Psimet2001 

I guess I just don't view BB30 as only being Cannondale - probably because out of all of the BB30 bikes I have worked on in the last few years only 1 of them was a Cannondale. I therefore see no connection between promotion/marketing and 1 company trying to "convince the world".

Psimet2001 

I'm sure you'll debate it but I can readily acquire a full line of SRAM crank products on BB30. Not my fault Shimano is dragging it's heels. FWIW you can get the Wheels Mfg shims to convert from BB30 to Shimano's External BB standard.

cmolway

i bought a bb30 frameset last year and used the above mentioned Wheels Mfg adapters to build it up with a ultegra 6700 crankset. Simple, cheap, required no special tools, removable and works just fine.

Psimet2001 

Anytime this has popped up it has been all about the install and the original bearing pocket. There seems to be a lot of debate out there among most wrenches concerning proper installation. I had a local shop that was taught by the OEM to use Loctite. I told her not to in any way shape or form. She did. I then spent 2 hours trying to get a guys BB apart to fix it....because it has started creaking. you should have seen his face when I pulled out a torch.

In my opinion they should be bathed in grease when they are set in place. Every one I have done has come out well by doing that. She brought it up at the Specialized rollout in CA a week or two ago and she said everyone there was about 50/50 Loctite and grease.

Regardless - she used RED Loctite. She should have use the sleeve locking compound - Green as you mentioned. That would have been OK.

FlashBazbo

LBSs are clearly benefited by BB30 (and all the other press-in BBs). Cyclists are far more likely to hire their services with a press-in BB than with an easy-to-service threaded BB.

Psimet2001 

Nah. It only takes a couple of simple tools to use a BB30. Just like it only takes a couple of simple tools to work on an external BB....or cartridge system BB or old square taper. Just because they are new tools doesn't mean no one can buy them.

nhluhr

But surely you're aware that Cannondale created the BB30 standard. If you go to the BB30 website, the drawings are addressed to Cannondale. Yeah, they open-sourced it because there was no way they'd get support for it if they hadn't. Cannondale is big but not that big.

carpediemracing 

On BB30...

I've subscribed to BB30, but there are some shortcomings.

First off, there are no facing tools that I know of. If I have a frame with an imperfect BB30 bearing face, I can't fix it.

Second, the bearing removal process will probably ruin good bearings. If you swap out cranks you should have another set of bearings just in case.

On the other hand, there are things about BB30 that are good.

1. BB30 is light. The SRM Hollowgram crankset is 675 grams. It's a lot lighter than a 900g external bearing crankset.
2. With minor tools it's serviceable. I brought all the tools to my SoCal training camp. To be fair it's easier to service an external bearing BB (I have one of those).

I suspect Shimano is not on BB30 mainly because of the tolerances required for the frame as well as the less-than-automatic maintenance/replacement procedures. Shimano's stuff can be assembled by non-mechanics pretty easily (save Di2). It's kind of plug and play. BB30 is a bit more... Linux like.

Shimano is a practical company. They didn't go to carbon arms immediately because it would be hard to justify the cost for a barely measurable performance difference. Plus they're big aluminum/forging folks. Yes they went carbon rims, but they make sense. Carbon arms, not so much. If they don't go BB30 it's for a reason. Initially I thought it was just politics, but after looking at how their DA/Ultegra/wheel lines have matured, I think it's a service issue.

Hunt-man

Good tips. With mine the shop did the work each time. Took three tries to get it to stop making noise. Don't think we ever tried grease. (Edit: I think we used grease the first time) That might have made the creaking / cracking sounds it started making less audible. We did try red loctite, as I recall and it didn't do it. It was a predictable pattern. After about 10 rides the noises would start when I was standing and pushing hard, then it would get worse. We used new bearings each times we rebuilt it.

I finally got the point where I would have used epoxy to make it stop. I've got 2k on the green loctite build and it has been quiet. I do dread when it is time to change the bearings..... torch time????

nhluhr

Green and blue loctite both release at relatively low temperatures. From the Loctite website: For disassembly, shear with standard hand tools and remove with methylene chloride. In rare instances where hand tools do not work because
of excessive engagement length, apply localized heat to nut or bolt to approximately 482°F (250°C). Disassemble while hot.

Psimet2001 

Sure...but like I said - I have seen so few Cannondale BB30's in comparison to other manufacturers BB30's that I just don't think of BB30 as Cannondale. In other words the market has matured enough that Cannondale doesn't necessarily benefit from further promotion or proliferation of BB30.

