# A Magic Bullet for BB30 creak...anyone?



## Pontimax (Sep 16, 2013)

Hello all. I’ve read and researched ad nauseam for a remedy and not sure if there is anything left that I haven’t tried? I have about 4000 miles on my current setup and the creaks insidiously began about 2 weeks ago. I meticulously maintain my bike and have a full complement of shop quality tools, i.e. BB30 puller and press. I am running an SL-K light crank, Praxis rings, Hawk Racing BB30, housed in an aluminum BB shell. I know it’s originating from my BB and only on the drive side under load. I have overhauled it twice cleaning and greasing to no avail. I have cleaned, greased then blue Loctited, the chainring bolts. Pedals cleaned and greased. No relief. I have green Loctited the bearings in using 609, greased the spindle and reassembled…no cure. Then pulled the crank cleaned the spindle and then used the 609 on the spindle and reassembled…no love. So yesterday I pulled it all apart again, cleaned, heavily greased (Shimano Green), popped in some new FSA bearings and reassembled – only to have about 40 miles with no creak. It was back with a vengeance this morning. I simply cannot stand a noisy, dirty bike as it taints my feeling of oneness with my machine. I am now of the mindset that once the creaks set in something is permanently out of whack and it may be something I have to live with? I honestly don’t want to swap out to a new BB/crank. Hoping that someone out there has some tips or advice that I haven’t tried or come across? Cursid BB30! Thanks so much and be safe out there! R​


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## junior1210 (May 2, 2013)

I don't have a BB30 so take my advice with grain of salt. First I'd go back and grease (or carbon paste) saddle rails, seat post, fork/stem joint, stem/bar joint just to make sure all bases were covered. If still no joy, I'd check frame around the BB shell and maybe the seat post and chain stays for cracks (I doubt that's the problem, but checking costs nothing but time). After that I'd consider a different BB.


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## Hiro11 (Dec 18, 2010)

Praxis might work. Other than that, the best solution:

1. sell frame
2. buy frame with a threaded BB
3. never buy another press-fit frame again.

Unless manufacturers start to get the hint that buyers know that this design sucks, they're not going to stop making it. The problem is that 95% of buyers don't even know what a press fit BB is and don't know that it sucks. It's getting difficult to find threaded BB these days.


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## SROC3 (Jul 20, 2009)

I recently had a creak that would not go away.....they dis-assembled and re-built my BB twice. Then.....I loosened, greased and retightened my cleats. Noise gone. It's worth a look see  I hope it isn't a cracked BB that's making that noise - although if it was, it would be consistent and probably have gotten louder by now.


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## 195cranky (Jun 25, 2013)

Hiro11 is my hero. He wrote exactly what I would have posted. Pressfit BB is just B.S. garbage. Refuse to buy a frame with that lousy set-up. Last two frames were threaded and next one will be as well.

Sell it. For the same money or sometimes even less buy a custom made frame from a reputable frame builder where you can custom order a threaded BB and live happily ever after creak free. 

I feel your pain. Been through all that. Life is too short to put up with nonsense. Good luck.


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## tvad (Aug 31, 2003)

BB30 doesn't have to creak. Neither of mine have. I presently own a Cannondale SuperSix EVO HiMod with Praxis Conversion BB. Quiet. Ahh...

Don't sell the bike. Try a Praxis.


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## Pontimax (Sep 16, 2013)

tvad said:


> BB30 doesn't have to creak. Neither of mine have. I presently own a Cannondale SuperSix EVO HiMod with Praxis Conversion BB. Quiet. Ahh...
> 
> Don't sell the bike. Try a Praxis.


I miss that "quiet...ahh." Don't mind it so much on the flats as I can spin it out, but climbing (when in zen mode) it grates on my cycling sensibilities. Big fan of Praxis right here, but that conversion would warrant a new crank. Agree completely with above posters (and thanks for replying) that this BB stand is inherently prone to failure. The metal fatigues, flexes, and the tolerances required are lost over 1000's of miles. Especially when I lay down the power like Greipel...Lol. I don't mind the occasional overhaul as I love working on my bikes, but the BB30 is too needy. I inspected the BB area and cranks for any sort of crack or niggles, but it's all sound. I'll get to next season with this frame and do a parts migration with a new frame/bb/crank. Who knows...I bet within a year another BB "standard" will be introduced?!


