FSA Gossamer BB30 crankset removal - HELP!

Gabbo

My bike at present is sporting the FSA Gossamer BB30 of which I am about to replace with the FSA K-force light BB30 crankset.

Now taking receipt of my new crankset, I have a problem.

1) How on gods green earth do I remove my current crankset
2) How do I install the bearings?

I've seen the press-fit tools but they are extortionate in price. Is there any alternative? And if so, what? What other additional tools will I require for the job?

This is a picture of a similar crankset with same removal method. I've loosen this bolt thing, but nothing seems to be happening

nicklouse

just undo the bolt and it presses on the collar and pulls the arm off.

cranks http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-hel ... se-systems

BB30

http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-hel ... nd-removal

Gabbo

nicklouse wrote:

just undo the bolt and it presses on the collar and pulls the arm off.

cranks http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-hel ... se-systems

BB30

http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-hel ... nd-removal

If only removing the crank arm was that easy! I've undone that bolt, yet I'm struggling to pull anything off!

nicklouse

undoing the bolt should pull the arm off.

put it all back together and just undo the bolt.

Gabbo

Removed both the retaining ring and bolt. It's still firmly attached and is refusing to budge :-(

nicklouse

Gabbo wrote:

Removed both the retaining ring and bolt. It's still firmly attached and is refusing to budge :-(

so put it all back together, you do not remove the self extracting ring of it will not work.

you only undo the bolt you do not remove anything.

nicklouse

the bolt can not act on the ring if it is not fitted so the crank will not come off.

Gabbo

I give up. I've put it all back together, then undone the bolt but nothing is happening.

Thanks for your advice, though :-(


EDIT: Does the self extracting ring need to be really tight?

Gabbo

DONE!

Many thanks... for now :-)

Before it wouldn't undo further, but taking it apart and putting it back on somehow seemed to do the job

Gabbo

Right, put the c-clips in, the bearings in, the bearing shields in and the crank itself. It's as if the bar or spindle whatever it is called that goes through that bottom bracket is too long. There is lateral movement when I tightened up the opposite crank arm.

Why all this trouble? What is wrong with it?

arthur_scrimshaw

Did you fit the spacers and wavy spring washers?

arthur_scrimshaw

see http://www.fullspeedahead.com/storage/d ... set_v0.pdf

Gabbo

Ta

Seems ok now that I added a couple extra washers. Every time I removed the crank, the bearing came off firmly attached too it. Why is beyond me, but it's all put together now. No more bike DIY!

ricky1980

if your bearing is coming off when you remove the crank it means 1) you have not installed the bearing properly 2) your BB shell is oversized.

the lateral movement you described earlier can be 1) you didn't install all of the washers 2) you didn't tighten the crank bolt tot he torque required (45-55Nm - which is a lot of torque) 3) the combination of the above.

from what you have described in the last post, i would not recommend you go riding as it will damage your bearing as it is very likely the bearing is loose in the cup i.e. not being pressed in properly.

Gabbo

It was pressed up against the c-clips so I can't see why it's now firmly attached to the crank spindle thing. It's the same bearing as the old one in terms of shape and size, just that it's ceramic. Could applying a layer of grease before hand have impacted this issue?

And by the way, I couldn't remove the bearing from the crankset itself. It is now firmly attached to it! :shock:

And the lateral movement is now minimal as the spring washer somehow escaped me before I assembled it all together.

ricky1980

there shouldn't be any lateral movements at all. the spring washer is like a buffer basically to reduce the axial load on the bearings when tightened.

you shouldn't have put grease around the outside of the bearing ring. you should have greased the machined parts on the crank spindle where it will meet the bearing.

the bearing is suppose to fit tight to the shell and lock the shell and bearing in place so it doesn't move...then the ball bearings allow movement between the spindle.

when you first pressed in the BB30 bearing was it tight? i.e. did it give u much resistance? if not, the bearing might be undersized or your shell is oversized slightly. a bit of locktite might do the job however you will have a job of it in removing the bearing afterwards.

when i removed my BB30 cranks i just had to tap the non-drive side of the spindle (once the non-drive side crank is removed). and when installing the new one in, i didn't have to do anything taping just put it through making sure there is no crap on the spindle and BB shell and the bearings. then tighten the crank bolt to the specified torque and every thing was as tight as a virgin!

my new cranks were FSA SL-K light. what make is the ceramic bearing?

TheRealGuybrush

Hey Gabbo,

Your saying you don't have the wavy washer anymore? Your going to need that otherwise you shouldn't run your cranks without it. Do you have a torque wrench so that you know your tightening it up to the right torque? It's a very high torque and you may think it's tight when it may need to be even tighter.

Also without wanting to give too much conflicting information, you should put grease on the outer race of the bearing if the BB shell of the bike is alloy. The FSA instructions also tell you to use grease so it's not just me.

See if you can tap the bearing off of the spindle with a punch (or screwdriver) and a small hammer. Do this VERY gently all around the race of the bearing and slowly walk it round. Get yourself a wavy washer if you don't have yours and put grease on the inner race as well. Oh, and use a torque wrench.

Are these ceramic bearings the FSA ones, or a third party offering?

ricky1980

the grease around the outer race is there to stop the steel seizing onto the shell. the value of which is debatable as the bearing is doing the job of keeping smooth running so the important part is keeping the bearing well maintained.

the grease on the inner race to the spindle is also applied to stop seizing of the metals therefore aid removal of the crank.

I grease the inner race cos I know i will want to remove the chainset to give it a good clean at least twice a year. but i tend not to service the bearing at all, or rather you can't really service them, so leave them in place and chuck them when they are shot.

theconfusedmechanic

Hey guys, my bike also has the same crank set BB30. I am ready to remove clean and grease the crank. Unfortunately,have the proper tools nor do i know which tools to use. What tool do I need to remove the cranks?

jgsi

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19689658#p19689658]theconfusedmechanic[/url] wrote:

Hey guys, my bike also has the same crank set BB30. I am ready to remove clean and grease the crank. Unfortunately,have the proper tools nor do i know which tools to use. What tool do I need to remove the cranks?

10 mm hex key - long handled type will help.
NON DRIVE side.. insert key into recess and undo normally.. I.E> anti clockwise.
The crank will self extract. Rubber mallet to tap out the drive side that has the spindle.
Make sure you checklist where all the various washers/spacers fit.
A 2 minute job when you know what you are doing.
You should have a heavier duty torque wrench to set 35 - 40 Nm when the NDS is re installed.
Torqued up too low and you may get a creak in the bottom bracket out on the road.