931 Croix de Fer Refurb

[Witzend]

Could you take that thin chopping board / placemat plastic and make a disc the size of the BB shell and axle dia and put outside the bearings for added protection. Appreciate there will be a slight increase in drag but added protection might outweigh the drag?
Would work on bb30 not sure about Shimano press fits.

I like your thinking, but I'm not sure it would help - water would still be able to get between the original plastic cover and the body. I did try similar with the rim from an old top hat (the plastic cover that clips over the actual bearings) to put a bit more pressure on after greasing worn bearings, but it would have to cover the gap somehow. I thought of the stretchy neoprene strips to go around the headsets in the early MTB days, then thought - get a sealed bearing BB instead.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Nice.

 

[Witzend]

Thanks and yes; really appreciate your comprehensive and insightful response!

I concur with all your points raised and feel generally similar about a lot of modern bike tech; although rightly or wrongly think the Hollowtech axles are at the more mild end; certainly compared to stuff like press-fit BBs and needless electronics.

I have a couple of bikes with Hollowtech cranks and they've been good so far; however they don't seem to have seen the use (either intensity or conditions) that yours have. One is a fair-weather bike with road BB on 4.5k miles from new, the other has indeterminate mileage (bought used) and about 2.5k sometimes wet miles in my ownership on the entry-level MTB BB. Both BBs appear fine, but I'm no a particularly strong rider and the distances covered appear to be within your stated mileages to failure.

While content with the performance of the two I have, if I build another bike it'll likely have an ST BB; of only because it's hard to get the facets I want in a crankset from a modern, fashionable HT offering.

Yes, I am noticing a number of people going back to square taper or thinking of doing so. Unfortunately, due to the way I ride, I tended to jam the alloy cranks onto the axle and end up having to cut them off - hence I went for Octalink.

I'm all for change as long as it's not merely for change's sake. As I understand it, the benefits of external bearing BBs are weight and more efficient transfer of power. At my level, those benefits are negligible at best.

 

[PedallingNowhereSlowly]

Really very impressive work.
Thank you for sharing.

Lovely end result.