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[Closed] Never *EVER* buying another bike with a ****ing pressfit BB!!!!

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Road bike, BB86/BB92 or whatever it's called, BB started creaking horrifically after a few thousand miles.

I am now attempting to remove it with the Park Tool thing and a massive hammer.

Hitting it gently did nothing. Hitting a bit less gently also did nothing.

Really smashing it ended up just gouging a hole in my hand. Great. Blood now oozing.

Never had this level of grief with a screw in one.

Pressfit: you are dead to me.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 8:08 pm
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Agreed but there are plenty on here that reckon they are great.
Strikes me as a lazy way of doing it...


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 8:13 pm
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🤣

Fitted a stealth dropper to my specialized stump jumper. Had to completely remove the pf bb to install it.

My other bikes are threaded bb thankfully.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 8:14 pm
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Also, can anyone recommend a nice rim brake frame with a screw-in BB?

This one isn't coming out anytime soon.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 8:14 pm
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Just fit a FSA Threaded Adapter and kiss PF goodbye.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 8:15 pm
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Put a Wheels Manufacturing BB in there. You can get ones that screw together inside the PF shell so they don't move and therefore don't creak. The bearings then press into the metal shell.

That solved all my PF woes - after having gone through several sets of bearings and a lot of creaking.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 8:23 pm
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+1 for wheels manufacturing BB conversion 2k now on my Diverge, the old PF40 were lasting less than 2-300km before clicking and creaking.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 8:26 pm
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FWIW a threaded adaptor won't fit in a BB86/92/PF41 BB as they're designed for bigger diameter BB30 or PF46 types. I have PF41 on a couple of bikes - as suggested a Wheels Manufacturing screw-together BB is the way to go as they maintain accurate bearing alignment and ensure there's no internal water ingress which is the main cause of premature BB failure.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 9:00 pm
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Unlucky, I used to have an On-One frame with a press fit BB (Whippet) and BBs varied between easy to insert/extract with your fingers to so loose they fell out if you didn’t get the cranks in quick....another quality On-One product🤣


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 9:05 pm
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Yep I like the look of yt and commencal bikes but will never buy a pressfit BB frame.
Fortunately as ebikes become the norm this is no longer an issue.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 9:11 pm
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PF86/92 like you have is the better of the press fit systems, I had the LBS put a Hope BB after the stock one when my road bike started creaking and its been sound since then. Worth a few quid go your LBS to sort.
BB30 however is a different name altogether and the single reason I’ll never buy a Cannondale.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 9:12 pm
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it's all down to installation. if the bearings were put in aligned properly and with a smear of crease on the outer edge, they won't creak, will last as long as an external BB and can be removed easily. it's down to which ever factory rammed them in on a up against it, paid peanuts workforce rather than the design.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 9:28 pm
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Had bikes with PF92 for the last 5 years & not a single issue.

I nearly had a meltdown with an old creaking BB30 that didnt seem to matter what BB or adapter system I used.

PF92 though? Total non issue. 🙂


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 9:46 pm
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+1 for Wheels Manufacturing screw-together here too. I got a BB30A winter bike recently and thought I'd give press fit the benefit of the doubt. 100 miles in and I'd fitted my preferred Wheels BB after creaking had started; won't bother again in future, just stick to my usual strategy, they just work.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 9:57 pm
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daveylad

Fortunately as ebikes become the norm this is no longer an issue.

Don't you mean, "alternative"?😉


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 10:29 pm
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I had a wheels adapter thing in a bike and it seemed to eat bearings,
Hambini makes all manner of adaptors for bbs


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 10:45 pm
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Tempted by the Hambini.

Also tempted to just get a frame with an old-skool 68mm threaded BB.

My Cotic FlareMax has one of those, it just works.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 11:11 pm
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Just put a 1x11 SLX groupset on one of my Cannondales and used a Praxis conversion BB. Quality bit of kit.


 
Posted : 06/10/2019 11:25 pm
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BB92 is plastic cups isn't it? Pretty sure that's what's in my remedy, wish it was a proper screw-in but I've never had any problems knocking them out.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 1:55 am
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rOcKeTdOg : it’s all down to installation.

Except when it's down to poor frame manufacture (tolerances, alignment etc).


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 7:46 am
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After smashing up my hand I remembered that last time I replaced this thing (a few hundred miles after my LBS had replaced it) I put on some loctite 641.

So I will need to apply the hot air gun to it and try again, and if that fails, the awesome power of the hacksaw.

Meanwhile, a friend says he will build me a steel frame, which is quite tempting. A long low slack road bike with a threaded BB would be sick!


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 9:01 am
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BB92 is plastic cups isn’t it? Pretty sure that’s what’s in my remedy, wish it was a proper screw-in but I’ve never had any problems knocking them out.

