Tks to those who alerted us to the public postings Mr. Hambini has published in his various channels at various times, relating to CB. Why the same info were not simply and openly shared with us at the beginning, both dimensions, a simple spin test video (does not have to be in the youtube-ready-to-present format) . The conversation would have been constructive and meaningful. We are glad to learn from this ONE case, and finally see the same info as the viewers , and take appropriate action. Hambini is presenting one case finding and his theory. Facts remains there are plenty of actual CB performing BB30A-86 in the field. C-bear bb30A-30 may look simple, but it is not as simple as Hambini thinks.
Perhaps if you openly shared your answer to the direct question is 42.08mm an acceptable interference fit. The conversation would have been constructive and meaningful. I note you still haven't answered the question. Are you going to answer it? Here's a link to the email exchange www.hambini.com/c-bear_bottom_bracket_response/
@C-BEAR, The emails that have been posted make it quite clear that you were given ample opportunity to respond and answer to a question. You chose to mess around with your response and now you are begging forgiveness claiming it was an isolated incident and Hambini's actions are shady and underhand. Scroll down and you will see many people with problematic C-Bear bottom brackets. It is not the fact that you made a mistake, it is the way you went about trying to cover it up and then your post above accusing Hambini of a smear campaign. You have been exposed and you only have your own stupidity to thank.
This ONE? Are your bottom brackets made individually by hand? Or on a production line, cos if its production line only god know how many there are out there.
My bike!!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣 It rides lovely now, thanks Hambini! And changing the siezed bearings in the Hunt wheel made all the difference too. I can now shrill that they are 'fast, very fast and pick up speed like nothing else!!' 😆
The rivet on the chainring goes behind the crank arm to stop the chain getting wedged between the crank arm and the spider. (Just commenting before 1,000 people make the same comment.)
I fitted a set of C-bear ceramic/alloy jockey wheels to bling up my GX groupset some years ago when I naively thought it was a good idea, the bearings had play in them from day one and eventually the alloy wheel exploded and fucked my derailleur up so badly I walked home 34km. That's when I learned not to buy into derailleur pulleys and nonsense products...then I discovered your channel, it was like coming full circle. I've learnt so much in the last couple years in regards to engineering and principles just from your channel that it has inspired me to do more reading on subjects such as aerodynamics, QA/QC, mechanical engineering etc mainly so I don't get fucked over by shitbags but also because I'm lazy and I don't want to put out more watts than I have to so if there's free margi al gains to be had I will have them all. My greatest achievement to date has been getting blocked by Absolute Black on all their social media pages for asking awkward questions :).
That’s the problem with the entire bike industry. Yes technically bigger pulleys are more efficient but maybe the frame manufacturers should figure out how to make round holes in their bottom brackets before they sell us something new. Especially when the quality is crap and makes the bike not get you from point a to b.
@@simaomartins3123 i think you are missing the point. It is not a pejorative argument against portugal. More that we only know its coming from a university professor in a Portuguese university. And that's about it. Could have been any country .
Why has it become the norm for businesses to literally lie to their customers? How have we all been numbed to accept it? Glad you're pointing out the nonsense
I think the issue is with aftermarket parts is the wide range of BB tolerances they have to fit. If they made them to the proper spec, some would be fine and others like a Wizard's sleeve. So, they just make 'em big avoid all the customer service queries. I'm glad when the bearings went south I could get Hambini to fix it!
capitalism demands profit maximisation over all else. Businessess with any degree of ethics have been- and will continue to be- forced to the sidelines and eventually out of the market altogether.
There is going beyond the spec but then there is plain shite. The key thing here is there is 0.06mm variation between the c bear cups. That is indicative of shite quality control. I would be ashamed with that level of deviation
Hambini, I love your satirical engineering exploits. As a fellow engineer I find it hilarious and wish that more people in the engineering field were held accountable for their designs.
In 2013 I bought a new Cannondale Supersix 105 2012 model for £1200 GBP. I sold the FSA crank and fitted a Dura Ace 7900 I had. A simple process, the original bearing tapped out easily and the Shimano thread alloy one piece sleeve was only £12 GBP from Cannondale's own website. The instructions said it should be considered semi-permanent and refitted no more than twice. It was a tight fit but a £6 homemade threaded rod, nut, and washer press from eBay just about worked. I've been riding it ever since with no problems. Conclusions: these cheaper carbon frames from Cannondale were built strongly and well. The bottom bracket area is very chunky. There were no obsessive attempts at weight saving. The geometry and measurements were all good.
Absolutely love your videos. They have inspired me to do all my own bike maintenance now. I won’t have any shop work on my bikes now I do everything myself from bottom brackets, wheel bearings, headsets etc. What you did on that bike almost no bike shop out there would be able to do.
Thanks for calling them out Hambini. I had an issue with my C-Bear BB last spring (the bearing were coming out by themselves of the cup without any resistance). My bike was creaking so much. I tried contacting them since it had only been 18 months since I bought the BB (they advertise on their website a no questions asked 2 years warranty) and they ask a whole lot of questions and required pictures. Went to the shop, disassembled my bike, provided lots of pictures and they refused to replace the BB or refund me entirely since I was near the 24 months mark. Well is it a 2 year warranty or not? Very shady. I bought this from C-Bear specifically because they advertise “silent performance” and a 2 year warranty and in the end, you could hear my bike creak from 15 feet away and I was unable to warranty the BB.
Just in case anybody wants one of those honing tools, Machine Mart have them for under £16 (very useful for cleaning up burrs etc in seat tubes in alu frames. Just don't spin them too fast)
I feel like this one got us the trifecta with with the video watching hairdresser, "less than Ideal" Luescher, and "Sewerage Engineering" Peak Torque all being referenced or acknowledged. So much talent crammed into one twenty minute video!
