Press fit bearings

[Mr Moofo]

I have press fit BB on my HT.

I had to fit some new bearings 3 weeks ago - which was fair does, the original ones had done 3 years. It is a Wheels Manufacturing one, so it comes with an alloy sleeve and replaceable bearings.

Old bearings out, new in , without too much hassle - and I did use a bearing press not a hammer ....
Two muddy rides on the Downs and the bearings are completely FUBARed. One side completely seized , the other side thinking about it!

Oddly the Shimano BB on my Cotic lasts through bad weather - both have the bearings in more or less the same position ( in fact the shimano ones are more "outboard"). So longevity really should be a big issue
Why have my bearings f***ed up so quickly? The seals appeared to have scored the actual bearing seals ( the red seal) which won't have eden it any good. It was very, very muddy ... is what have I done wrong?
( I am about to fit another set ....)

[weeksy]

So you've not changed anything in the setup/configuration apart from the bearings being swapped ?

What bearings did you go for in particular ?

[Mr Moofo]

In terms of bearing Enduro - it just came from Tredz - they should have been ACEB 5 rated.
(the bearings are 2437 LLB). But the original set had some outwear bearing seals - which were aluminium with a rubber coating. The new bearing came with nothing. Do I reused the seals
I am just wondering of the small black plastic spacer put too much "load" on them ...


New once ordered ( from Hendersons - 2437 bearings seem to be out of stock in the world)

[weeksy]

what type of tensioning system does it use ? or what cranks and what torque ?

[Mr Moofo]

I am using shimano LX cranks - which according to D&D Cycles should be absolutely fine
The tensioning system - essentially crank fit and spacers ...

[weeksy]

using the weird plastic spacer thing to tension ? the little flowery thing.

[Mr Moofo]

using the weird plastic spacer thing to tension ? the little flowery thing.

nope - the plastic 2mm space ...

[weeksy]

using the weird plastic spacer thing to tension ? the little flowery thing.

nope - the plastic 2mm space ...

You're going to have to give us something in the way of pics then mate ? Or a link so we can see what it is etc.

[MingtheMerciless]

Would those plasticy seals be orange in colour? They are a must. They act as an outer shield to the normal seals.

[Ditchfinder]

Pushfit you say? then you will be needing the universal pushfit solutions kit:

[Mr Moofo]

Pressfit/Push fit are a PITA - but the Wheels Manufacturing one does give you a rigid shell - over the plastic really shit versions.
with them you can replace bearings etc - the only issue being availability. Bearings were finally source and were Enduro ones from Hendersons.
Getting seals was next to impossible - so I have had to go with some Shimano BB86 ones from Which - which are exactly the right size, and I hope will do the job.
My faux pas last time may have been to fit the seals the wrong way round ....

Looking at the set up , it should be no worse that the screw in BB - but , FFS , on a steel frame, just thread the BB !!

[MingtheMerciless]

I hate the bloody things, I ended up with a £100 ceramic race in the bb of my trek (the side I kept killing) and a £15 oversize Bearing in the other side as that was all that would fit and just accepted that it was a two or three weekly job to flush the bb with IPA and re-grease. I fitted a Wfg BB to the wife’s trek and that was sealed about as well as a shuttle SRB on a cold day.

[Ditchfinder]

If it's made of pig iron surely a new frame would be cheaper

[Mr Moofo]

If it's made of pig iron surely a new frame would be cheaper

It sure its pig iron - but certainly made out of the best material for MTBs