I am the lucky new recipient of a 1989 Cinelli Supercorsa. The frame came with a headset but I'm pretty sure it's never had any other parts mounted on it. I'm putting a Record 8 speed group on it. I installed a lightly used cartridge BB tonight, cinched it down per my protocol and found the spindle completely bound up. Tried a new Chorus BB and it binds as well. The shell still has paint along the face. My guess is it should be faced but thought I would ask the community before I make the 1+ hour trip to the nearest shop with Italian thread tools.

DSC_0047 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/151996054@N08/]

For a frame of that quality, yes.

I get every BB shell in every frame I buy faced. Leave the threads clean also. I would if I were you.

I was afraid of that. Gonna set the build back by a couple of weeks.

Definitely get an unused frame's bottom bracket faced, its not a difficult procedure at all, if its being performed by someone experienced with it. It will be worth any wait necessary, and a frame of that quality deserves care. I would also look at Frame Saver being sprayed on the inside of the tubing, just as a precaution. It looks like some mild spotty surface rust has gotten started on that shell.

Bill

My rule is this: sealed bottom bracket, chase the threads only. If not, face and chase.

What kind of BB? does it have lockrings that run up against the shell? Something like a Phil would not really need facing.

The facing operation doesn't really effect the threads it just ensures the sides are parallel. Chasing the shell threads involves specific thread cuttters.

It’s a Campy Chorus 102mm cartridge. Same as used in the 10s group.Threads are in good shape, the shell measures 70.0* with my calipers, so I figure the faces must be out of parallel a fair amount. I guess another solution would be a Phil Wood BB.

[MENTION=110545]qcpmsame[/MENTION] - That little bit of oxidation is the only rust I could see in the whole frame. Don’t worry, I sprayed it with Boeshield since taking the pic.

Face & chase were SOP for my shop on frames of that period along with checking frame/fork alignment, dropout parallel & derail hanger true. The attention of an old school craftsman w/ the proper tools will be well worth any delay.

-Bandera

I’m no craftsman ha ha but I did check the dropout and hanger alignment, alas don’t have the heavy duty tools. Ive often thought of buying taps and cutters for Italian frames and offering them up for rent or goodwill loan to the LBS.

As I recall, the better Campagnolo bottom cartridge brackets have a flange on one side and none on the off drive side. If yours is that configuration, chase the threads and obligation face the side that requires it.

Face and chase.

PW bottom bracket and forget about it.

Could it actually be a 70mm bb, wouldn't think so by 89 however it may be possible and may or may not help explain your dilemma. Do you have a cup and cone bb to try in it just to see? I would also scrutinize the bb with the calipers if they are deep enough to go across both sides, check several different axises, may not be square but might be 70mm. I would make thread chaser out of an expendable cup if you have one, clean the threads with a right angle pick and then carefully run the chaser to see what happens.

For a traditional cup and spindle BB, absolutely chase the threads and face the shell on both sides. SOP

For a cartridge BB chase the threads only. You could face the drive side if using a BB with a shoulder on that side (like modern chorus bb), but it isn't strictly necessary. For a Phil Wood BB, neither side should be faced.

A Cinelli would have a 70mm BB shell.

Is it possible that the frame has never been built up because the BB casting is warped or, for whatever reason, the threads on each side are off-axis with each other? Is that a thing? The opening showing in the photo appears to have a thinner wall on NNW than on SSE.

I am still not certain if that BB has a flange or lockring that butts against the shell. I believe in the olden days the shell was faced to simply ensure the fixed cup and lockring mated flush against it. Whether they are smooth and parallel should have no bearing on a cartridge BB binding after installed.

The drawback of facing is that it's an area that's likely to get wet and rust can run up under the paint.

Back then frame-builders expected the retail shopkeeper to do the final chase and face, of the frames ..

and then the customer picked the components to be fitted .... you might re check the head tube ream and face too ...

So the Campagnolo, or VAR, etc, tool kits were to be in a bike shop's tool collection .


if you go for a Phil Wood BB then thread chasing without the facing would leave the paint. their lock rings are entirely internal to the BB shell.




....

If you put a bead of marine grease (the boat trailer hub stuff found in any auto parts store) around the base of the cup flange so it squeezes out as you tighten the cup, it is not likely that water will ever get in there.

Ben

Well I toyed with the idea of just going with a Phil Wood BB, but I think I'll go with the chase and face route. The only down side to that is the time involved to get it done. Only other time I've had it done around here was with my Tommasini frame - involved two trips up to Charlottesville, 1hr 20 minutes away. Anyway I did a little experiment today. I tried a cup and cone Campy BB, tightened it down until it binded, backed it off. No play in the spindle but the adjustable cup stuck out more threads than I'm used to seeing - I just hand tightened the fixed cup too. I tried it with the spindle in both ways as it might be asymmetric without any real difference. Tried again with two adjustable cups (benefits of being a Campy hoarder) and got pretty much the same result. Makes me think a PW BB wouldn't make a difference in this case.

That thickness on the SSE side is a bit of an optical illusion. It's the cable guide on the Cinelli lug, actually set back a bit from the lip of the shell. I'm fairly confident there isn't a major structural issue as the frame has a serial number (wouldn't get one right if it didn't pass QC?) and no signs of any damage or craziness done to it.

Is the configuration you have in your last picture with bearings in place? Try the proper fixed cup instead, just for giggles, and see what the result is if you haven’t already done so. It might be the spindle dimensions are not correct for that bottom bracket also. I had to search out a correct spindle for my Tommasini since the 70 SS would not fit correctly, and that bb needed facing badly. The LBS owner/mechanic has the complete Campagnolo tool selection and he did the deed in a morning, along with chasing the threads on both sides properly.

Don’t take it that careful QC inspections were done, its a different world now. (From real world quality control engineering experiences.)