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## tvad (Aug 31, 2003)

Pontimax said:


> Agree completely with above posters (and thanks for replying) that this BB stand is inherently prone to failure.


I can't agree that BB30 is inherently prone to failure. I think that's hyperbole.

I've owned three bikes with BB30, and the bottom bracket didn't creak on any of them...and I do lots of hard effort climbing that could cause creaking. I've used only Campy cranks/BB cups and Shimano cranks with Praxis BB, so my experience is limited to those components.


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## chudak (Jul 28, 2012)

My bike has creaked on and off since day one. This week I'm getting the praxis adapter and a new 6800 crankset installed. We'll see what we see...


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## Gregory Taylor (Mar 29, 2002)

I don't own a BB30 bike...but....

Try assembling it with some Permatex Anti-Sieze. Nasty stuff, but does a decent job when mating dissimilar metals (as I suspect the bearing, the spindle, and the bb housing are). Available at any Pep Boys or similar car parts store.

I've also had good luck with plumbers teflon tape. I might try wrapping the bearings in that before pressing it in the frame. 

As a last resort, I might try either boat trailer bearing grease or, even more heavier duty, brake caliper grease. Boat trailer grease is good to have around anyway - it is an excellent wheel bearing and headset grease. Brake caliper grease is very thick and, well, would be my Assembly Lubricant Of Last Resort.


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## Pontimax (Sep 16, 2013)

Gregory Taylor said:


> I've also had good luck with plumbers teflon tape. I might try wrapping the bearings in that before pressing it in the frame.


See...that's something I haven't come across. That suggestion seems to jive with me. Thanks for passing that along Gregory Taylor. We'll see if the Teflon tape stays put when pressing in the bearings. In a sense it won't be metal on metal. Hmmmm....thanks again. R


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## Gregory Taylor (Mar 29, 2002)

I've done that on threaded bottom brackets - wrap it around the threads a turn or two, and around the cartridge ends. With a press fit bearing, who knows? I might just try one very tight turn.

Personally, I think that what is going to get it done is finding a grease with a strong film strength that won't get displaced. It sounds like one grease job worked for a bit. That's why something thicker than the Shimano grease might be the ticket. And boat trailer grease kicks ass. The anti-sieze is also good stuff to have around the shop.

EDIT: One more thought: take a bit of crocus cloth or emery paper and give the bottom bracket cups in the frame a VERY light polish. Emphasis on VERY LIGHT. Ditto the spindle. You don't want to remove metal, just smooth imperfections. Then grease. I don't know how finely those things are machined, or whether the unseating/re-seating the bearings have marked the cups, but I could see a rough surface keeping a bearing from seating properly or allowing it to chirp. Again, just a guess.


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## bikerjulio (Jan 19, 2010)

tvad said:


> I can't agree that BB30 is inherently prone to failure. I think that's hyperbole.
> 
> I've owned three bikes with BB30, and the bottom bracket didn't creak on any of them...and I do lots of hard effort climbing that could cause creaking. I've used only Campy cranks/BB cups and Shimano cranks with Praxis BB, so my experience is limited to those components.


I for one am baffled by this post.

Are you saying you owned 3 bikes with BB30 shells and then installed adapters, and these were no problem?

If so, great, but how does this relate to issues related to a BB30 bottom bracket?

I have a BB30 bike with Campy cups too, but what does it have to do with this thread?


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## tvad (Aug 31, 2003)

bikerjulio said:


> I for one am baffled by this post.
> 
> Are you saying you owned 3 bikes with BB30 shells and then installed adapters, and these were no problem?
> 
> ...


In his first post, the OP states his problems with a BB30 shell. As I own a bike with a BB30 shell (Cannondale SuperSix EVO HiMod) used with a Praxis BB30 Conversion Adapter, my experience is germane. My other two bikes were BB30 with press fit cups. No creaks in any permutation.