I’m loving your channel at the moment Hambini, engineering within the bike industry is just woeful, just picked up a brand new Giant Defy which has rear flat mounts that look like they have been machined with a toothbrush… My own experience with C bear isn’t great either, having a Dolan frame that originally came with SRAM GXP I opted for one of their units when you couldn’t supply a GXP type, after 3k miles the LHS bearing felt like crap, so I contacted them and they claimed it was due to lack of maintenance and that I should have cleaned and regreased it, I think the main problem here was the GXP standard and LHS bearing failure as you have pointed out before on your channel, but it was clear they didn’t want to know. I swapped out for a Shimano chainset and the issues went away, when the current BB wears out I will be putting a Hambini in! Keep up the great work 👍
During the pandemic and with increased demand, quality control has taken a massive hit. I've seen plenty of less than ideal situations from many beloved manufacturers... but then with Giant I've seen some attrociously built bikes prior to the pandemic too.
Just keep doing what you're doing Hambini...exposing the shysters and charlatans that infest the cycling industry. They tremble in fear of a Hambini reaming!
Interesting as usual. Glad I'm still using up my stash of Shimano Octalink BBs. I do have one Cannondale with PF30 that the Hambini BB fixed. Glad to see they went to a single aluminum inside the BB shell- has to be way easier to make correctly than the straight carbon ones.
I was shawshanked in to watching this video. ONE because it discusses the exact same frame as mine which also had a BB creak problem and TWO because I considered CBear as replacement BB at one time for my frame as well. At that time I contacted them and specifically asked "One more question. Are your BBs serviceable ie can I replace their bearings later on?" They responded to my email but simply ignored my question. I ended up going with Token Ninja. A good compromise for someone like me. Its been working fine thus far for me (1000kms or so). Regardless. As always, Great video Hambini!
C bear have to date not specified if their bottom bracket was made to specification and have tried to duck the question. Somewhat shady behaviour but it's the bike industry. On a more serious note, if you did fit this, most frames would crack.
Did I miss the bit where you came back to talk about the damage on the crank axle? Only I have some cranks with similar issues so was interested to hear your thoughts. Good vid as always though. Thanks.
If the bearings are stiff the shaft can rotate in the inner ring part of the bearing. Effectively the bearing becomes a plain bearing rather than a ball bearing. The bearing is harder than the shaft so it gets worn/damaged. Think that's what's had been going on.
Great vid Hambini; what I like most is you have the correct tools to measure how bad the bb was and give proper fact based evidence, that the company should have looked into with you and put their hands up for the poor fit and looked to improve there quality standards, after all if a 5 year old can spot it, all the adults in the engineering department of said company should do too 😁
Had a nightmare with my cervelo s5 a few years back. Got a mechanic to install a C bear BB bearing , he ended up cracking the frame trying to install it. Always wondered was it the BB or the bearing. Luckily Cervelo gave me a new frame .
I have the same experience with CBear, oversized cups way out of tolerance limits. I even have a video about it. Currently using Hambini BB. Expensive, but worth every penny
A new Hambini video!! woo-hoo, great start to the day here in the good ole USofA! haha Did I miss the Time Scylon video? very interested in what ole Hamby has to say about it, as I am currently looking at a Time ADHX or A d'H 21 as a replacement/addition to my 20 yo Calfee Luna Pro, plus several mtbs.
I think its about time to make a Hambini ranking list of bike makers. I was stunned by the report on Legend bikes (Bertoletti). So far I know that , Cannondale some times do okay, Time and Look do okay, NTN and SKF are good. Shimano has many holes, but they are like paper to writings, drawings
@@bb1039 I’m not sure why he shies away from it. From what I’ve seen: -Frame: Look or a Time, Winspace, Hungfu/Dengfu or a Giant, the rest are hit or miss. Don’t even consider Cervelo, Canyon, Factor, Open, and some others I can’t pull to memory right now. -Wheels: Not Flo or anything with ceramics less Winspace (perhaps). Make sure they don’t fall apart/a spoke breaks randomly. -Groupset: Shimano but with different cranks. If you want their cranks 105 cranks (solid piece). (Peak Torque rates Rotor cranks)
More ENTERTAINMENT! 👍. I do believe the Rotor rings can be rotated in relation to the pedal shaft to fine tune the power stroke to your liking. “Stroke” as to pedalling, not other forms of exercise. Lol
Yeah, you can. But I decided just to go with round chainrings. On the previous Rotor 3D+ I had oval Absolutely Black (!!!) and dropped a few chains so didn't bother this time around. The one piece Rotor chainring is a lovely and as I have short 155mm cranks I could fit 46/30 to help with cadence vs torque.
I have a 2016 Giant Defy that I just started riding this year. It’s been been evaluated by the bike shop mechanic at least 8-10x for creaking and cracking noises coming from the bottom bracket. Can’t help but wonder that this is a defect that will never be fixed 😢
I had exactly the same experience with a C-bear bottom bracket: It was stuck in the frame and didn't rotate at all. It appeared as well the dimensions where way off from what acceptable tolerances should be. Step 1: learn about the fit standards and tolerances. Step 2: apply decent quality control on your production.
Everybody makes mistakes. What is telling, is the response to the mistake being found. The proper response by C Bear would have been, "Well, let's figure out what we can do so this doesn't happen again."
A proper response should of been is... this is the clearance, If its out of spec mail it to us and we will mail you back a new one or even a updated version free of charge.