To me it is no different than saying Campagnolo is trying to promote the quick release skewer.

Psimet2001 

+1 - green I can usually get out. Blue is easy. Green has had to be heated before but not nearly as mcuh.

aham23

this reminds me that my BB30 is creaky.

honestly though, that stuff doesnt bother me. i keep the bike clean & well maintained to the best of my non mechanical abilities, but freak me man, its a tool in the end. i like it looking good, looking new, looking hawt.

a tool that i utilize to punish tri guys at group road rides or a tool i use to not wave at you because im in the middle of 8 x 1 minutes @ 490w, or a tool i use to yell at you to take the damn wheel or not, or a tool i use to.....

i can do this all day.

good luck with your BB30. later.

Psimet2001 

Hmmm...must be your mechanic.

(that would be me BTW guys)

Speaking of which....I have your gear. Maybe tonight if I get rained out at the track so that you're running on all cylinders at Greyslake tomorrow?

aham23

^^^^ i dont think i can swing it tonight. family committment since i will be gone most of tomorrow. can hurt (too much) to ask though later.

Psimet2001 

Early tomorrow? Greyslake via Elgin......HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

pchopper

Psimet, I just bought a BB30 frameset, and want to still use my Ultegra crank. What tools will I need? From the Park Tool website, it looks like I'll need the bottom bracket tool (for removing the BB30 bearings when it comes time to swap) and the headset press. Is there anything else? I assume the Wheels Mfg shims can be pressed in by hand, it's probably free fit? TIA for any help.

Psimet2001 

Park has a consumer headset press you could use with the BB30 drifts they sell. I have the large shop Park headset press. I find though that I use a Wheels Manufacturing most often. ABI/Enduro makes a really cool press/tool kit that does install and removal. They actually have a lot of cool tools that I was unaware of until I became a dealer for them. Really you can get away with just about anything. You could easily just get the bearing drifts and use a threaded rod from Home Depot with some nuts and washers on it to make your own press.

EDIT: Also the wheels mfg shims do not press in. You just push them into the bearing by hand.

Psimet2001 

Park - BBT30.3 It has the 2 bearing drifts and the hammer to take them out. Us the threaded rod and nuts/washers to make a press.

sakonnetclip

That's a fair point, I'm not a shop owner and only see my own bike

From a marketing perspective though it's a common technique in an attempt to create brand recognition and in the end...sell more bikes. My company does a similar thing with one of our core technologies...we give it away for free. Now, many of our competitors use it which ultimately brings a % of their customers over to us because we're seen as the "innovator"...it's all about the BRAND.

scirocco

I've just bought a BB30 frame and plan on using a Shimano crank. I'm going to give one of these gadgets a try. What I like about this is that you don't have to install BB30 bearings or adaptor, and the press fit appears to be done simply by screwing the unit together using the regular Hollowtech tools (okay, you need two of them). At 110g it's not that much heavier than BB30 bearings plus adaptors.

Barrettscv 

That looks like a winner, thanks. I like that the bearings will be perfectly aligned and that installing and removing the unit should be idiot proof. It also looks like it will add stiffness compared to using an adapter.

I've only found one seller, so far: https://sales.light-bikes.com/kcnc/defaut.asp

Banzai

I have the CAAD9 with BB30. That being said...

It's a "solution" for a "problem" that doesn't/didn't exist.

I have no issues with my BB30, I just went with it since the frame came that way, and the adapter for an English threaded HT2 crank was just excess weight for no real purpose.

I will say, when I spin cranks on the workstand, that the BB30 has the most resistance. The HT2/external bearing comes in second, while the square taper crank I have seems nearly frictionless and just keeps spinning with a flick of the crank. Granted, that's only on the stand...

pchopper

Thanks, the threaded rod and nuts/washers is a great alternative to the headset press, as I can't see myself doing this more than once a year, if even that.


Thanks for this too, my frame comes in August (Specialized Roubaix S-Works, woohoo!), so I have some time to choose an option, and this looks pretty nifty. I'm going to have to look up what hollowtech is, I have no idea if my Ultegra crank uses that standard or what. All I know is I already bought the tool for the external Shimano bearings; a lot of bike tools are so specific (due to so many different standards out there of course) it can get frustrating.

Barrettscv 

Both the current 6700 and the prior 6600 Ultegra cranks use the Hollowtech II bottom bracket design.