Ceramic BBs on track bikes?
 

Just wondering, has anybody here upgraded their fixed gear bike's botom bracket to a ceramic one? I'm curious if it makes a difference in bike weight and if it spins any better. FSA makes a cool looking Cermaic BB.
http://www.treefortbikes.com/imgDsp....&tw=300&th=350
I got this off somebody's review:

---They're harder.
---They're 60% lighter. A 1/4-inch (6.35-mm) steel bearing weighs about 1 gram. A Dura-Ace rear hub uses 18 bearings that size. 18g x 60% = 10.8g, a savings of 7.2g. Not bad.
---They withstand higher temperatures. Ceramic bearings can handle heat up to 2,552F degrees (1,302C). That's important if your sprint is so hot it can melt steel.
---They're rounder. Grade 3-5 ceramic balls mean accurate roundness to 0.00003-0.00005 inches. The standard Grade 25 chrome steel bearings used by Shimano and Campagnolo in their best equipment are accurate only to 0.00025 inch. Check this with your tape measure and you'll see.
---They withstand high loads as well as high speeds. One manufacturer actually compared this feature to the ceramic tiles of the Space Shuttle upon reentry. I think it means you may need a fireproof suit for that next big descent.
---They reduce friction by at least 40%. That's a pretty impressive figure, but I could not find proof of it anywhere.
---They last 3-5 times longer. If you overhaul your hubs every year, this means you need to replace the bearings 3-5 times less often. Sounds good to me.

Well, I'm building up a single-speed based around a 'cross frame using a ceramic bearing BB... I'll let you know how it goes when my frame comes in.

note: ceramic BB won't let you bike be lighter, it won't let you spin faster... but on the long haul (more than a few miles) you'll lose less energy in to friction. If you're thinking of doing this on a pure track use bike probably the only time it'll be worth it is if you're trying to brake the hour. But, it won't help you get to the coffee shop faster. Maybe you'll be a little less worn out at the end of the day if you're a courier though.

Real talk before dutret comes in and says the same thing I'm about to say:

Ceramic BB's are saving you a handful of watts at best. That's nothing compared to what a proper bike fit or proper handlebar setup / riding technique will save you. If anything, ceramic is better in the hubs because they spin at higher RPMs but it's still making a very marginal difference that you'd have to be time-trialing to notice. Save the money and buy nicer tires, you'll notice a lot more difference.

Are there any track cranks compatible with any of the ceramic BBs? Most it seems are exo-type.

Omniums

I actually don't need a new BB (or better tires either). I just like to hear what people are doing thats new and different. Dutret can lick my nut.:lol:

Dutret can be a dick and excessive on the ad hominems sometimes, but he does speak in practical terms and is right a lot of the time.

But everyone loves 11.4 because he is a genius and doesn't make personal attacks, so here's his take on ceramics from a PM he sent me:

So yeah, if you really wanted to get serious, all-ceramic would be where it's at. But this is very, very expensive and unrealistic in comparison to the large variety of other upgrades you could make for much less money, e.g. the upgrade from clips/straps to clipless.

I don't know guys, that 7.2 grams is great. Way better than using 10cm less bar tape.

From that picture, that FSA BB is:

BB-8000 Ceramic

* Compatible with K-Force and SL-K cranks
* Also compatible with Shimano DuraAce/Ultegra Hollowtech 2 systems
* NOT compatible with Omega or Team Issue
* NOT compatible with K-Force Light S10 Compact or K-Force Light Road Compact
* See the MegaExo fit chart for details on compatibility

The TruVativ weighs 118 grams (non-ceramic bearings). They also make the 'Black Box Mountain' BB which uses ceramic bearings, but I couldn't find a weight.

7.2g for $100+?
If your sprint melts steel?
get out your tape measure for sub-micrometer measurements?


yhbt

you can get a ceramic ISIS BB for the FSA track cranks.


Ceramic with better steel races.
Like the bearings in the new Super Record cranks. INA-*** Cronitect steel
http://www.velonews.com/photo/77902
Or, the Enduro Zero ceramics.
http://www.enduroforkseals.com/id202.html

I have ceramic bearing on my Poprad and ceramic pulley bearings but I don't notice a difference. It's supposed to give you like 3 watts, or roughly the variance between rolling resistance between high end race tires.

I've got the BlackBox on my new bike. During assembly I spun up the cranks and it feels pretty smooth. No binding, grinding or creaking. We'll see how it wears in.

In my experience, ceramic BB's make more of a difference on square taper/isis style setups. The oversized seals on external bb's drag so much that whether you have ceramics or not, you're losing wattage. Square taper types are more or less impervious to this type of bearing drag and oversideloading of the bearings.

(Bontrager/Truvativ type external cranks don't apply to this argument because of their unique method of bearing preload)

Thank god external bb's are going to be deprecated by BB30. THANK GOD.

^ ^ If you hate them so much just throw a damn square taper, Octalink or ISIS back in. Not like you don't have the option.