I just installed a C-Bear BB86 on my BMC Roadmachine with zero issues. Bearings runs as smooth as the Ceramic Speed Coated I've used in the past. The Token Ninja BB86 i tried was a disaster. The actual width of the Token BB is about 3mm wider than specified, making it impossible to fit a Rotor crankset, even without any O-rings or washers. The Token Ninja was harder to fit than the C-Bear and made some worrying noises during installation. Removing the Token BB damn near broke my tools.
I wonder who installed the C-Bear BB. Was the frame and BB purchased separately and the owner had a shop install it? Was the bike purchased whole, the owner wore out the original BB and a shop replaced it with the C-Bear BB? I'd like to know what the person who installed it thought, how hard did they have to press each side in, what did they think when the shaft was difficult to turn, what did they think when they installed the crank and saw how poorly it turned.
Yes the know it! I send them a email in 2020 with the same issue on the gxp cbear bracket. It was so hard to remove it, so i measured the cups. exacly the same between 0.1 an 0.2mm to big! I have never seen the reaction from C bear. On the Foil the crank was spinning fine but bearings are worn out after 4K. In the Netherlands C bear has a good name. Ik don,t know why. Every bike i service has worn bearings after 4 till 6k due this issue.
Specialized being my local area brand (SF Bay Area), It needs to be reamed by Hambini too. Tech & Finance yuppies in my area ride Trek, Specialized, and Cannondale all the time.
@@Reanimator999 Tons of people ride those brands because they've been staples in the USA market for decades. I've been riding Specialized since the 90's. That doesn't mean they are the best brand but that's what I like. Here in Dallas, it's tons of Spesh, Trek and Cannondale, plus there's tons of folks that ride Giant and Pinarello. Occasionally you'll see some BMC because a good local shop is a dealer. We don't get any Time, Ridley, Merida, Scott. I know a shop that sells Look but I've never seen one in the wild. I just find it interesting that Hambini hasn't had a Specialized on his bench. Maybe that's a good sign since all his bikes come from folks who sent them in?
Peer is a village in Flanders , province of Limburg,not in Wallonia. Ridley the bike supplier of Lotto team and André Greipel are also based in Limburg.
I have cbear on my bike. I’ve removed the shell once to inspect it after 2 years, and I’ve also replaced the bearings many times without issues using a cheap pressfit install/removal tool I got from aliexpress. The bearings always seem to get corroded, and I hardly ride in the rain, and I dont sweat that much. Other than that, I have no issue with the BB. No creaking whatsoever. And it’s relatively cheap. Of course I never measured the shell, so I dont know if it’s deformed. What’s weird is cbear specifies using anti seize, not grease, when installing the BB, even the pressfit one.
Glorious lines from this reaming: "I was raided by interpol while me and the hairdresser were watching a skillshare video on how to dye one's pubes." "I wasn't going to waste my time accurately measuring a turd" "Reamed more than Cameron Jeffers when he got stripped of his zwift title". You couldn't script this!
Heh, I actually have one of these BBs installed. I do have a Hambini BB, but it couldn't be installed due to internal cable routing, so still have C-Bear in use...
Last versions of Rotor cranks have big problems in design...the screws are undersized and either loosen, or make noise or require excessive maintenance until at some point moment...the miracle happens and they are quiet for a few months...
Duh. Bigger is much more better. 500% stifferer and all that jazz. My E13 crank with 30mm spindle is a creaky pile of poo. I'd get rid of it if it wasn't 180mm long.
This is my bike and Hambini advised to get in decent bearings into a BB30 you need to drop the axle size down. The C-Bear was fitted to my old 30mm Rotor axle and 1. Didn't last long and 2. Was impossible to remove the bearings to change them, hence why Hambini got involved.
@RollinRat They were never going to admit to anything. I had the C-Bear fitted by a high-end bike shop (Look, Bianchi, Basso et.al) dealer local to me. C-Bear was the only solution for my frame at £155.00 apparently. Unfortunately, the shop went bust during Covid I assume due to supply issues so I have no recourse through them. I'm not sure what scanning will tell me though. I'll ride it and periodically check it until I see an issue; it's not a failure point that'll put me in hospital.
I've had a few C-Bear bottom brackets on different bikes and they have always been top class, lasting ages and have nearly always stopped the dreaded creak I suffered first with a campag BB (utter dogSh*t) and then with Shimano (mildly better). However one thing Hambini's channel has done is make me cautious and thats why I check the ID of the shell and the OD of the BB prior to installation( and make sure theres no contamination) . So far no issues seen on the last 2. But better a few minutes of checking than a few hours of absolute cluster f**k trying to remove them.
I'm inclined to think these engineering 'faults' that are outside of the 'established' tolerances are intentional.... the industry appears to have created a disposable mantra to shift more units that wear or expire prematurely thanks monetary 'economy'
_"...outside of the 'established' tolerances are intentional"_ no, it's just that QA/QC equals money. They saw an opportunity to save a tenth of a million, and took it. It's up to us consumers to tell them their products/services are N.F.G.
I never bother hitting anything with a hammer that's not supported, in this case the strike energy just goes into moving the frame rather than shifting the bearing.
@@albr4 ah I learnt from my dad, easier but less satisfying. He also taught me a workaround, if you can't support you can sometimes get away with using a lighter hammer but swinging it faster. Put the energy into the bearing before the frame has a chance to move.
