dear Scrod...

how wide & how much rise is that handlebar you got on your bareknuckle?

thanx...

It's the Nitto B302AA 'All Rounder'. 49cm wide/65mm rise.

how do you feel about black cranks on a white frame with silver components? and black suns

I was going to ask same question but was afraid to be accused of bike-racism. I have one minority component I was going to get rid of..

Typically, I like either all silver or all black parts.

I'm curious about Omniums -sparked by the talk on the GT Pulse- and so I will ask you since you have used them. Why is that so many people have compatibility issues with these cranks and their frames? Is the Q-factor really narrow? Do the spider arms sit further inboard than other cranks? I wish I could look at these first hand to see what's the deal.

The bearing life on GXP bottom brackets are junk.
The interface on them is horrid as well.

[/notscrod]

why are you selling your kagero?

While we're on the subject, are the ceramic bearing/Chris King ones significantly better than the stock ones? I'm beginning to notice the knocking sound you've been talking about .

Heh, I was just about to ask this as well, although my bottom bracket is doing just fine. I don't know if I see the point in spending up to $80 for ceramic bearings.

I always complain about the GXP when I see someone with Omniums and the response is always the same "weird, I never got that". Started to wonder if I was losing my mind

A ceramic BB is useless, or any other individual component. If you want ceramic then you might as well replace all the bearings on the bike with it

Ceramic bearings are 90% hype.

hammy - you're definitely not crazy. You know I experienced the same issues with more than one GXP BB. I know some people who have had the same thing happen and others who have no problems. I just think it's a crap shoot.

hairnet - Q-factor is narrow but also, the back of the spider arms are much thicker than they need to be and - as ddeadserious recently experienced - they're not even all the same thickness (he had one that was way thicker than the rest and he had to take a file to it). The fact that Sram hasn't corrected this by now blows my mind.

B0NESY - because I want something else.

Keep in mind that the Chris King GXP BB is not ceramic and if you're adamant about using Omniums is a good investment. A friend of mine gone through 2 standard GXP BB's before using a CK and so far so good.

Had 2 friends with problems with the BB both using it brakeless and I've never had any problem but I do run a front brake.

As I've said before, I think the GXP system is fine for geared road bikes but can't withstand the pressure put on it from both directions when being used on a fixed gear bike - especially if the rider is on the heavier side and/or is a masher. I haven't tested this theory in a lab or anything but those are my thoughts on the matter based upon my experience and that of others.

FWIW, I haven't had any problems with my standard GXP BB(purchased alone, not the one that came with the crankset) on my Kagero with Omniums, riding brakeless and being a fat. Maybe it's just a crapshoot.

I don't understand why directional pressure would ruin a bearing.

I haven't had any problems with any of my GXP BB's (road or tarck use), though I am fairly light/weak and neither of them were the "stock" BB's that come bundled with the cranks.

Bottom bracket bearings aren't just spinning in one direction and then the other (like a hub), there's also a lot of multi directional force being put upon them by the rider. Think about the immense pressure put on the bottom bracket of a fixed gear bike on any given day (except evilcryalotmore's bike). Take a pen or similar object and spin it back and forth in your fingers. Easy, right? Now bend the pen while spinning it.

I think it has most to do with the stock GXP BB not being very good to begin with. Also, the way the spindle goes through the external bearing cups doesn't seem that strong to me - especially when compared to a traditional square taper setup. A heavy-hitting friend of mine uses GXP on his trials bike and he has developed play in his crank that can't be tightened (and is getting worse).

I'm much more in favor of keeping the bearings inside the BB shell.

Speaking of square taper cranks/BB, I'm torn between the IRD Defiant and Sugino RD2 for my green 722. Would you recommend one over the other?

RD2 often gets a bad rap but I think it's a great crankset. IRD Defiant is a lot nicer looking (if you're into the "classic" look), a little stiffer and 144bcd though.

I have the RD2 on my beater and have nothing bad to say about it.

I still have Scrods old RD2's and they're still perfect.

Question: do you like fish? How often do you cook it? Any favorites?

Scrod, now that I have the BK frame here I get the feeling that my Omnium crankset will just look a little funny on the frame. I'm looking to replace it with something of equal caliper, I've been thinking 75s or DA. Do you have any experience with DA cranks, will I notice a huge difference between 7610 and 7700?

scrod the front end of my chain whip has seized up or something. it won't flex at all. best method to fix this?

Use the 'loosening shelf' on your chain tool to free up the stiff links.