Do we have a problem?

BTW, my guess is the creaking is caused by the Hawk Racing BB30 bottom bracket in combination with the FSA crankset. The tolerances are likely not tight. Hence, the creaking.


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## poff (Jul 21, 2007)

I have king pf30 + hollowgram SISL cranks on 3 bikes. Not a single squeak.


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## Wookiebiker (Sep 5, 2005)

My previous bike was a CAAD 10 frame with a BB30 set up ... nearly 14,000 miles on it with no creaking issues.

I've heard people using locktite for the pressfit bottom brackets ... generally blue, so you can still get them out in the future if needed. Seems to solve most creaking issues with press fit bottom brackets.


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## goodboyr (Apr 19, 2006)

Blue loctite?......there's nothing like using the wrong material for the wrong reasons and expecting a good result.


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## chudak (Jul 28, 2012)

I think that all the people chiming in with their own formulas for success (loc-tite, grease, teflon tape, pixie dust) in living with a BB30 or other pressfit BBs just adds further evidence to the fact that it's a horrible design. I'll take a standard threaded bottom bracket any day.


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## mannymerc (Nov 19, 2013)

I have 2 bikes with bb30 and have no problems with noises, setting up the bearings is really important when installing bb30 bearings, I dont even use locktite or any of that.


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## bigjohnla (Mar 29, 2010)

I had a similar problem with an FSA Gossamer crank on my carbon fiber Bianchi. I found that the crank had a very small shiny spot on the spindle. It was smooth, no galling or anything. I applied some grease to the spindle and reinstalled. No problems since April (1200 miles). I also recommend boat trailer grease for its corrosion resistance. Pretty much use it on everything I own that needs greasing. Good stuff. I also had a creak that was very annoying on another bike. Turned out to be my cleat. A fresh set fixed it.


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## tvad (Aug 31, 2003)

chudak said:


> I think that all the people chiming in with their own formulas for success (loc-tite, grease, teflon tape, pixie dust) in living with a BB30 or other pressfit BBs just adds further evidence to the fact that it's a horrible design. I'll take a standard threaded bottom bracket any day.


You're making a Straw Man argument. This is exactly the type of discussion board comment that blows issues out of proportion by incorrectly commenting on previous statements.

The suggestion of teflon tape and grease was made by Gregory Taylor, who stated _he doesn't own a BB30 bike_, and who used the teflon tweak on a threaded BB...so it has no direct relevance to his experience with BB30 (but it's still a valid suggestion).

The suggestion of loctite was made by Wookiebiker, who stated "_I've heard people using locktite for the pressfit bottom brackets_". I've heard Richard Gere went to the hospital because he had a gerbil in his butt. So? BTW, Wookebiker also states he has had _no creaks_ in his BB30 bottom bracket after nearly 14,000 miles.

The fact is, there are several owners of BB30 bikes in this thread who have said they have no creaking issues.


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## chudak (Jul 28, 2012)

tvad said:


> You're making a Straw Man argument. This is exactly the type of discussion board comment that blows issues out of proportion by incorrectly commenting on previous statements.
> 
> The suggestion of teflon tape and grease was made by Gregory Taylor, who stated _he doesn't own a BB30 bike_, and who used the teflon tweak on a threaded BB...so it has no direct relevance to his experience with BB30 (but it's still a valid suggestion).
> 
> ...


For the record, I have a Felt Z4 with an FSA crankset and BB30 and it has creaked/clicked off and on since the day I got it. The various shops have tried swapping bearings, greasing, loc-titing. Nothing has permanently solved the problem. I'm glad that others don't have problems with theirs but the fact that you can google thousands of stories about people who've had the same issues as me indicates that this isn't just a one off. It's a serious problem.

Some have suggested, it's particular to FSA cranks, especially lower end models? That certainly fits in my case. But since FSA is the predominant crank of choice for BB30 bikes coming out of the shops in the low to mid end of the range I'd say "Houston, we have a problem".


