Originally Posted by
realestvin7
So do the BB's come with English thread cups out of the box?
Yes, the QB-55 (steel "cups") and QB-75 (alloy) come with English in the box. So if you need English, no need to buy the cup set.
I think that JIS is the taper standard with the largest end dimension; so anything else with a 2-degree taper will fit on JIS, the only question is how much the crank overhangs the spindle when it's tightened. I'm no expert, but I think that ISO is somewhat smaller than Campy (and apparently Stronglight). That's why Phil Wood (who never made a Campy taper) recommends their JIS taper for Campy cranks that are pre-1994, when Campy changed to ISO. In retrospect, they should have changed to JIS, which is where the world has gone.
The real problem with Stronglight and TA spindle replacement is that their bearing "track" spacing is a lot wider than just about anyone's, including Campy Italian spindles. About the only substitute is a Campy Italian spindle made for thin cups, and that's still not as wide as the Stronglight. I've read about this in Sutherland's, but I'm coming to terms with it in real life on a bike that's got Swiss BB. I have a Stronglight BB for it, but it's wider than I'd like; can't find anything like it in my (fairly well-stocked) BB parts inventory, though. I'll probably use it to start out with, but try to find an IRD that will result in a better "fit" later -- that's how I stumbled onto this IRD Swiss cups thing in the first place. And I have another bike project (Mondia) that may have the same issue.