Campy BB alternative?

[Lewis Moon]

Well, I just lunched my 2nd BB in about 2000 miles. All I can say is ***? It's not like I'm Sagan or anything. I was riding last weekend and felt and heard a big "click/crunch". It sounded like when I broke the down tube on my old Skunkhumper so I got off to inspect. Nothing I could see. I rode home and on a hunch I dropped the chain to spin the cranks...tons of play in the BB that wasn't there previously.
Is there a 102ish BB out there with a Campy taper and (easily) replacible bearings? I know I can replace the bearings on the Chorus I now have, and probably will eventually, but I need a BB soon and don't want to buy a used one.

[zap]

Phil Wood.

[christian]

English threaded bb - you can use an Origin8 - they come in Campy taper 102mm. Cheap, not great, but cheap and ok.

[buldogge]

Not replaceable...but...the Tokens are cheap and see decent.

First things, first...How are you lunching Campy BBs???

-Mark in St. Louis

Token and Origin 8 are the same, I didn't see Christian's post before posting...

[Lewis Moon]

English threaded bb - you can use an Origin8 - they come in Campy taper 102mm. Cheap, not great, but cheap and ok.

I had an O8. Went through it in ~500 miles. I really don't know what I'm doing wrong. I may do the PW, but I was hoping to get away w/o taking out a second mortgage.:eek:

[AngryScientist]

I had an O8. Went through it in ~500 miles. I really don't know what I'm doing wrong. I may do the PW, but I was hoping to get away w/o taking out a second mortgage.:eek:

i think you need to figure out what's going wrong. killing a bottom bracket in 500 miles is absolutely abnormal. there must be something else going wrong to cause this...

[Lewis Moon]

Not replaceable...but...the Tokens are cheap and see decent.

First things, first...How are you lunching Campy BBs???

-Mark in St. Louis

The first one (the O8) was probably due to riding in the rain. Lots of fine dirt in the spray when you ride in the rain in AZ. I bought the Chorus used and it was probably on it's last legs. I should have returned it before installing but I figured what the heck...it's Campy. My mistake.

My biggest problem is I'm a cheap bastid.

[lhuerta]

First things, first...How are you lunching Campy BBs???


Token and Origin 8 are the same, I didn't see Christian's post before posting...


+1

Something is not right, either in your installation of the BB or basic maintenance....especially if you are talking about a pre-Ultra-Torque 102mm sealed BB unit, which IME is quite durable and almost indestructible.

Tell us more about your set-up, as well as your riding and maintenance habits.

Lou

[FlashUNC]

Heck, I'd say Campy square taper BB's are barely broken in at 2,000 miles, much less broken.

Are you sure you're not some hybrid clone of Mark Cavendish and Andrei Greipel?

[zap]

I may do the PW, but I was hoping to get away w/o taking out a second mortgage.:eek:

It's an investment of sorts. Use a PW BB for 5-10 years and then you can sell it for 50-70% of original value.

[Lewis Moon]

Heck, I'd say Campy square taper BB's are barely broken in at 2,000 miles, much less broken.

Are you sure you're not some hybrid clone of Mark Cavendish and Andrei Greipel?

See my post above. I probably just had a string of bad luck coupled with a bad decision (not to return the used chorus). I've been trying to train myself to spin this time around, but as a 6'5" and 180ish guy who fashioned myself as a road sprinter when I raced, when I come out of the saddle and stomp, it probably takes it's toll. I'm a bit of a hammerhead (a nickname when I raced).
As for maintenance....it's a BB with sealed bearings. I'm pretty careful about not side loading the bearings when I install, but otherwise....

[christian]

I'm confused. I mean the O8/Token stuff isn't great, but it should last a heck of a lot longer than a crappy tubular. I've never gotten less than 10,000 miles from a Campagnolo 102mm cartridge bb.

As lame as it is, I think I'd recommend another Campagnolo Chorus bb. I think it's the best combo of price and value.

[christian]

Yeah, fair enough on all your comments. Maybe it's just a string of bad bad luck. I know it's crazy to do the same thing and expect different results, but in this case....

[SPOKE]

Did the bearings fail or did the fixed cup flange crack/break on the campy record bb?

[tmf]

I would vote to get a brand new Chorus 102. The Token and O8 are about half the cost, but you get what you pay for. Nothing against them - I've used a couple of them with no issues, but I think the Chorus is at least twice as good.

Ribble has the Chorus for $69 which is just a little more than the used ones go for.

[Lewis Moon]

Did the bearings fail or did the fixed cup flange crack/break on the campy record bb?

Haven't removed it yet. I'm actually going to try to ride it for a bit...:eek: I mean, what more damage could I do? I think I may look for a NOS Chorus/Record, or even a FW if I can find a cheap(ish) one. I have field work planned for next week so I'll order it and hopefully I won't have to ride my #2 bike for too long.

As for maintenance, I'm not the fiddeler I used to be. I used to spend hours adjusting/polishing/stroking my bikes when I was younger. Now when I get home from a ride, I lean it up against the work bench, strip shoes and helmet and go inside. Maintenance is more reactive than proactive. I'm a dad with a job now. I'm pretty sure that, for me, having the emphasis be riding rather than owning/polishing/tweaking, is the healthier alternative. I mean, I love the bike, but I'm not going to sweat it when it gets dirty.

