Bottom bracket maintenance

[nordy200]

I am now getting an occaisonal clicking or popping noise coming through the pedals on my 05 SJ hardtail. I have put a lot of hard hours on this bike and while I have been obsessive about cleaning and then oiling the chain, chain rings, cassete, and derailluers after each and every ride, I think I need to have the crank bearings serviced. I would like the benefit of your collective experience on this item-I don't have the tools or experience to feel comfortable doing this myself and am wondering what should I expect my LBS (where I bought the bike) to charge for servicing the crank bearings? Also, is this the type or maintenance/repair that should be done on a regular basis or should you wait until you start getting symptoms/noise before you do anything about it? Lastly, is there anything that can be done in the way of everyday maintenance/cleaning that can avoid having to do this type of service?
Thanks for your help!

[macdaid]

... but it sounds to me like the crank arms might need tightening, or perhaps the lockring or fixed flange of your cartridge BB. Or might be the bb needs replacing if you race or otherwise ride really hard frequently.

Other more experienced types will likely chime in after these comments.
Till then, this link may be of use in familiarizing you with what's involved:

http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=94

best of luck...


I am now getting an occaisonal clicking or popping noise coming through the pedals on my 05 SJ hardtail. I have put a lot of hard hours on this bike and while I have been obsessive about cleaning and then oiling the chain, chain rings, cassete, and derailluers after each and every ride, I think I need to have the crank bearings serviced. I would like the benefit of your collective experience on this item-I don't have the tools or experience to feel comfortable doing this myself and am wondering what should I expect my LBS (where I bought the bike) to charge for servicing the crank bearings? Also, is this the type or maintenance/repair that should be done on a regular basis or should you wait until you start getting symptoms/noise before you do anything about it? Lastly, is there anything that can be done in the way of everyday maintenance/cleaning that can avoid having to do this type of service?
Thanks for your help!

[macdaid]

there's a similar thread on this topic here:

http://www.more-mtb.org/forum/showthread.php?t=6927

if u haven't already seen it...

[jabberwocky]

I get the same problem occasionally. I've always fixed it by pulling the crankarms off, removing the bottom bracket entirely, cleaning all the threads and spindles, reapplying fresh grease to everything and putting it back together. I think it is usually caused by mud/water/dirt getting into the crank/spindle interface or bottom bracket threads.

When you pull the bottom bracket, check to see how it spins. If it feels gritty and uneven, it should be replaced.

[Dirt]

If you've had your bike since 2005, ridden it hard and not had your bottom bracket serviced, then I'd suggest you take it to your LBS and have it worked on or replaced.

There are many different standards for bottom brackets. If your bike is a 2005, it is most likely a splined BB of some type... Shimano or ISIS are two of the more popular ones. Both standards have variations with internal or external bearings.

Bottom brackets do not need to be expensive. Some are $20-30, depending on what crank you've got. Certainly you can spend much more than that if you want. For most cranks, a basic bottom bracket will work just fine for you and give you many years of good service.

If you want to buy the tools to do the work yourself, Leonard Zinn's book about mountain bike maintenance is pretty good. Read the stuff that he has to say about working on bottom brackets and see if it seems like something that you want to try. If it seems within the realm of your skills, then buy the tools and do the work. If you run into trouble, there are plenty of people on the board that can help you.... including me. :D

Good luck.

Pete

[nordy200]

Thanks for the advice guys. I have done a lot of work on the bike but am probably going to have my LBS work on the bottom bracket.

[BikerMiker]

It could just be your chainring bolts. Pull 'em off, grease betwixt your chainrings and crank then grease the chainring bolts as you put 'em back in. That happens a lot on cranks... Good idea to do it in general...

mike