GXP adapter for Pressfit BB30 bottom bracket?
I just got a great deal on a Brand New 2012 Cannondale SuperSix Ultegra Di2 (on eBay of course)...
As far as I can tell, it will come with a Pressfit BB30 Bottombracket. I plan to re-sell the wheels and the crankset and put my extra GXP Crankset on it so I can easily swap my SRM (which is GXP) on it for the next 6 weeks worth of training and 2 upcoming roadie bike races... I was hoping to do this myself and know that I will need some type of adapter to convert this bike to a GXP Bottom Bracket.
Does anybody know how to do this? I tried some google searches but didn't have much luck? Any suggestions on what adapter to get? Will I end up with a Pressfit GXP when finished or will it be surface mounted? Will I need any special tools to remove the existing pressfit BB or to install whatever new BB I need to buy? I hope to have everything I need on hand when the bike shows up so I can get on it right away.
Thanks in advance! --JW
Comments
Jon
@Dino-- Thanks. I knew you'd appreciate the new bike porn!
1) You can buy these and simply tap them in and use the existing BB30 bearings: http://wheelsmfg.com/products/bottom-brackets-front-drivetrain/bb-adapters/bb-30-shims-sram.html
2) you can buy this and remove the BB30 BB and pressfit this in it's place: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005DTJO00/ref=s9_wish_gw_d0_g200_ir01?ie=UTF8&colid=QYOPII6X54JG&coliid=I1U6V7IE3RCCLF&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1PAMCP9MXCCD7F5FVTDS&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1389517282&pf_rd_i=507846
3) you can buy this and remove the BB30 BB and pressfit this in it's place: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002ATFTHI/ref=s9_wish_gw_d1_g200_ir02?ie=UTF8&colid=QYOPII6X54JG&coliid=I1BZBDRW8A39ZM&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1PAMCP9MXCCD7F5FVTDS&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1389517282&pf_rd_i=507846
Option #3 is pretty much permanent because you use some loctite to keep it anchored in place. My mechanic said is's the best option of the 3, so that's what I'm gonna go with. It can be removed "very carefully" maybe once without destroying the cylinder in the frame, but hopefully I'll have the bike long enough to not worry about it.
He's a friend of mine, so he's gonna come to my house to give me a hand with it. Copious amounts of beer will be offered by me... You apparently need a certain tool to remove the existing pressfit BB and then a different one to set the new one in place. I'll try to take some pictures of the process to have Haus documentation for future use...
good luck to u and keep us posted
Did not know about option three. cool.
But talk to Matt Ancona first!!!
+1 talk to Matt before you make any final decisions.
BB30/PF30 to gxp is pretty straight forward and a ton of people do this, including me.
I am using and recommend option 1 on a both a BB30 and a PF30 frame right now. I like it because it is in no way permanent and I change gear way to often. It's also, cheap, easy and just works. The major upside is it takes about 2 seconds to pull the adapters out and then you can put a 30mm spindle crank in. The downside is once in a while the non-drive side adapter pops out when I go to put the crank in and leaves a grease mark on the floor that is a a pain to clean up. Someday I will learn not to do it on a floor i care about. Keep in mind wheels mfg actually makes both a bb30 (BB30-SRAM) and pf30 (PF30-SRAM) version, as the dust cover spacing is slightly different. They look the same, cost the same, and either will work, but they fit slightly better if you get the right one. Here is the one you want: http://wheelsmfg.com/pressfit-30-adapter-for-sram-cranks.html . The total cost is $30 and it will litterally take 1 minute to install into the existing PF30 bearings and within 5 minutes you will be off and riding.
I would not do option 3. Sure it is rock solid but it is very difficult to get it out, I have heard many storys of people damaging the frame removing these. It can also be tough to resell a bike with one of these adapters in it.
I have not tried option 2 personally, but it should work find and is easier to remove them option 3 (but not as easy as option 1). The issue in my mind is you have to buy the adapter and a new GXP BB, so at least $60 if not more, then you need a BB remover tool and another tool to press adapter in...so much longer to install.
Let me know what other questions you have or if you need pictures of something.
BTW- nice bike, i'm using a sram gxp quarq in a cannondale super six.
And FWIW, I care more less about the extra $$ and more about having something that works great. I had imagined that the option you're saying is the best might be loose or put extra stress on those beatings since there's essentially a longer lever arm from the pedal to the bearing than what having the external cups would have. I had no basis for this. Just pure speculation...
My super six is from early 2011 and I know for a fact it is BB30. However around the time the supersix evo came out (late 2011 i believe) they began switching to PF30. I'm almost certain all of the evo's are PF30, and I believe almost all of the non-evo supersixs are still standard bb30 (for now).
I wasn't' sure if you got an evo or not, so that's why i included both the bb30 and PF30 info, as I though you mentioned PF30.