I'm now wondering if there is any bike frames on the market that are worth investing in. It seems Look, Time, and some Cannondales but not all are the only ones that seem to have there act together. Any suggestions????? Maybe I should have not sold my older Look frame.
bb30 bearing to get out need a bit of force, so a few hard hits normaly get it out, i work at a cannondale dealer and its always shitty to remove, outside cup and then inner bearing, and then if you need to replace the bearings tou have to tap them out of the cup, not the best design
Pretty limited experience with C Bear, fortunately sold the bike before it failed. Only reason I got it was the manufacturer put some ridiculous BB in there that wasn't compatible with shimano cranks, and the C bear fit with no naff plastic conversion cups. Everything's on threaded now, I just go for what's simple, reliable and works rather than sci fi bollocks.
A well deserved roasting engineering limits and fits are drilled into all apprentice engineers from day one !! So are these qualified engineers ??????..
I agree with Hambini. I bought a C-Bear BB from Sigma. Tried to fit to a Scott Foil. Super tough to get it moving inwards. Until I heard a Crack... Contacted C-Bear. Got fobbed by email.
When there is no tolerance in place for something then there is nothing to share. Perhaps this is the reality for why C-bear have declined to reply to the tolerance question since April?
i surely hope you are joking about the pin on the large ring, it always goes behind the crank arm, this blocks the chain from getting stuck if you ever throw the chain off the big ring .
Question! That estimated +9w drag. I use power meters on all my bikes, lets says me and my buddy is out riding and my bottom bracket is SHIT with a lot of drag, will that reflect on my power meter numbers? i.e. I would have slightly higher power meter output figures just because the bottom bracket is dragging me down. Or does this lost drag in the BB not reflect on my output numbers?
You will rider slower at the same power output. However more drag doesn't magically make your body capable of a higher power output to compenstae for higher drag.
Tks to those who alerted us to the public postings Mr. Hambini has published in his various channels at various times, relating to CB.
Why the same info were not simply and openly shared with us at the beginning, both dimensions, a simple spin test video (does not have to be in the youtube-ready-to-present format) . The conversation would have been constructive and meaningful.
We are glad to learn from this ONE case, and finally see the same info as the viewers , and take appropriate action.
Hambini is presenting one case finding and his theory.
Facts remains there are plenty of actual CB performing BB30A-86 in the field.
C-bear bb30A-30 may look simple, but it is not as simple as Hambini thinks.
Perhaps if you openly shared your answer to the direct question is 42.08mm an acceptable interference fit. The conversation would have been constructive and meaningful. I note you still haven't answered the question. Are you going to answer it? Here's a link to the email exchange www.hambini.com/c-bear_bottom_bracket_response/
@C-BEAR, The emails that have been posted make it quite clear that you were given ample opportunity to respond and answer to a question. You chose to mess around with your response and now you are begging forgiveness claiming it was an isolated incident and Hambini's actions are shady and underhand. Scroll down and you will see many people with problematic C-Bear bottom brackets. It is not the fact that you made a mistake, it is the way you went about trying to cover it up and then your post above accusing Hambini of a smear campaign. You have been exposed and you only have your own stupidity to thank.
This ONE? Are your bottom brackets made individually by hand? Or on a production line, cos if its production line only god know how many there are out there.
All you have to do is answer Yes or No. So answer Yes or No, why are you being salty?
You needed to be “alerted?” I guess the emails Hambini sent directly to you didn’t do the trick, huh, bub… 😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😆
My bike!!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣
It rides lovely now, thanks Hambini! And changing the siezed bearings in the Hunt wheel made all the difference too. I can now shrill that they are 'fast, very fast and pick up speed like nothing else!!' 😆
Crappo bear's response is somewhere on the scale between crap and diarrhea
@@Hambini diarrhea, diarrhea, lovely diarrhea coming out ya ear
"I was raided by interpol while me and the hairdersser were watching a skillshare video on how to dye one's pubes." - I spat my coffee
@@theillegalimmigrant9314 Disappointingly Hambini didn't provide a link in the description to that skillshare video. Guess I'll need to improvise.
@@test868 There must be courses on hairdressing?!?
Sewage Engineering was a term I coined specifically for your plumbing business!
I've borrowed it for c bear
Did you find his hairdresser stuck under the kitchen sink?
The rivet on the chainring goes behind the crank arm to stop the chain getting wedged between the crank arm and the spider. (Just commenting before 1,000 people make the same comment.)
ahahahaha
Here to make the same comment
don't worry they will anyway, most people comment first and then read later if at all
They still will - most people comment first and then (maybe) read some other responses...
I fitted a set of C-bear ceramic/alloy jockey wheels to bling up my GX groupset some years ago when I naively thought it was a good idea, the bearings had play in them from day one and eventually the alloy wheel exploded and fucked my derailleur up so badly I walked home 34km. That's when I learned not to buy into derailleur pulleys and nonsense products...then I discovered your channel, it was like coming full circle. I've learnt so much in the last couple years in regards to engineering and principles just from your channel that it has inspired me to do more reading on subjects such as aerodynamics, QA/QC, mechanical engineering etc mainly so I don't get fucked over by shitbags but also because I'm lazy and I don't want to put out more watts than I have to so if there's free margi al gains to be had I will have them all. My greatest achievement to date has been getting blocked by Absolute Black on all their social media pages for asking awkward questions :).
That’s the problem with the entire bike industry. Yes technically bigger pulleys are more efficient but maybe the frame manufacturers should figure out how to make round holes in their bottom brackets before they sell us something new. Especially when the quality is crap and makes the bike not get you from point a to b.
Absolute black, that famous company that relies on data from an unnamed professor at an unidentified Portuguese university
@@Hambini Like the videos and we learn a lot from them but the part of Portuguese university was avoidable 🤔🤔
Ahaj kudos for being blocked by absolutekwack . I was too. Greatest achievement so far
@@simaomartins3123 i think you are missing the point. It is not a pejorative argument against portugal. More that we only know its coming from a university professor in a Portuguese university. And that's about it. Could have been any country .
