Loctite, bottom brackets and Ti

[Gat64]

I have been having some issues with my Campy chorus square taper bottom bracket and creaking. I have installed it with anti-seize in a Ti frame, but after some heavy climbing it starts to creak.

Just wondering if using blue loctite would be a better solution? I know it is recommended on bearing cups, so maybe a possible solution for my bottom bracket?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Cheers

[thwart]

... wish I had a nickel for every 'bottom bracket creak' that actually came from someplace else...

[Gat64]

I know what you mean, but in this case, it is the bottom bracket as I have tightened up the BB already once after the first creaking session with solved this issue.... for a while, and then it came back.

Maybe I need to just tighten it up again... just don't want to be doing this every week...

[thwart]

Plumber's tape (teflon) has been effective for some people, although I have no personal experience using it with a Ti frame.

[jds108]

If you haven't already, check/grease all of the other possible culprits down there: chainring bolts, pedal to crank, cleat to pedal, crank to bb, etc. Like others have said, sometimes the noise isn't even originating where you think it is... Just a lot of trial and error possibly to go through.

If you do something with the bb/frame threads, just make sure that the Ti won't get galled. I had a ti seatpost start to get stuck in a Ti frame and don't ever want to deal with that again...

[martinrjensen]

Are you torquing the bottom bracket? Could it just be it's not tight enough? Neverseize should work fine

[David Kirk]

Is the BB properly faced?

dave

[illuminaught]

Check the headset and chainring bolts...
but teflon tape is the best option... grease it too.

[ultraman6970]

+1 in the teflon tape. Take the chainring bolts out and grease them around, then tight them really well.

[monkeybanana86]

I have done many searches on bb threads and started to use teflon tape ( after seeing that rec over and over) to secure my cups which of course works (and no creaks). Bet you oldpotatoe will tell you no on loctite as he seems to have seen too many seazing

[cp43]

+1 in the teflon tape. Take the chainring bolts out and grease them around, then tight them really well.

From experience, I'd change the above to "tighten them to spec." I ruined a set of chain ring bolts by over tightening them. They were a bear to get out too.

I don't know what the torque spec is for chain ring bolts, but they don't need too much.

Chris

[Bob Loblaw]

Over-torqued aluminum chainring bolts will break. DAMHIK.

A lot of creaks in square taper BB's are actually from under-torqueing the crank bolts. Make sure the square taper surfaces on spindle and crank arm are clean and in good repair...and don't grease them on assembly, BTW.

Wrap the cup threads in teflon tape and apply anti-seize generously to the BB shell threads and to the BB shell face. Wipe of the excess with a rag once the cups are installed and torqued to spec.

If that doesn't work, it may be the chainrings. Apply a drop of lightweight oil to each chainring bolt from the top and let it work its way down between the chainrings and bolt. if that works, then you need to pull the chainrings, clean everything thoroughly, and reassemble with grease on every surface and teflon tape on the CR bolts.

Good luck,

BL

[Gat64]

Thanks for all your replies.

Since the issue has occurred before and temporarily solved by tightening the BB cup, I am pretty sure the creak is coming from that again. All other fasteners were checked. It's a Hors Cat frame, so I even made sure the elastomer bracket bolts were nice an snug (I have had noise issues from them before when they loosened up a bit).

As for the BB being faced - would I need to have this done even though I just removed a BB and installed a new one? Can I assume it was ok? It has been a very well maintained (spoiled, my wife would say) frame.

I'll go ahead and try the teflon tape and see if that solves the issue.

Cheers

[dave thompson]

Thanks for all your replies.

Since the issue has occurred before and temporarily solved by tightening the BB cup, I am pretty sure the creak is coming from that again. All other fasteners were checked. It's a Hors Cat frame, so I even made sure the elastomer bracket bolts were nice an snug (I have had noise issues from them before when they loosened up a bit).

As for the BB being faced - would I need to have this done even though I just removed a BB and installed a new one? Can I assume it was ok? It has been a very well maintained (spoiled, my wife would say) frame.

I'll go ahead and try the teflon tape and see if that solves the issue.

Cheers
...and lotsa grease!

[David Kirk]

Thanks for all your replies.

Since the issue has occurred before and temporarily solved by tightening the BB cup, I am pretty sure the creak is coming from that again. All other fasteners were checked. It's a Hors Cat frame, so I even made sure the elastomer bracket bolts were nice an snug (I have had noise issues from them before when they loosened up a bit).

As for the BB being faced - would I need to have this done even though I just removed a BB and installed a new one? Can I assume it was ok? It has been a very well maintained (spoiled, my wife would say) frame.

I'll go ahead and try the teflon tape and see if that solves the issue.

Cheers

If the bike is a Serotta an has never been messed with the facing should be good.