I've got a Fuel EX which is knocking on 3000 miles now and the original BB lasted 2200 without any noise whatsoever. Probably would have gone on a bit longer but I stored the stripped frame for a year and it seized then, including all the pivot bearings. I was expecting hassle from it but it's given me none whatsoever. Speaking to the LBS when I had it changed they said they have very little trouble with Treks, it's the Cannondales that cause them grief. I still prefer threaded but I wouldn't completely rule out a frame due to a press-fit BB.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 9:27 am
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it’s the Cannondales that cause them grief

Mr Hambini is fairly scathing about alignment on the Canondales.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 9:41 am
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Which is the one with plastic cups? I have that on my Trek, it developed play and I was a bit apprehensive but I just knocked the old one out with a stick and the new one in with a plastic hammer - could barely have been easier and it's silent.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 9:45 am
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Which is the one with plastic cups?

BB86, the Shimano one. It seems to be the only one that doesn't routinely creak by design. Sadly, it's also the one I've got, and which I've had the joy of listening to for so many miles.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 9:49 am
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+1 for a Wheels Mfg or Enduro screw-in BB.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 10:18 am
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I just bought a new road bike, a 2019 Spesh Tarmac Disc. Comes with threaded BSA BB! Whoop!

My hardtail is also threaded BB. Threaded is the future. F... pressfit


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 10:26 am
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and BBs varied between easy to insert/extract with your fingers to so loose they fell out if you didn’t get the cranks in quick…

So consistently the bb tolerance varies but that meant the frame was at fault?

There's nothing wrong with PF done right, the issue is it's not often done right. The tolerances are too large on the design of several systems so they're rubbish but, the ones with decently tight tolerance are fine.

On a carbon frame they make sense, your bsa bb housing is only a factory fitted PF cup to all intents and purposes, all be it bonded place but, the tolerance issues with frame manufacture are the same so if they can't get a PF aligned correctly you'll have the same problem with your bsa one (then be on here moaning about how your shimano/hope/uberbike/someone else bottom bracket is crap yet somehow 75% of thread respondents will tell you theirs are wonderful).

PF on a metal frame is just lazy/cheap manufacturing.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 10:53 am
 ton
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can anyone tell me which wheels mfg bb I would need for this crank?

Truvativ Stylo 6K DUB 30T


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 1:08 pm
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Which bb standard is the frame ton?

Fwiw I've not seen any pf dub units other than sram though I only specifically looked for pf92 but didn't see them for anything else either.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 1:16 pm
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@ton

Could you use a Hope PF46 Press Fit 30mm SRAM Bottom Bracket

&

One of these spacers?


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 2:30 pm
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The WHeelsManufacturing BB i use is great, no creaks and bearings last well.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 3:07 pm
 tomd
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I’ve got a Fuel EX which is knocking on 3000 miles now and the original BB lasted 2200 without any noise whatsoever. Probably would have gone on a bit longer but I stored the stripped frame for a year and it seized then, including all the pivot bearings. I was expecting hassle from it but it’s given me none whatsoever. Speaking to the LBS when I had it changed they said they have very little trouble with Treks, it’s the Cannondales that cause them grief. I still prefer threaded but I wouldn’t completely rule out a frame due to a press-fit BB.

Also my experience with my Fuel. The bike is 7 years old and on BB #2. It gets a fair bit of use.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 3:09 pm
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The SRAM PF30 in my Specialized Enduro is junk. The original factory fitted one started creaking after a few hundred miles, but I lived with it for ages as it felt smooth enough and the creaking didn't get any worse until it had a few thousand miles on it. I got my LBS to fit a new one last year and that started creaking after about a dozen rides, worse than the original. My new bike thankfully has a threaded BB. I wouldn't risk buying another bike with a PF30.


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 5:41 pm
 tdog
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What crazy legs said


 
Posted : 07/10/2019 9:51 pm
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Having now removed it, and measured it with my fairly rubbish vernier calipers, I think the NDS is 41mm, but the drive side looks to be ovalized - it's 41.0mm one way, and 41.2mm the other.

The spec for BB86 seems quite hard to find, but a couple of BB manufacturers have drawings indicating quite a bit less than that - less than 0.05mm.


 
Posted : 10/10/2019 11:32 am
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The Park Tool reamer is 40.96mm

BB cup OD of 41.06 gives a 0.1mm press fit. (eg a shimano press fit in a decent frame, no issues, works fine). (still a stupid design in the real world, but it works if tolerances are adhered to/quality control etc)

The thread together press fit BB (Wheels, Hope etc) mean the BB clamps the frame, and cups are linked so less likely to rock and creak if the fit is not good.

You are not supposed to but you can also bond in an aftermarket alloy BB and then just replace the bearings in that as required.


 
Posted : 10/10/2019 2:25 pm

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