Why has it become the norm for businesses to literally lie to their customers? How have we all been numbed to accept it? Glad you're pointing out the nonsense
I think the issue is with aftermarket parts is the wide range of BB tolerances they have to fit. If they made them to the proper spec, some would be fine and others like a Wizard's sleeve. So, they just make 'em big avoid all the customer service queries.
I'm glad when the bearings went south I could get Hambini to fix it!
capitalism demands profit maximisation over all else. Businessess with any degree of ethics have been- and will continue to be- forced to the sidelines and eventually out of the market altogether.
There is going beyond the spec but then there is plain shite. The key thing here is there is 0.06mm variation between the c bear cups. That is indicative of shite quality control. I would be ashamed with that level of deviation
Nobody wants to accept responsibility. This is true of cars, home appliances, and Apple.
@@firesurfer and they want to make money. Like... As much money as they can squeeze out of the process.
Hambini is a cycling hero, as he's got the balls to face big bike lobby that should go on precision and standardisation instead of silly creativity.
Hambini, I love your satirical engineering exploits. As a fellow engineer I find it hilarious and wish that more people in the engineering field were held accountable for their designs.
Again, what's all this talk of bike companies and "engineering" in the same sentences???
😁😁😁
that was a better reaming than a danish towel boy at a kevin spacey cocktail party
What a brave man, first time I watched a video where the people dislike the video were told to screw themselves.
@Charles Man not enough OBI shipping? 😏
In 2013 I bought a new Cannondale Supersix 105 2012 model for £1200 GBP. I sold the FSA crank and fitted a Dura Ace 7900 I had.
A simple process, the original bearing tapped out easily and the Shimano thread alloy one piece sleeve was only £12 GBP from Cannondale's own website. The instructions said it should be considered semi-permanent and refitted no more than twice.
It was a tight fit but a £6 homemade threaded rod, nut, and washer press from eBay just about worked.
I've been riding it ever since with no problems.
Conclusions: these cheaper carbon frames from Cannondale were built strongly and well. The bottom bracket area is very chunky. There were no obsessive attempts at weight saving. The geometry and measurements were all good.
Absolutely love your videos. They have inspired me to do all my own bike maintenance now. I won’t have any shop work on my bikes now I do everything myself from bottom brackets, wheel bearings, headsets etc. What you did on that bike almost no bike shop out there would be able to do.
Thanks for calling them out Hambini. I had an issue with my C-Bear BB last spring (the bearing were coming out by themselves of the cup without any resistance). My bike was creaking so much. I tried contacting them since it had only been 18 months since I bought the BB (they advertise on their website a no questions asked 2 years warranty) and they ask a whole lot of questions and required pictures. Went to the shop, disassembled my bike, provided lots of pictures and they refused to replace the BB or refund me entirely since I was near the 24 months mark. Well is it a 2 year warranty or not? Very shady. I bought this from C-Bear specifically because they advertise “silent performance” and a 2 year warranty and in the end, you could hear my bike creak from 15 feet away and I was unable to warranty the BB.
So what kind of a BB fixed this?
I've pinned their top comment. It looks like they have lots of "isolated incidents"
ANY company that does not stand to its products / warranty and shies away from customer service has to be denounced . Walk of shame C-Bear.
@@MrJx4000 My LBS recommended the BB30A Outboard Angular Contact BB for 24mm Cranks (Shimano) from Wheels Manufacturing
Just in case anybody wants one of those honing tools, Machine Mart have them for under £16 (very useful for cleaning up burrs etc in seat tubes in alu frames. Just don't spin them too fast)
Always watch Hambini videos as soon as they're posted, just in case they get pulled later !
I feel like this one got us the trifecta with with the video watching hairdresser, "less than Ideal" Luescher, and "Sewerage Engineering" Peak Torque all being referenced or acknowledged. So much talent crammed into one twenty minute video!
I’m loving your channel at the moment Hambini, engineering within the bike industry is just woeful, just picked up a brand new Giant Defy which has rear flat mounts that look like they have been machined with a toothbrush…
My own experience with C bear isn’t great either, having a Dolan frame that originally came with SRAM GXP I opted for one of their units when you couldn’t supply a GXP type, after 3k miles the LHS bearing felt like crap, so I contacted them and they claimed it was due to lack of maintenance and that I should have cleaned and regreased it, I think the main problem here was the GXP standard and LHS bearing failure as you have pointed out before on your channel, but it was clear they didn’t want to know. I swapped out for a Shimano chainset and the issues went away, when the current BB wears out I will be putting a Hambini in! Keep up the great work 👍
I'm thinking the same thing. Once bearing or thread BB in my Time Izon wear out, I'm thinking of using Hambini BB.
During the pandemic and with increased demand, quality control has taken a massive hit. I've seen plenty of less than ideal situations from many beloved manufacturers... but then with Giant I've seen some attrociously built bikes prior to the pandemic too.
@@Metal-Possum When companies get too big, they forget that it's the quality that put them on map.
@@Reanimator999 Giant didn't win on quality, they won on volume and price.
Ideally, for the amount of frames you seem you ream, it may be worth to get a milling machine and bore to tolerances.
Just keep doing what you're doing Hambini...exposing the shysters and charlatans that infest the cycling industry. They tremble in fear of a Hambini reaming!
Interesting as usual.
Glad I'm still using up my stash of Shimano Octalink BBs.
I do have one Cannondale with PF30 that the Hambini BB fixed. Glad to see they went to a single aluminum inside the BB shell- has to be way easier to make correctly than the straight carbon ones.
