Bottom Bracket Seizure

[Mussels]

The rain has caused me a few issues this week mainly punctures and a seized brake caliper and it's possible it may have something to do with this strange problem.
After a few puncture repairs on the way home last night I found it hard to pedal despite not going uphill, from experience I know that pedalling harder is likely to break something so I coasted to a stop to have a look.
When the problem started it was light resistance and got progressively worse as if I was tightening a bolt and then the opposite happened when I pushed the pedals backwards, it got progressively looser until the problem had disappeared. This took several turns of the pedals so I don't think it was something caught in the chain, I couldn't see anything anyway. It wasn't a problem with the freewheel so it was between the pedals and the freewheel, nothing looked out of place and has run fine since.
I'm confused, unless I managed to tighten the BB (cup & cone) what happened?

 

[Andrew harvey]

It definitely sounds like your BB.
Check the lock washer on the left hand (kerb side) is tight against the BB shell.
Also check your crank arms for any play, (side to side).
If you have a traditional BB with separate shaft and bearings you can tighten the cups up quite a bit without doing any serious harm. However if it was that bad you felt it when you were riding as opposed to just turning the crank by hand, you would have to have put a lot of force onto the bearings. If there is damage its to late now, its the cups that would have pitted. As you say it feels Ok it probably is.

The rule is to tighten the BB, with only the right hand crank in place, finger tight first, check for play, retighten progressively till the play just disappears, then lift the right arm crank to the horizontal, (without the chain on) and let it fall. Watch the way it falls. Tighten the BB say a sixteenth of a turn, if there is any stiction on the crank arm, .ie. it feels stiff or doesn,'t fall smoothly, or falls slower than it did previously loosen the BB by half of the last action. Doing this by the old fashioned method produces a solid feeling but free running crank, when you've got it right it just, well, feels right.
If there is a notchiness to the crank when rotated, loosening it a fraction may help short term, but a new axle, cups and shaft would be the long term order of the day. If the cranks have being removed previously and not put back on by a circus's strongman wielding a scaffolding bar,it takes about half an hour to change a BB, the parts should cost about £15 so it's not to serious if the labour charges aren't to steep.
When you've had a play tighten the lock washer up whilst holding the cup still so it doesn't come loose again.

 

[Mussels]

Well I dismantled the BB to take a look and the bearings looked fine but the cage that holds them had almost disintegrated, not sure how that happened but I guess the tight feeling was it getting stuck somewhere it shouldn't have been.
Fortunately I had a set of slightly pitted bearings in the toolbox to use until I can get hold of a new set. The BB certainly seems a weak spot on the Wisper as I've had to service it four or five times in the last year.

 

[Wisper Bikes]

BB

Hi Mussels

Give Norman a call he will send you a new set, service@wisperbikes.com.

We have listened and all our bikes now have sealed bearings.

All the best

David

 

[Alex728]

Hi Mussels

We have listened and all our bikes now have sealed bearings.

from which models was this implemented?

My 2009 model looks like it has a sealed BB but I am not 100% sure, and forgot to ask the mechanic at the weekend as I have already done 300 miles and had the spoke check and re-tensioning done as well as the torque on the crank arms checked.

 

[Wisper Bikes]

BB or not BB, that is the question

Hi Alex

Sorry I doubt it will have, the 2010 bikes have the new sealed bearings so will the bikes arriving now.

If you can send me your frame number and I will check for you, there were a few on the last delivery.

All the best David

 

[z0mb13e]

Bit of a coincidence but my crank started making a weird noise on the way home. Sounds a bit like crushing polystyrene. Mainly seems to be on the down stoke of the right peddle. The more pressue the more pronounced the noise...

I guess it was all the rain and sand. Hope it isn't in the bottom bracket!

Will investigate later...

 

[Mussels]

Bit of a coincidence but my crank started making a weird noise on the way home. Sounds a bit like crushing polystyrene. Mainly seems to be on the down stoke of the right peddle. The more pressue the more pronounced the noise...

I guess it was all the rain and sand. Hope it isn't in the bottom bracket!

Will investigate later...

sorry to say but it sounds just like the BB needs to be stripped and cleaned and maybe the bearings changed.

 

[z0mb13e]

sorry to say but it sounds just like the BB needs to be stripped and cleaned and maybe the bearings changed.

Yup looks like you were right. The grease on the shaft and bearings was a bit gritty. The ride along Bmth prom might be good for me but isn't exactly ideal for the bike!

Looks like some wear on the left, but doesn't look too bad (too me at least)

While the right side bearing cage had sprung open as a few of the ball bearings fell out. Not only that but there is uneven wear on the shaft. Interestingly there is a lip formed by the light grey metal that you can get your finger nail under. It actually looks like metal has been transfered onto the shaft from somewhere (the bearing cage?) rather than wearing out the shaft.

I have popped in a fresh set of bearings and plenty of grease to keep the sand out and to keep me cycling. If I had time I would have popped it on the lathe and re-faced it a little - maybe at the weekend.

The cup looks ok though!

I don't have a suitable tool to remove the other cup so had to clean it in situ.

 

[Mussels]

I've never seen a lip like that though I'm hardly the voice of experience, maybe that's what caused the cage to open up.

 

[Straylight]

I serviced my BB recently, and whilst soaking the bearings noticed a lot of fine metal shards floating off them. I thought at the time that these were from the bearing cages rather than anything else. Having regreased with teflon/lithum grease from Halfords (bought years ago) they seem to be running pretty smoothly now.

It is however a nagging concern whenever I feel something rough in the drivetrain, though this is usually the derailler needing slight adjustment due to a change in ambient temperature. I'd love to obtain a sealed unit, but sadly they're not made in the leangth to fit the '08 Wispers's BB shell.

In my limited knowledge, I'd say that the cup in the photo may need replacing as it looks pitted to me, also the inner edge of the bearing running surface doesn't look circular, this could be due to the angle of the shot though.

Oh, and my spindle also has the lighter coloured ring, so I think this is part of the manufacture.

 

[z0mb13e]

That was going to be my next question. What are the options for fitting sealed units? Followed closely by, does anyone know where I can get a tool to remove the fixed cup?

As for the cup I thought it was pitted when I first looked at it, but the surface imperfections are from manufacture. The face where the bearings run is nice and clean. And yes it does look oval from the photo but its just a trick of the light.

Is the lighter coloured ring on your spindle raised?

 

[Straylight]

I think it might be slightly, as it seems to be a smooth metalic layer laid onto the surface of the spindle, probably to help the bearings slide by.

 

[z0mb13e]

I must stop hi-jacking threads!

Starting a new one about tool needed for the fixed cup. Here.

 

[Alex728]

I must stop hi-jacking threads!

Starting a new one about tool needed for the fixed cup.

I started a thread in the Wisper clinic about workshop tools, maybe its worth adding it onto there?

 

[z0mb13e]

Damn - too late... already posted.

Will check out the thread in the clinic.