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Currently putting together a 'dream' build, I've all the parts either on order or physically apart from the bottom bracket.
Is Chris king really worth almost double the price of hope? Has anybody tried ride works bb's, is there any other brand I should look at? Cane creek? Etc.
*Needs to fit a raceface sixc axel.
I’ve got Chris King 30mm BBS on on two bikes. They’ve been on there for thousands of km without any issues. Saying that, I like the BB that screw together, but this wasn’t an option for one of my frames (BB386evo) and the other already had a CK.
It’s worth pointing out that CK no longer make PF 30 BBs. So unless you have a T47 or something you may need to buy second hand.
Don't need press fit - is a BSA threaded shell..
Al be it 100mm wide😁.
Wheels Mfg - bearings are a lot bigger than RF and better sealed.
An RF one has done two years/winters and about 2500km on one bike.
Getting grumbly now though.
I be repacked bearings with grease every few months.
Got a Praxis one to go on, doesn't look much different.
The problem with outboard bearing BBs, is the bearings are right in the line if fire.
Good bearings and seals are all that makes a difference really.
Packing them with grease is about all you can do to improve longevity.
I've had my HB160 coming on 2.5 years now, and the 30mm BB is still on it's original bearings and spins as smooth as day 1 (3300 miles, according to Strava). I realise it's not quite the same as a BSA 30mm BB, but I think it's down to a few things:
Decent bearings
Loads of grease/regular re-greasing - I use blue marine grease
Prober fit - parallel, concentric etc.
The Hope ceramic in my old 456Ti still spins well, 12 years now...
I have Hope 30mm BBs on 4 bikes, they've lasted really well, only the oldest one has had a regrease and after that it was good as new.
Tries a nukeproof recently, it lasted about 4 rides, and went back for a refund, Hope all the way.
As a side note - I went through three sets of SixC cranks, my friend has done the same. If you're really building a dream bike, then I'd look at different cranks, the SixC (and all RF carbon cranks) are dangerous junk. See the thread below - running total there is 27 failures out of 29 cranks
https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/race-face-crank-failure/
I went through three sets of SixC cranks
They are on my current bike so are down on my list to swap over. I'm aware that the pedal insert has big issues but I'm not prepared to swap them over to something else at the moment.
Yeah, just if you were buying new, would avoid, if you have them already, fair enough
They all use a 6806-2RS bearing and bearing shields...
Pick whatever you can find cheap that you like the look of, pack the bearings full of decent grease and change them when they wear out...
I’ve got 2 30mm Hope BB’s that I inherited for peanuts off other people because the “bearings were dead” and they either didn’t realise they were replaceable, or weren’t inclined to do so just bought entire new units! 🤷🏻♂️ I didn’t even need to replace the bearings ironically, picked the seals on the bearings, packed full of decent grease, and they spin just fine again! Well... Fine enough for me not to be bothered anyway... Will put some new 6806 Enduro’s in there maybe come summer for about £20 for the pair...
So in typical are fashion. I read and carefully considered all of the comments on the thread, and went with the one nobody mentioned....
Cane creek hellbender neo - the one with the skf bearings.
😁
100mm, so fatbike?
Rotor do a BB 30 threaded. Its a reasonable price, well sealed and comes with a plastic tool to fit a standard HT11 tool so no need to buy another.
If you do go for it, I cant recall there being any spacers so if its for a Hope crankset for instance, I needed a bag of assorted spacers, again from Rotor. Its doing really well and basically, just working.
Cane Creek hellbender Neo
https://www.extrauk.co.uk/product/detail/Cane_Creek/Bottom_Brackets/6678/
Uses SKF solid oil mtrx bearings, has a tiny bit more drag than a regular BB, and if it's been sat for a while it takes a few turns of the cranks to move freely again, but I've had no issues with mine.
@monkeyboyjc - where did you find the Neo? I was looking for it when the Nukeproof failed but couldn't find it in BSA 30mm form. There was one without the "Neo" which is minus the solid oil bearings, but the BSA Neo was nowhere to be found, Extra not listing it above either.
@honourablegeorge took about and hour of Google search to find one... Ended up getting the last in stock that kingdom bikes had -sorry.
No worries - will be interested to hear how it performs - the SKF bearings can be had separately, so whenever I eventually wear out a hope I might try a set.
I'd have gone straight for a Hope BB in this size.
Hope would have been my go to... But they do seem to be on just about custom bike build (the orange 5 or bb's?) and I'd like something a little different.