I was shawshanked in to watching this video. ONE because it discusses the exact same frame as mine which also had a BB creak problem and TWO because I considered CBear as replacement BB at one time for my frame as well.
At that time I contacted them and specifically asked "One more question. Are your BBs serviceable ie can I replace their bearings later on?"
They responded to my email but simply ignored my question.
I ended up going with Token Ninja. A good compromise for someone like me. Its been working fine thus far for me (1000kms or so).
Regardless. As always, Great video Hambini!
An ideal solution and a competent approach to solving a complex issue! 👌
Very very good Hambini. I am enjoying your explanations of poor bike engineering practices more than ever.
C bear have to date not specified if their bottom bracket was made to specification and have tried to duck the question. Somewhat shady behaviour but it's the bike industry. On a more serious note, if you did fit this, most frames would crack.
Hello Master, could you please share link to that milling tool, I was checking on amazon could not find?
Thank you in advance.
@@ArtemSure It´s a honing tool, not a milling tool. Rgr
@@borano2031 thank you Sir
@@ArtemSure search for a brake cylinder hone tool
A chap above mentioned, ' honing tools, Machine Mart have them for under £16'.
Did I miss the bit where you came back to talk about the damage on the crank axle? Only I have some cranks with similar issues so was interested to hear your thoughts. Good vid as always though. Thanks.
If the bearings are stiff the shaft can rotate in the inner ring part of the bearing. Effectively the bearing becomes a plain bearing rather than a ball bearing. The bearing is harder than the shaft so it gets worn/damaged. Think that's what's had been going on.
Great job on the explaining Ham, loving your work..
Great vid Hambini; what I like most is you have the correct tools to measure how bad the bb was and give proper fact based evidence, that the company should have looked into with you and put their hands up for the poor fit and looked to improve there quality standards, after all if a 5 year old can spot it, all the adults in the engineering department of said company should do too 😁
17:33
damn, that tool. I thought of some other thing...
love your work mate
thank you
may i ask about the "grease" you use with the hone?
Had a nightmare with my cervelo s5 a few years back. Got a mechanic to install a C bear BB bearing , he ended up cracking the frame trying to install it. Always wondered was it the BB or the bearing. Luckily Cervelo gave me a new frame .
@3:26 isn't that going to scrape off all the anodising on the red cap?
I have the same experience with CBear, oversized cups way out of tolerance limits. I even have a video about it.
Currently using Hambini BB. Expensive, but worth every penny
Where? I only see 3 videos that you've done. None are on CBear that I could see.
th-cam.com/video/AYGtZQXHfBs/w-d-xo.html
I just really like what you’re doing with this channel ..
That quick clamp is quite the tool
Don't even like road bikes, but this channel is magic. Hope there's some mtb content...?
A new Hambini video!! woo-hoo, great start to the day here in the good ole USofA! haha
Did I miss the Time Scylon video? very interested in what ole Hamby has to say about it, as I am currently looking at a Time ADHX or A d'H 21 as a replacement/addition to my 20 yo Calfee Luna Pro, plus several mtbs.
I love that jop well done Engineering Hambini .
This type of customer service is typical in the cycling industry. Zero transparency or accountability.
another great video.....love how many tools you have and that can be needed to make things right...definitely an eye opener
I love "standards" because their are so many to choose from.
Great result brother !
You are the best Hambini 👍
Funny you mention Factor because they’re doing the Canyon route, throw bikes at all the influencers
I think its about time to make a Hambini ranking list of bike makers.
I was stunned by the report on Legend bikes (Bertoletti).
So far I know that , Cannondale some times do okay, Time and Look do okay, NTN and SKF are good. Shimano has many holes, but they are like paper to writings, drawings
@@bb1039 I’m not sure why he shies away from it. From what I’ve seen:
-Frame: Look or a Time, Winspace, Hungfu/Dengfu or a Giant, the rest are hit or miss. Don’t even consider Cervelo, Canyon, Factor, Open, and some others I can’t pull to memory right now.
-Wheels: Not Flo or anything with ceramics less Winspace (perhaps). Make sure they don’t fall apart/a spoke breaks randomly.
-Groupset: Shimano but with different cranks. If you want their cranks 105 cranks (solid piece). (Peak Torque rates Rotor cranks)
More ENTERTAINMENT! 👍. I do believe the Rotor rings can be rotated in relation to the pedal shaft to fine tune the power stroke to your liking. “Stroke” as to pedalling, not other forms of exercise. Lol
Yeah, you can. But I decided just to go with round chainrings. On the previous Rotor 3D+ I had oval Absolutely Black (!!!) and dropped a few chains so didn't bother this time around. The one piece Rotor chainring is a lovely and as I have short 155mm cranks I could fit 46/30 to help with cadence vs torque.
when he says "quite heavy damage to the shaft" and doesn't even make a joke out of it.
You saved me , was about to buy a C Bear for my SuperSix
Great video as always. What type of Mobil grease is this red stuff?
"I wasn't going to waste my time accurately measuring a turd" 😆
What a nightmare to remove those rotor cranks
I have a 2016 Giant Defy that I just started riding this year. It’s been been evaluated by the bike shop mechanic at least 8-10x for creaking and cracking noises coming from the bottom bracket. Can’t help but wonder that this is a defect that will never be fixed 😢
I've had C-Bear BB30 in my Focus and had no issues with it. Guess, I am one of the lucky ones.
Me too. It went into my S-works fine using bb30 cranks. I feel lucky too.
