Sealed bearing for bottom bracket

[taximan]

I am replacing the chainwheels, chain and freewheel on my bike. When I removed the front triple chainwheel I noticed that the bearing in the bottom bracket was sounding as if it was dry. There is no play that I can detect but it will obviously need replacing at some point. I have looked on e bay but there seems to be a number of different sizes and I don't know which would suit my bike which is a Barrosa Monaco, fitted with a six speed freewheel at the back and a triple at the front . (The Barrosa is from the budget end of the Dawes range). Can anyone advise please.

 

[Arjimlad]

http://sheldonbrown.com/tooltips/cartridge.html has a lot of information

With a sealed cartridge BB I would expect it to be one of the common Shimano ones. The tool to remove it is not expensive, and then you will see from the markings which one to replace it with. Measuring the axle length is important too.

If there is no play or looseness in the BB axle, you could try giving the old one a squirt of grease from an aerosol and working it in, to get a bit more life out of it, and restore some smoothness, but they aren't expensive to replace.

HTH

 

[Acyclo]

http://sheldonbrown.com/tooltips/cartridge.html has a lot of information

With a sealed cartridge BB I would expect it to be one of the common Shimano ones. The tool to remove it is not expensive, and then you will see from the markings which one to replace it with. Measuring the axle length is important too.

If there is no play or looseness in the BB axle, you could try giving the old one a squirt of grease from an aerosol and working it in, to get a bit more life out of it, and restore some smoothness, but they aren't expensive to replace.

HTH

It's unlikely to be a real Shimano part on a low end Dawes. My Giro had a shocking piece of cheese masquerading as a BB. I replaced it with a real Shimano part and that lasted the remaining life of the bike.

 

[taximan]

Thanks for your input guys. I think I will leave the old bearing in place until winter has passed and then replace it in the spring. (if we have one)