Old 06-30-21, 03:04 AM
  #12  
Lazyass
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I have much experience with BB30's. The first set on my bike creaked bad brand new. I destroyed the bearings trying to get them out. Bought new ones and the proper removal tool, the cheap $10 one in the picture below and installed them with locktite. The second set of bearings never did spin smooth nor could I get the cranks torqued perfectly and I learned it was because I installed them incorrectly, they weren't flush with the c-clips and were at a slight angle. But they were quiet because I used locktite.

I ended up buying a new carbon crankset and it came with new bearings. I installed them correctly with grease only and they're dead silent. This is how I did it:

The removal tool sucked because you have to put a rod against it and and it slips off with each blow. Since they were locktited I could not get them out.

I knew they were going in the trash so I removed them this way: Removed the c-clips from the inside. Got a punch and just hammered them out, after a couple of blows they popped out.

When I installed the new bearings I put them in the freezer first to shrink them. Then I packed the shell with grease, heated it up with my heat gun then CAREFULLY seated the bearing in the shell by hand perfectly even all the way around. Then I lightly tapped it by hammer with a rubber coated flat handle of my chain whip. Tap it very lightly all the way around so it doesn't go in canted and get stuck. After the outer surface of the bearing was flush with the shell I put my removal tool on it and with one hammer blow pushed it all the way against the c-clip. The whole process only took about 10 minutes and it is perfect now. No creaks with grease only. Sounds complicated but it really isn't.


Be advised that you only use a punch to get them out if you are not going to reuse them because it will destroy them. But if they're locktited it you don't have much choice. And I only use the removal tool to install them and push them all the way inside. Now that I know the process I don't have a problem with BB30. I do believe not all bearings are equal with the correct tolerances because mine creaked when the bike was new and my new bearings do not creak.


Last edited by Lazyass; 06-30-21 at 03:11 AM.
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