@@stevec6232 both , normal case
I had exactly the same experience with a C-bear bottom bracket: It was stuck in the frame and didn't rotate at all. It appeared as well the dimensions where way off from what acceptable tolerances should be. Step 1: learn about the fit standards and tolerances. Step 2: apply decent quality control on your production.
Thanks for the video.
Everybody makes mistakes. What is telling, is the response to the mistake being found. The proper response by C Bear would have been, "Well, let's figure out what we can do so this doesn't happen again."
_"...Well, let's figure out ..."_ Politicians say that all the time--that's how they make their living ;-)
A proper response should of been is... this is the clearance, If its out of spec mail it to us and we will mail you back a new one or even a updated version free of charge.
Then again, shouldn't we appreciate their honesty by NOT saying that? Because if they HAD, we'd know we were just being strung along even more!
Relieved that my System6 didn't have that problem... What about the damage to the crank?
As always awesome video and your knowledge and fix is supreme😊👍
I just installed a C-Bear BB86 on my BMC Roadmachine with zero issues. Bearings runs as smooth as the Ceramic Speed Coated I've used in the past. The Token Ninja BB86 i tried was a disaster. The actual width of the Token BB is about 3mm wider than specified, making it impossible to fit a Rotor crankset, even without any O-rings or washers. The Token Ninja was harder to fit than the C-Bear and made some worrying noises during installation. Removing the Token BB damn near broke my tools.
I wonder who installed the C-Bear BB. Was the frame and BB purchased separately and the owner had a shop install it? Was the bike purchased whole, the owner wore out the original BB and a shop replaced it with the C-Bear BB? I'd like to know what the person who installed it thought, how hard did they have to press each side in, what did they think when the shaft was difficult to turn, what did they think when they installed the crank and saw how poorly it turned.
@Phil D do you mind some info please?
Yes the know it! I send them a email in 2020 with the same issue on the gxp cbear bracket. It was so hard to remove it, so i measured the cups. exacly the same between 0.1 an 0.2mm to big! I have never seen the reaction from C bear. On the Foil the crank was spinning fine but bearings are worn out after 4K. In the Netherlands C bear has a good name. Ik don,t know why. Every bike i service has worn bearings after 4 till 6k due this issue.
Cracknfale used to make ace aluminium MTB's in the 80's + 90's when they built them in house, shame how they have changed.
Once you get a good name the only thing to do is cash in on it until people notice you're making crap. Rinse and repeat.
Hope to see a late model Specialized on your bench soon. Would love to know your opinion on one of the most popular brands in the biz.
Specialized being my local area brand (SF Bay Area), It needs to be reamed by Hambini too. Tech & Finance yuppies in my area ride Trek, Specialized, and Cannondale all the time.
@@Reanimator999 Tons of people ride those brands because they've been staples in the USA market for decades. I've been riding Specialized since the 90's. That doesn't mean they are the best brand but that's what I like. Here in Dallas, it's tons of Spesh, Trek and Cannondale, plus there's tons of folks that ride Giant and Pinarello. Occasionally you'll see some BMC because a good local shop is a dealer. We don't get any Time, Ridley, Merida, Scott. I know a shop that sells Look but I've never seen one in the wild. I just find it interesting that Hambini hasn't had a Specialized on his bench. Maybe that's a good sign since all his bikes come from folks who sent them in?
Peer is a village in Flanders , province of Limburg,not in Wallonia. Ridley the bike supplier of Lotto team and André Greipel are also based in Limburg.
I have cbear on my bike. I’ve removed the shell once to inspect it after 2 years, and I’ve also replaced the bearings many times without issues using a cheap pressfit install/removal tool I got from aliexpress. The bearings always seem to get corroded, and I hardly ride in the rain, and I dont sweat that much. Other than that, I have no issue with the BB. No creaking whatsoever. And it’s relatively cheap. Of course I never measured the shell, so I dont know if it’s deformed. What’s weird is cbear specifies using anti seize, not grease, when installing the BB, even the pressfit one.
That cleaning tool is awesome.
Glorious lines from this reaming: "I was raided by interpol while me and the hairdresser were watching a skillshare video on how to dye one's pubes."
"I wasn't going to waste my time accurately measuring a turd"
"Reamed more than Cameron Jeffers when he got stripped of his zwift title".
You couldn't script this!
I audibly laughed out loud at all of those jokes. So good
Heh, I actually have one of these BBs installed. I do have a Hambini BB, but it couldn't be installed due to internal cable routing, so still have C-Bear in use...
What's your bike's brand, model and BB standard?
@@sbccbc7471 Ridley Noah Fast, PF30
I have a CBear BB. Works good at the moment, hopefully mine came from a reasonable batch. 🤔
"synapse ... or crap" 😂 great start for this weeks reaming
So happy my bike has a threaded BB. That process would have had me pulling my hair out
Headset cup removal tool to remove the BB?
Need to chose one that's small enough to pass the bearings.
Love the analysis and critique. But why weren't the bearings pressed out? Else use half moons for an even (tapping) force distribution.
the internal lip stops you knocking them out.
@@Hambini the hairdresser could/should've helped there. 😋
I have a C Bear BB with Cervelo R3 and Campag crank. It has worked flawlessly for years! ( I am not getting paid by CBear!)
What a lot of hassle to remove a bb. Thank Christ they’re going back to screw in bb’s .
'I won't be wasting time accurately measuring a turd' hahahaha master level roast 🤣
Last versions of Rotor cranks have big problems in design...the screws are undersized and either loosen, or make noise or require excessive maintenance until at some point moment...the miracle happens and they are quiet for a few months...
I couldn't help but notice the 44mm dia. (2x) grooves on the print. I am guessing it was intended to be a relief...but for what?
