Trek BB90 R.I.P.
 

Which BB standard is best?

:innocent:

The next one, of course.

Good news. I'll consider getting a Trek again in the future.

Good riddance. Threaded is the way to go.

Emonda also: https://www.bikeradar.com/news/2021-trek-emonda/

I've toyed with the idea of replacing the crankset on my Bianchi - an ISIS-drive FSA Gossamer compact from 2006 with what feels like a really wide Q factor - but as soon as I started looking I realized I'd also have to replace the BB, and I have NO IDEA what BB goes with what crank! I know the BB shell is English threaded. I may just fob the entire job off on my LBS, just tell him "something compact that won't make me feel duckfooted" and be done with it.

And the Domane. Pretty much all BB standards have their compromises but IMO, BB90 was the worst of all of them (excluding square taper of course...)

That's up for much debate but BB90 is one of the worst...

I'm not sure I see the problem with press fit per se. I mean, even a threaded BB has to meet certain - likely the exactly same for an internal thread - tolerances to not creak and eat bearings, never mind be buildable. I think this is either poor QC, or QC rejects making their way into the hands of unsuspecting customers - who then find them impossible to build. Switching to threaded anything sounds like a marketing response to a problem caused by poor manufacturing.

Bingo.

There was another thread: https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycl...-brackets.html where I posted all the reasons why BB90 sucks. But that doesn’t mean PF standards like BB386EVO are bad. Most people don’t know that BB386EVO and BB90 are fundamentally different designs. They just see “press fit”.

3T is a company that’s doing things right. They could have gone threaded on their new Exploro but they instead chose to go with BB386EVO (the superior PF standard) and thread-together BBs, which gives you the best of both worlds.

Also. You are right that trek had manufacturing problems. But so do many other manufacturers. It’s normal, sadly. What’s different is that poor QC is catastrophic with BB90.

It isn’t so much pressfit, but how BB90 accomplishes the pressfit by pressing directly into the frame itself. It then becomes a balance of quality control vs profit margins.

Each crank will either come with a bb or tell you whats needed. Just buy the bsa/threaded bb.

Praxis crank = praxis threaded bb.
Shimano crank = shimano threaded bb.

I've not have any issues with my Emonda but then it's a SLR with Ceramic Speed bearings so i'd assume the QC is better and i'm paying for it.

If you have trouble with a BB90, then it's no good. If you don't, it will do. I ride a Trek domane , 2018 model with a 90. So far, no problems.

I had a P1 6 Series Madone that the BB totally failed. Trek repaired it and then it failed again. I have a P1 Domane SLR that the BB failed after 1,600 miles. Trek repaired the frame. My P1 Madone nine has been problem free for 4 years. I think it is just luck of the draw. Trek takes care of their P1 customers. That’s why I always buy P1 Treks.

24,000 trouble free miles and never a problem.

Luck of the draw.

same here, but it's time to replace the bearings. I hope it remains trouble free.

Check out BB Infinite bearings. They are about the same price as Trek’s but seem to be smoother, to me.

"Better to be lucky than good"

I replaced the original Trek Project One ceramic bearings with Ceramic Speed and no trouble.

I'm not really worried about the quality of the bearing(there are many good ones available), but getting the bearings seated perfectly is my concern. I've done it a few times for others, but not on my own bike.

38,000 miles on my P1 Domane, I'm on my 2nd set of bearings, no problems.