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Old 10-03-11 | 02:23 PM
  #12  
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gyozadude
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Joined: Jun 2011
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From: Sunnyvale, California

Bikes: Bridgestone RB-1, 600, T700, MB-6 w/ Dirt Drops, MB-Zip, Bianchi Limited, Nashbar Hounder

+10 on facing/chasing.

I'm a big guy and used to go through production BB once every 1000 miles or so. I used square taper units with machined races, hardened steel cups, both cheap and expensive. Nothing helped. Shop in Berkeley, whom I started buying bikes from was prepping a Bridgestone 700 bike I just bought, this was back in the late 80's. He had removed the crank and BB, then whipped out this chase/face tool and cleaned the BB up, re-installed it, and added an extra plastic accordian sleeve inside too, and then re-assembled it all. I must have put 7000 miles on it, and I still have the 600EX BB spindle, and cups and it's still good to use. I replaced it with some new fangled cartridge unit later before I sold the bike, but had to keep that BB just because I was so impressed. Once I started working in a shop and had access to their tools, we serviced our own bikes after hours all the time. And we got a great deal on some high-end machined spindles and cups that came in one day with "Specialized" branding, but I think they were a shipment from Suntour or Maeda Industries or something. I chased and faced and installed one compatible with my Sugino crankset on a tourer and another on a Sakae FX crank on my street hybrid/beater MB-6. I still have that same crankset and same specialized BB on the MB-6 after 20+ years.

I know the bikes are coming off the production line with better specs on the BB these days. But if you're going through BB's constantly and can't get the settings to work so the BB stays tight to spec but still spins free, then it may be worth it to take it in and have the LBS chase and face it once.
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