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## tvad (Aug 31, 2003)

chudak said:


> ...the fact that you can google thousands of stories about people who've had the same issues as me indicates that this isn't just a one off. It's a serious problem.


Thousands of stories? Doubtful. I'll bet it's fewer than 50. Maybe even fewer than 10...just repeated over and over on different cycling discussion boards.


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## tvad (Aug 31, 2003)

Perhaps the problem isn't with BB30, but rather with poor tolerances of FSA cranks.

I'd be interested to know how many of the people complaining of BB30 creaking own FSA cranks versus Shimano, Campagnolo or SRAM. And...how many FSA crank owners who complain of bottom bracket creaking use _other_ bottom bracket designs.

Not trolling here. It's a genuine question.


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## chudak (Jul 28, 2012)

tvad said:


> Thousands of stories? Doubtful. I'll bet it's fewer than 50. Maybe even fewer than 10...just repeated over and over again on different cycling discussion boards.


I've heard at least 10 separate people mention this in threads _just on these forums_ since I've been paying attention. I think you are way underestimating the problem. But whatever, you are entitled to your _opinion_. I'll stick with the facts of my sample size of 1, corroborated by others.


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## giosblue (Aug 2, 2009)

What you can get sometimes is "creep" when you redo it is it's fine for a while and then it comes back. It could be that is needs anther 1/4 turn after a few days.
It worked for me. they need to be really tight.


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## QuattroCreep (Nov 30, 2009)

I am on my 4th BB30 frame. Well 3 BB30 and 1 PF 30

All have run great. I have had creaking from each bike at some point. The common reason is one of the bearings (always seems to be drive side) is shot and needs to be changed. I have only ever greased the bearings/shell before pressing them into the frame never locktite. Current frame has just about 20k miles on it and is running very silently. I have run sram force/red, FSA SLK/Gossmer, and Specialized cranks with FSA or Sram BB30 bearings and never had any problems other then wearing the bearings out. 

Frames and cranks
2008 Jamis SL - BB30 - Force cranks - gone
2011 Cannondale Super Six - BB30 - SLK, Specailzed, force cranks - Gave to father still working fine
2012 Specialized Crux - BB30 - FSA gossmer - Current bike
2012 Jamis SL - PF 30 - Sram Red - Current Bike

chudak, I think if you looked around the forum a little you will find talk about applying grease, anti-seize, and Teflon tape to threaded BBs. I guess that makes Threaded BBs bad designs too.


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## Pontimax (Sep 16, 2013)

Gregory Taylor said:


> I've also had good luck with plumbers teflon tape. I might try wrapping the bearings in that before pressing it in the frame.


Morning fellas...didn't mean to leave a hanging post, but now can provide an update. Yahtzee! Gregory Taylor thanks for the suggestion to use teflon tape. After my last overhaul the bike was running silent. Well, that didn't last and after about 70 miles the creak came back. Remember it only occurs on the drive side under load. I popped it apart again only pulling the drive side bearing. Cleaned the bearing and put a very tight strip of teflon tape centered around the outside. It overlapped by around a mm where it met. Stayed right in place. Pressed it back in, and some did squeegee out, but some stayed and worked its way in. Cleaned the teflon shards real well and reassembled. It's been 120 miles and my bike has never been quieter. All is well with the world. My world anyway. Fantastic solution.


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## tlg (May 11, 2011)

Pontimax said:


> It's been 120 miles and my bike has never been quieter. All is well with the world. My world anyway. Fantastic solution.


Don't get too excited. It's only been 120mi. Grease usually quiets a noisy BB30 for several hundred miles. Check back after 1k miles.


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## tvad (Aug 31, 2003)

Pontimax said:


> Morning fellas...didn't mean to leave a hanging post, but now can provide an update. Yahtzee! Gregory Taylor thanks for the suggestion to use teflon tape. After my last overhaul the bike was running silent. Well, that didn't last and after about 70 miles the creak came back. Remember it only occurs on the drive side under load. I popped it apart again only pulling the drive side bearing. Cleaned the bearing and put a very tight strip of teflon tape centered around the outside. It overlapped by around a mm where it met. Stayed right in place. Pressed it back in, and some did squeegee out, but some stayed and worked its way in. Cleaned the teflon shards real well and reassembled. It's been 120 miles and my bike has never been quieter. All is well with the world. My world anyway. Fantastic solution.


