Hi Scrod,

My fg is a Fuji Del-Rey conversion. The bb I use is a Sugino 103mm BB3 and my cranks are a mix of a 170mm Bulletproof spyder w/a RR 48t chainring and some generic 170mm square taper NDS crank. So far in 3+ years I've gone thru 2 of these bbs. After a period of time...maybe 6 mos, I experience a 'ka-chunk,ka-chunk, ka-chunk' while pedaling. Usually under stress. Then it'll go away and come back. I've repacked the bbs a couple of times each which helps for a while, but the hitch in my getalong comes back.

Btw, I commute 42 mi rt w/79.1 GI 48x16 on rolling terrain w/some 6-8% climbs and decends. 500 ft drop to work and a 500 ft climb home. It's also impossible to disassemble the cartrige to replace bearings w/o destroying it(I tried ).

So, my question is this: Is it worth it to me to invest in a pricer bb say a Phil or Campy for 100.00+ or just factor the cost(43.00 @ bikeisland) into my commuting budget? Get a new one every year or so? Outside of cost what's the differences between the Sugino and/the P or C? Harder bearings? Better materials? Close tolerances, etc? All of the above? Thanks alot, nash