Originally Posted by
LarDasse74
Many bottom brackets come as a cups/bearings set... and the cups don't wear out the bearings do.
If the bottom bracket does not have perfectly parallel faces then you will shorten the life of the bearings. Many 'experienced' people do not realize this and claim that external bbs are always tight when new and need to break in... well often the tightness is caused by misalignment and the 'break-in' is actually the beginning of the bearings wearing out.
Have your bottom bracket faced.
I think the Fulcrum system is the same as Campy where it integrates both the spindle and bearings into the arms. The cups are installed without bearings.
The crank has always rotated without noticeable drag and after new cups were installed, does so now. The groaning seems to come on all at once and only when mashing on steep climbs. There is one more thing; I had a spill about 1000 miles ago that involved a strike to the left pedal. After the wreck, the crank had a spot where it would drag. I theorized that the arm might be a little tweaked at the spindle and gave it a firm pull. It seemed to rotate smoothly again. I really could not "see" any difference. I mentioned this to the shop, but they didn't "see" a problem there. Maybe my crank/spindle is hosed and that's the culprit?