Do me a favor and humor me - take your front derailleur off and clean the inside of the clamp and the seat tube well and put a light coat of grease on it and reinstall it and see if you have any change. I have a cold beer bet on it fixing the issue. Note I said one beer and not an entire 6 pack because I still have doubts but it's a free/easy fix if it works. We put out a service bulletin on this way back in the day.

dave

[Gat64]

If the bike is a Serotta an has never been messed with the facing should be good.

Do me a favor and humor me - take your front derailleur off and clean the inside of the clamp and the seat tube well and put a light coat of grease on it and reinstall it and see if you have any change. I have a cold beer bet on it fixing the issue. Note I said one beer and not an entire 6 pack because I still have doubts but it's a free/easy fix if it works. We put out a service bulletin on this way back in the day.

dave

Dave - You're on! I'll give it a try.

[oldpotatoe]

I have been having some issues with my Campy chorus square taper bottom bracket and creaking. I have installed it with anti-seize in a Ti frame, but after some heavy climbing it starts to creak.

Just wondering if using blue loctite would be a better solution? I know it is recommended on bearing cups, so maybe a possible solution for my bottom bracket?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Cheers

DO NOT use Loctite on BB cups. I have cut more than few out. Grease, or antisieze, inside the BB shell and grease inside the cups(tap the RH one off), teflon tape around cup threads, install TIGHT.

[oldpotatoe]

If you haven't already, check/grease all of the other possible culprits down there: chainring bolts, pedal to crank, cleat to pedal, crank to bb, etc. Like others have said, sometimes the noise isn't even originating where you think it is... Just a lot of trial and error possibly to go through.

If you do something with the bb/frame threads, just make sure that the Ti won't get galled. I had a ti seatpost start to get stuck in a Ti frame and don't ever want to deal with that again...

"crank to bb"...NO, please..dry spindle, tighten to torque, 30 ft-lbs is a good round number.

[DHallerman]

DO NOT use Loctite on BB cups. I have cut more than few out. Grease, or antisieze, inside the BB shell and grease inside the cups(tap the RH one off), teflon tape around cup threads, install TIGHT.

Just wondering, then, why the mounting rings for Phil Wood bottom brackets come with Loctite -- or some other, generic blue threadlocker -- and you're instructed to use it.

I would think the Phil Wood folks know what they're doing.

Dave, who has installed various Phil Wood bottom brackets without any trouble removing them including ones in both steel and titanium frames but uses copper anti-seize for other types of bottom brackets

[DHallerman]

"crank to bb"...NO, please..dry spindle, tighten to torque, 30 ft-lbs is a good round number.

Yes, and keep in mind that 40 newton meters -- another good round number that's roughly equivalent to 30 ft-lbs -- is a lot of torque.

That is, feels like a lot.

Until I started using a torque wrench for crank bolts to get to that 40 Nm torque, I thought they were tight, but they weren't tight enough.

[guyintense]

and then torque them again after you've ridden it a while.

[Gat64]

Well, in the end it was a chainring bolt! I thought I checked them all, but before redoing the BB, I thought I would check once more.

All quiet now...

[texbike]

Well, in the end it was a chainring bolt! I thought I checked them all, but before redoing the BB, I thought I would check once more.

All quiet now...

Wow! That's crazy. Did you put any oil on them or just tighten them up?

Texbike

[Gat64]

Just snagged it up.

[Bob Loblaw]

Packing them with tape and grease would be impractical.

The manufacturer's obligation is to provide something that works and stays in place. Loctite will keep it from unscrewing itself. However, it will not prevent the BB from seizing in place, nor will it quiet creaks.

BL

Just wondering, then, why the mounting rings for Phil Wood bottom brackets come with Loctite -- or some other, generic blue threadlocker -- and you're instructed to use it.

I would think the Phil Wood folks know what they're doing.

Dave, who has installed various Phil Wood bottom brackets without any trouble removing them including ones in both steel and titanium frames but uses copper anti-seize for other types of bottom brackets

[oldpotatoe]

Just wondering, then, why the mounting rings for Phil Wood bottom brackets come with Loctite -- or some other, generic blue threadlocker -- and you're instructed to use it.

I would think the Phil Wood folks know what they're doing.

Dave, who has installed various Phil Wood bottom brackets without any trouble removing them including ones in both steel and titanium frames but uses copper anti-seize for other types of bottom brackets

Don't know, I have never used it. I have installed a 'few' Phil BBs and have never used their loctite..ask them. I use grease or antisieze, use 2 tools and install them tight. AND have never had one come loose, unscrew.

Gluing in BB cups 'can' lead to drill presses, small saws and other cutting or drilling tools to get siezed into frames, BB cups out.

But do ya what ya want...and so will I.