Last last year (2025) I got a TK888 TOKEN BB external bearing set from my LBS. https://www.tokenproducts.com/images...888_Manual.pdf
I had a set of cranks laying around, then got a road side rescue circa 1990 RockHopper. 73mm BB shell.
If you click the link, you see I got a ext bearing set for a 68mm shell. I did tell my LBS owner this was for a 73mm shell. I did not check the code number after I got the bearing set.
After assembling everything and test riding, I can feel i have a bit of play in the crankset. Not much - but I think it don't take much to mess things up!!
I've set it up w/ the wavey washer next to the crank arm.




My question - is there a spacer configuration where I can take up the play? Perhaps the set up used for the Shimano crankset 73mm BB shell?

I'm open that maybe I should not have set up the cranks w/ the wavey washer at all.
Here's what I got, since me not so good with words....







i'm having a bit of deja vu w/ this set up question.....

73-68=5. You need 5 mm of spacer. If you put them on the non--drive side, they will bind on the non-machined surface of the spindle, but if you put them on the drive side, they might give you a chainline problem. Fool around.and find out.

So if you just fit the bearings and the cranks with no spacers or wavy washer, how much can the cranks slide from side to side?

That's an erroneous assumption.

The BB makes the width of the outer bearings +/- a few millimeters of what the crank requires. Then you put whatever spacers along with a wave washer to use up the additional play the crank has to deal with that +/- from the BB.

You can also put a spacer under the cups, and many BBs designed to work on either 68 or 73mm BB shells for 73mm compatible cranks will come with two 2.5mm spacers for use with 68mm bikes. But that isn't always the issue - especially if the play is much less than 5mm.

Basic plastic crank spacers are usually have either 24mm hole for Shimano or GXP type spindles or 30mm holes for BB30 style. Bike shops always have them. The wave washer is so you don't have to have the perfect spacer stack height do a fraction of a millimeter.

68 or 73 is the width of a BB shell. Yours is 73. As long as the thread is the same -BSA it should screw together and work fine. They're just external cups.

I'd be checking other stuff for the rattle. Pieces left over on the bearing cups, tightening the cups enough, spindle length, torqued bolts at the crank, stuff like that

In the days of internal bottom brackets, I once accidentally used a 73 on a 68 bike. I couldn't get it tight and it rattled around until I figured out what I'd done. Had I used a 68 on a 73 bike, the crank and chainrings would have contacted the frame and been unable to spin.

What crankset is that? Tapered spindle?

This is my only set of this kind of 'hollow' spindle.
I don't think it's considered tapered, which is why I threw in all the pics. And I'm not sure if it's considered Shimano (24mm dia ??) or SRAM (30mm? ) ~ really uncertain on that, as the TOKEN instructions show both as 24mm.
Oy....
-------------------
All -- thanks for the feedback! I still dig this forums!

this afternoon I'll check for side to side play. I can tell there is for sure a bit of play pushing on the pedal pushing forward.
I'll see if either of my LBSs has a 1mm spacer and/or a 2.5mm spacer.

It's a SRAM/Truvativ GXP style crank/spindle.... i run into water intrusion/rusted bearings issues with them.
frequent removal/re-greasing of the spindles stretches their lives a bit.
i apply extra grease to the outside of the NDS bearing seal, too.
i recommend that the owners switch to Shimano HT2 cranks/bearings, when the chain rings wear out.

this just showed up in my feed, interestingly... AI never takes a break.

GXP Bottom Bracket Install - Do You Need To Use Spacers?

Much of the discussion seems to be about side to side play. And I don't know how one really tells that is going on when they pedal. Al least I don't think I'd notice a millimeter or two, or even three maybe four mm of side to side play in the crankshaft as I pedaled.

The GXP cranks have a smaller diameter shaft on the left side. Or at least some do. At first I was wondering if your BB wasn't for cranks with a 22mm diameter on the left side. And instead it was 24mm on both sides. Which would have the left side notably flopping around as you pedal.

The drawing clearly says the TK888 is for GXP cranks. And that it's for a 68mm shell. If your's is 73mm. Then I wonder if the play you are feeling is simply the crank arm not being fully on the spindle because there isn't enough of it sticking out the other side. And the crank arm is wobbling on the shaft as you pedal. Possibly destroying the splines on it.

Especially if you installed the 1mm spacers on either side as shown. Though even leaving those off will only be good enough for a 70 mm shell. Also, that BB has a adapter you are suppose to add to that left side to bring it down to 22mm diameter on the left. If that is a GXP crank that is different diameters left and right, then it needs to be part of your assembly.

You need to find out why they gave you a BB that only shows a installation drawing with a 68mm BB shell.

Don't own one, but AFAIK on SRAM GXP the spindle position/chain line is set by where the 24-22 reducer sits in the shell. Adding spacer between NDS cup and shell moves the crank towards the NDS. Once that is set then enough spacer on the DS so that the wavy washer will compress, providing pre-load on the 22-24 adapter.

well nuts - After reading the comments, I think I need that spacer - adapter deal. When I remove the NDS crank arm, there's quite a bit play on the free end. I measured the spindle sticking out and it's about 21.5 or so. The little sleeve-spacer-adapter slips nicely over it and takes up the play.
But it's supposed to be INSIDE that external bearing. And I do not have the right size wrench for that thing - so I'll have to see if my LBS will re-loan me the tool. ugh. . . .

man! -- square taper for-ever!

I personally don't miss trying 2 or 3 or more sizes to finally find one that fits the chainline. Especially since the square taper press fit makes it feel like there is a limit to the amount of times a crank can be installed and re-installed. Maybe not.

I will say that when I fit an old Campagnolo crank in a 1x to a new IRD bottom bracket that looked like modern art, it was cool. I might have enjoyed calculating the ISO vs JIS mismatch.

These hollow axle cranks - I have them from 4 or 5 major brands on various bikes - are just better. Smoother, stiffer, simpler.

I don't think you can fault the design because you got the wrong part.

i have never seen one of those reducers placed INSIDE the bearing assy, as in inserted from the inside... EVER.

it would tend to walk itself loose after a while.
i think we just found the problem.
IGNORE THAT BOGUS DRAWING, ok?
put the reducer in from The OUTSIDE this time, and give it a go.

I'm sorry, I missed that this is GXP!

GXP requires no spacers if you have threaded BB cups. That is because the shoulder on the spindle and the NDS arm pinch the left bearing. That prevents any lateral movement. The "play" on the right side is just to account for variations in the BB width, and doesn't need any spacers.


The reducer (part 4) absolutely needs to go from the inside as depicted, otherwise the pinching thing doesn't work and the spindle will just walk out to the left.