Good to hear. Kudos to Gregory Taylor for the idea.

A razzy to "tlg" for being a buzzkill.


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## Diopena1 (Jul 21, 2011)

I have over 4k miles on my BB30... no creaking. I did experience a creaking sound once before, but, after checking things, it ended up being my saddle- it wasn't totally torqued to spec. Took the seatpost apart at the saddle, re-assembled, have been creak free for 6 months. 
I wonder how many of the bottom bracket issues are related to out of tolerance crank spindles?... Also, I wonder how many people that have this issue, are using FSA, SRAM, or even the Cannondale Si cranks? 
I have SISL2 cranks, and had Sram Red ones before this.... quiet all day long.


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## Gregory Taylor (Mar 29, 2002)

I unconditionally guarantee that repair all the way to the end of the driveway.

My bill is in the mail.


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## kiwisimon (Oct 30, 2002)

I have the Praxis BB30 installed and touch wood, never had a squeak, creak, moan, groan or click out of the whole bike. Except when my mini pump started rattling. https://praxiscycles.com/conversion-bb/


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## Pontimax (Sep 16, 2013)

tvad said:


> Good to hear. Kudos to Gregory Taylor for the idea.
> 
> A razzy to "tlg" for being a buzzkill.


Update: Quiet as a mouse. Still holding after another 200 miles.


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## Pontimax (Sep 16, 2013)

Another Update:

600 more miles and two sudsy bike washes...still the BB is a church mouse as in "as quiet as." So impressed with this solution. Soulful rides with just the sweet whir of my wheels and breathing. Love me a precise, silent machine. Cheers.


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## applespeed (Jun 14, 2013)

Hi Pontimax!
How is the teflon tape holding up? BB still quiet? 


Pontimax said:


> Another Update:
> 
> 600 more miles and two sudsy bike washes...still the BB is a church mouse as in "as quiet as." So impressed with this solution. Soulful rides with just the sweet whir of my wheels and breathing. Love me a precise, silent machine. Cheers.


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## Pontimax (Sep 16, 2013)

applespeed said:


> Hi Pontimax!
> How is the teflon tape holding up? BB still quiet?


Yes, it's holding up great. Season is well under way and my BB is an afterthought. No sounds under normal and heavy loads. It's a great solution in my opinion. Fills in all the loose tolerances that generate the creaks. 

Russ


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## applespeed (Jun 14, 2013)

Pontimax,
Glad to hear! I would love to try this out. Just to clarify, did you use 1/2" width tape? Did you trim the tape to fit the width of the bb30 bearings or just let it extend equally past both sides?


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## Pontimax (Sep 16, 2013)

applespeed said:


> Pontimax,
> Glad to hear! I would love to try this out. Just to clarify, did you use 1/2" width tape? Did you trim the tape to fit the width of the bb30 bearings or just let it extend equally past both sides?


Sorry for the late reply...I trimmed the tape to the width of the bearings wrapping it tight only overlapping about .25".


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## rm -rf (Feb 27, 2006)

I was *sure *my creak came from my bottom bracket. I could stand next to the bike, hold the frame, press down and in on the pedal, and make it creak. So that ruled out the saddle and stem.

But I could feel the vibration all through the frame, and on the chain and seat stays. After some more testing, and trying a different wheel, I found it.

It was the *rear quick release*. I disassembled it, cleaned and oiled the pivot, and lightly oiled the cone shaped spring that fit really tight on the axle rod. Then used a little more pressure when I clamped the wheel back on. Fixed! 

Wow, these noises can be hard to find.


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## Pontimax (Sep 16, 2013)

Rear quick release...haha. Funny how identifying the origin of creaks, pings, and squeaks on a bike can prove difficult. Great you honed in on it and remedied. Cheers.


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