VHM 42 snap rings.
i was just curious for the average joe blow is there really any appreciable advantage of using a 30 mm crankset over the common af 24mm bsa stuff
I really don't think there's an appreciable advantage. If pros are good using Shimano's 24mm spindles then you and I are gonna be fine.
Duh. Bigger is much more better. 500% stifferer and all that jazz.
My E13 crank with 30mm spindle is a creaky pile of poo. I'd get rid of it if it wasn't 180mm long.
This is my bike and Hambini advised to get in decent bearings into a BB30 you need to drop the axle size down.
The C-Bear was fitted to my old 30mm Rotor axle and 1. Didn't last long and 2. Was impossible to remove the bearings to change them, hence why Hambini got involved.
@RollinRat They were never going to admit to anything.
I had the C-Bear fitted by a high-end bike shop (Look, Bianchi, Basso et.al) dealer local to me. C-Bear was the only solution for my frame at £155.00 apparently.
Unfortunately, the shop went bust during Covid I assume due to supply issues so I have no recourse through them. I'm not sure what scanning will tell me though. I'll ride it and periodically check it until I see an issue; it's not a failure point that'll put me in hospital.
I bet you measured the frame first and was surprised it was within spec.
I don't know. I'm on my 3rd Cannondale with a press fit and they have all been absolutely perfect. No issues at all.
I wager it was surprisingly well made into spec
@@DaveCM Have you actually accurately measured any of them?
Excellent video, good result.
Liking the fiskars tools in the workshop 👍
I've had a few C-Bear bottom brackets on different bikes and they have always been top class, lasting ages and have nearly always stopped the dreaded creak I suffered first with a campag BB (utter dogSh*t) and then with Shimano (mildly better). However one thing Hambini's channel has done is make me cautious and thats why I check the ID of the shell and the OD of the BB prior to installation( and make sure theres no contamination) . So far no issues seen on the last 2. But better a few minutes of checking than a few hours of absolute cluster f**k trying to remove them.
17:40 Yeah right... you bought that to clean bottom bracket shells
I'm inclined to think these engineering 'faults' that are outside of the 'established' tolerances are intentional.... the industry appears to have created a disposable mantra to shift more units that wear or expire prematurely
thanks monetary 'economy'
_"...outside of the 'established' tolerances are intentional"_ no, it's just that QA/QC equals money. They saw an opportunity to save a tenth of a million, and took it. It's up to us consumers to tell them their products/services are N.F.G.
Do I guess c bear could say they made it to the cervelo specs?
I never bother hitting anything with a hammer that's not supported, in this case the strike energy just goes into moving the frame rather than shifting the bearing.
yep worked that out myself trying to remove BB bearings. Hammering won't do anything until you brace the frame against something.
@@albr4 ah I learnt from my dad, easier but less satisfying. He also taught me a workaround, if you can't support you can sometimes get away with using a lighter hammer but swinging it faster. Put the energy into the bearing before the frame has a chance to move.
I'm now wondering if there is any bike frames on the market that are worth investing in. It seems Look, Time, and some Cannondales but not all are the only ones that seem to have there act together. Any suggestions????? Maybe I should have not sold my older Look frame.
bb30 bearing to get out need a bit of force, so a few hard hits normaly get it out, i work at a cannondale dealer and its always shitty to remove, outside cup and then inner bearing, and then if you need to replace the bearings tou have to tap them out of the cup, not the best design
You've used a cylinder honing tool now, but last time u used a jibilee clip with a fan thing. Which one works better?
“And as always, keep banging your hair dresser.” Classic. Great engineering. Great humor. Great channel. Thanks!
Ahh yes the infamous Cannondale Snaps. Love that rough as hessian undies spin test.
@RollinRat I had a better BB on my beat up Hoffman bmx in the 90's and that was one hell of a yard stick.
love those new rotor cranks :)
I have been very happy with the products from C-Bear, and it's better than shimano's own stuff!
Their engineering is garbage
Pretty limited experience with C Bear, fortunately sold the bike before it failed. Only reason I got it was the manufacturer put some ridiculous BB in there that wasn't compatible with shimano cranks, and the C bear fit with no naff plastic conversion cups.
Everything's on threaded now, I just go for what's simple, reliable and works rather than sci fi bollocks.
How do you rate the Token Ninja pf30a to 24mm BB adapter?
A well deserved roasting engineering limits and fits are drilled into all apprentice engineers from day one !! So are these qualified engineers ??????..
Probably not, with a tolerance that bad, his only qualification must be in muppetry.
I agree with Hambini. I bought a C-Bear BB from Sigma. Tried to fit to a Scott Foil. Super tough to get it moving inwards. Until I heard a Crack... Contacted C-Bear. Got fobbed by email.
When there is no tolerance in place for something then there is nothing to share. Perhaps this is the reality for why C-bear have declined to reply to the tolerance question since April?
i surely hope you are joking about the pin on the large ring, it always goes behind the crank arm, this blocks the chain from getting stuck if you ever throw the chain off the big ring .
Hambini reaming time !!!
Question! That estimated +9w drag. I use power meters on all my bikes, lets says me and my buddy is out riding and my bottom bracket is SHIT with a lot of drag, will that reflect on my power meter numbers? i.e. I would have slightly higher power meter output figures just because the bottom bracket is dragging me down. Or does this lost drag in the BB not reflect on my output numbers?
you'd have 9W increase for the same speed
Depends on the type of PM.
You will rider slower at the same power output. However more drag doesn't magically make your body capable of a higher power output to compenstae for higher drag.
Why didn't you use a BB 30 removal tool?
It won't fit
the assembly and design make it almost unserviceable.