Nope, zero spacers for me. I removed the stock spacers/dust cover, push both the wheels mfg adpaters in with my hands, put in the gxp crank and was off and riding in minutes. One of the easiest things I have done on my bike.
The adapters do spin outside the bike, but they fit very well and protect the bearings from dirt just like the original dust covers.
I've got nothing for your speculation on the extra stress. At my ftp and body weight I don't have to worry about stressing or flexing anything. I have seen the same adapter on many pros bikes and specialized even includes them with the Shivs. FWIW, Trek agrees with you and that's why they think bb90 is the way to go, and cervelo bbright hald agrees with you (non drive side only :-) ). I'm sure in a lab you could prove that having the bearings wider is better, but in the real world i doubt it makes any difference (thats just my speculation).
In summary, option 3 is the most rock solid, but to me it is a non starter as I would never consider permanently adding a sleeve like that to a carbon bike. Option 1 and 2 have different pros/cons. Based on my criteria, i prefer option 1 as it is cheap, quick, easy and i know it works for me and many other peoples bikes I have personally seen it on. Option 2 might be slightly stiffer and put less stress on the bearings, but I the installation is more costly and involved (since you already have bearings in the bike you have to remove and replace. Keep in mind I change gear all the time so I have different criteria for what is best.
At the end of the day, all 3 will work just fine, so go with your gut on which option you like most.
I got the bike and it is AWESOME! I got the Wheels Mfg adapter and you were right, it only took 30 seconds to install. Popped them in put the crank on, done.
Now, here's my question... On my tri bike, I crank the hex bolt on the non-drive side fairly tight. I don't use a torque wrench, but just make it pretty darn tight. However, on this bike (with the Wheels Mfg BB30/GXP addapters) if I make that bolt tight, it siezes up the crank. So I can "easily" make the bolt "too" tight such that the crank simply won't turn. So I backed off the bolt to a point where the crank would turn freely, but I'm not sure I'd want to be out on a demanding 4 hr race on bumpy/hilly roads with the only bolt holding my crank on being at that torque level. It was certainly fine on my rollers this morning with no issues. But afterwards I took it of to re-examine to se eif I was supposed to do it differently, it was a really easy turn of the bolt to get it off. I'm used to really having to put my body weight into that bolt to get it to first come loose. Do you have any thoughts on this? Am I compressing the bearings or something? Do I need a washer somewhere or something?
So something just didn't seem right and I was too stupid to figure it out. If I tightened the GXP crank too tight, it would make the crank seize up. I used to crank it really tight on my other bikes and it never caused an issue. On this Cannondale with these adapters, it just didn't seem tight enough. But I digress. It seemed fine when I used it on my rollers for the last couple of weeks. Today I went outside for the first time and for some reason, I took my 8mm allen wrench with me just in case. Well, after an hour I saw some fast roadies in about a 15 person group go across an intersection I was approaching from a distance so I spent a couple miles chasing them down and then I mixed in with their group and rode along for the next hour or so... Then I was 2nd wheel in a 2 wide pace line (luckily in one of the slower sections) when my non-drive side crank arm came right off and was attached to my left foot. Luckily it was a good group and nobody freaked out as I slowed to a stop... By the time I got the bike stopped, my SRM was half way out on the drive side and I did some tricky maneuvering to twist the crank arm off of my shoe and then twisted the crank off my other shoe. The group was perplexed and I was the Jacka$$ that nobody even knew that just had my freakin' crank fall apart mid ride. Luckily I had my large allen wrench with me, so I put it all back together, tightened it so it would still turn, but certainly not freely and we were off again. I finished the 3.5 hr ride with them and luckily the last half hour was mostly flat because it certainly felt like I was working harder than my speed would imply. I also stayed in the back for the remainder "just in case"...
I put my tail between my legs and went to see the mechanic at my LBS who had told me originally to put the FSA one in it... Remember that I bought the bike on eBay.
It turns out that I left the thin washer in there that was originally used with the FSA crank. So when I tightened my GXP crank on there, it was pushing the washer tight against the side of the BB30 Bearings, not allowing the bearings to actually do their job if they were torqued properly. So I now had a partially defunct bering on the non-drive side.
The good news is I absolutely loved the bike and a 3.5 hr ride (my first time outside this yr) felt good and comfortable. So my mechanic popped out the bearings and used the green loctite to semi-permanently install the aluminum FSA adapter and then the GXP BB that I had taken of of my old road bike. I'm putting an old FSA crank on my old bike before I sell it to my friend. My mechanic first had to re-rout the Di2 cables under the BB opening because they went right through it and beside the original sleeve that was in there. He also fine tuned my front deraileur and re-ran a new rear brake cable for me because he thought the rear section of the cable housing looked a half inch too short and the cable was also a hair short. He tweaked a few other things for a full tune and took me up to the register to ring me up.
I was pleasantly surprised when he only charged me the $24.95 for the FSA adapter and didn't charge me for anything else... I guess the holiday lunch Jess and I took them and frequent beer has paid off!