Originally Posted by
Andrew R Stewart
But in the end without X Ray eyes actual bearing track/balls conditions is unknown without taking all apart. I suspect the shop merely spun the crank, maybe even without removing the chain from the rings, say the rotation was not smooth and assumed that the ball tracks were pitted. This is a common quickie to do an initial assessment. Most all shops do this. And most shops have found that actual taking apart gives the real, no assumptions, answers.
No one, that I know of, takes apart sealed BBs.
They're too cheap not to replace.
My guess is they spun the cranks, either felt or heard roughness/looseness and said the BB will need replaced relatively soon. They're probably not wrong.
EDIT: As for the OP. There is almost nothing you can damage by using a worn out SEALED BB. It'll just affect your ride quality. Ride it till it falls apart if that's your desire. Or, fix it. They're only $20 or so for good BBs that'll probably last 1000s of miles.