[Grant McLean]

I would vote to get a brand new Chorus 102.

Ribble has the Chorus for $69 which is just a little more than the used ones go for.

Yup. End of search.

[Lewis Moon]

I'm a bad man.

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-3I4LzSa2SKg/UVZnlYn5IbI/AAAAAAAABAE/Jg3VYNBrL-w/s1143/P1020566.JPG

[oliver1850]

I have a Chorus that came from ebay with worn out drive side bearings. The seller refunded me the cost of replacing them. I'm just going to put generic bearings in and see how long they last, the original SKFs are too much money.

[Ralph]

When you originally installed it, torqued it down, etc, was it smooth? BB shell prepped? Faced? I've seen many of these BB's that when you get them tightened to specs, the axle is under a strong bind. They don't last long then. Even the Token's and Origine Ones won't last long under those conditions. Perhaps a BB without a fixed cup side will last longer in a frame not faced.

[merckx]

Do you have a washing machine? If so, send your wife out with the credit card. Then rob the bearings from the machine. It has been done before.

[fuzzalow]

This response is like that from the from the fortune telling 8-Ball in that "all signs point to" a bad or badly prepped BB.

Those Campy cartridge BBs are virtually maintenance free and impervious to destruction from even abnormal human outputs. But get those bearings loaded in any way from the perfect orbital paths by which they were designed to circulate and sure as Copernicus, they will self destruct.

Replacing BBs ad infinitum won't change a thing except only if a bad install was the problem and in the course of swapping in a new BB the install was chanced upon to be right.

[oldpotatoe]

Well, I just lunched my 2nd BB in about 2000 miles. All I can say is ***? It's not like I'm Sagan or anything. I was riding last weekend and felt and heard a big "click/crunch". It sounded like when I broke the down tube on my old Skunkhumper so I got off to inspect. Nothing I could see. I rode home and on a hunch I dropped the chain to spin the cranks...tons of play in the BB that wasn't there previously.
Is there a 102ish BB out there with a Campy taper and (easily) replacible bearings? I know I can replace the bearings on the Chorus I now have, and probably will eventually, but I need a BB soon and don't want to buy a used one.

Has the frame been prepped? Faced and chased?

Phil Wood but IME, with a well prepped frame, these last a long time.

OK, you're cheap..how many BB $ does it take before you spend the $45-$50 to get the frame prepped?

[Lewis Moon]

Has the frame been prepped? Faced and chased?

Phil Wood but IME, with a well prepped frame, these last a long time.

OK, you're cheap..how many BB $ does it take before you spend the $45-$50 to get the frame prepped?

Both BB shells (two frames) were faced and chased by the LBS.

[SPOKE]

Is there a drain hole in the BB shell?

[oldpotatoe]

Both BB shells (two frames) were faced and chased by the LBS.

Then perhaps the threads aren't cut parallel.

When you install the BB, cups tight, does the spindle feel notchy, crappy?

[Formulasaab]

I agree with the direction this thread is headed... No way you are doing this with pedal power without some other contributing factor. Since it has happened on multiple BBs I agree with the 8-ball assessment. All signs point to a frame problem of some sort.

[Ken Robb]

After all your problems I think you should take the bike to a GOOD shop, explain what has been happening and get their diagnosis. Assuming they have one and a plan to prevent a recurrence buy a BB from them and pay them to install it. Heck since you say you no longer do preventive maintenance why not pay them for a full tune-up so you can ride with no worries for a long time?

[zmudshark]

Lewis,

Try either Bike Haus or Bike Ranch, both can do a proper job on Campagnolo.

[SPOKE]

2000 miles over what time period? Submerged in a fine silt mud bath when pedaling?? I ask these questions because the picture shows a bb that looks well used/older than what I'd expect for 2000miles.
This being said....if the threaded ends of the bb shell do not share the same centerline then maybe what the pic shows makes since in he presence of a bunch of moisture/water.

[emmett]

i'd go with the phil wood titanium

[Ralph]

If BB not OK, might as well get the cheapest thing you can find. None will last long.

That picture showed an old BB. Like maybe it had 15,000-20,000 miles on it. Well beat up. That could not have been a curent new model with 2000 miles.

[dana_e]

over token

phil Ti is too pricey, IMO

[pbarry]

Both BB shells (two frames) were faced and chased by the LBS.

As others have said: Go to a different Campy friendly shop and have them look at your frame. That BB has way more miles than mentioned.

When you ride in inclement weather, either remove your seat post and turn the bike upside down after a rainy ride, or drill a drain hole in your BB shell so the bearings aren't mucking about in H2O all the time. :beer:

[Lewis Moon]

...talk about thread resurrection....

[Black Dog]

Emmett will be posting in the classifieds soon. ;)

[oldpotatoe]

i'd go with the phil wood titanium

Phil is great but IMHO, anyplace you touch bike, pedals, BBs(If applicable), etc, ti is a poor material. No real advantage in weight savings, MUCH more expensive. BUT I think his threads of the BB shell aren't parallel.

[oldpotatoe]

...talk about thread resurrection....

He's new..hasn't found the date yet..

[pbarry]

...talk about thread resurrection....

Hee. I missed the date too... What was the outcome here? Interested as square taper 102's are what's in my stable.