paint. Paint is uneven, of course...

-a properly aligned set of bearings will last far longer than not.

-anything more than 'just touching' all the bearing balls during preloading will reduce the life of the bearings significantly. It doesn't take much, and I would hazard that most make them too tight.

richbrown

Thanks for this. Couple of questions

- is it common to disassemble and re-grease these units even though they say "not serviceable" and "do not disassemble" on them?

- is it likely that a reputable bike manufacturer (in this case Genesis who are well respected in the UK) would not face their frames if supplying them (fully built) with hollowtech bottom brackets installed?

HillRider

If you are getting play or noise in a HTII bottom bracket in 400 to 1000 miles then something else is really wrong. I have them in two bikes with 15,000 and 17,000 miles respectively and both are still completely smooth and free of play and noise. I wonder if your bottom bracket shell's faces are out of alignment and that is what is damaging the bearings so fast.

sweeks

I second this ^^. None of my bikes has external bearings, but I've got cartridges ranging from lowest no-brand cartridge up to Ultegra, and none of them has less than 6,000 miles on it. The BB should be one of the most reliable and low-maintenance parts of your bie.
Steve

shelbyfv

I agree that is not normal life. Proper alignment of bb shell faces became less of an issue with cartridge bbs but has resurfaced with the separate external cups. Apparently not a common problem, but given multiple short lived bbs, worth checking in your case.