Ceramic bearings

mitchgixer6
mitchgixer6 Posts: 729
edited November 2015 in Workshop
Hi all

I know this has been done to death, and I've been reading up a bit in the subject recently. But thought I'd drag it up here again! :oops: I've never been convinced that they would make a big difference, but having never tried them I'm curious as to how they perform.

I'll be building up a new frame over the winter and am considering putting ceramic bearings in for the BB. I've been reading up in the seals available on certain systems as well, and as far as I can tell the VV seals offer up much less resistance than the standard 2RS.

So are ceramics worth the money? Or should I find some steel bearings with low drag VV seals?

Comments

  • bbrap
    bbrap Posts: 610
    Unless the BB bearings are shot I defy anyone to be able to tell the difference between ceramic and standard when riding. May be measurable in the lab but mainly designed to separate the gullible from their cash.
    Rose Xeon CDX 3100, Ultegra Di2 disc (nice weather)
    Ribble Gran Fondo, Campagnolo Centaur (winter bike)
    Van Raam 'O' Pair
    Land Rover (really nasty weather :lol: )
  • sungod
    sungod Posts: 16,576
    quality is more important than material, low grade ceramics will be worse than good steel, good ceramics cost a lot, any advantage vs. equivalent grade steel is likely to be small

    fwiw ceramicspeed claim that if you use their bb, wheel, jockey wheels, all together, they'll save you 6-9 watts (not sure what the parts they are replacing are)

    if you do actually get that saving, it'd be enough to usefully reduce finish time in a tt

    whether it's better or worse in terms of seconds per quid than other things you could do is another matter
    my bike - faster than god's and twice as shiny
  • mitchgixer6
    mitchgixer6 Posts: 729
    As suspected!

    Thanks guys. Think for now I'll stick to steel BB's until I otherwise come in to some extra money!
  • noodleman
    noodleman Posts: 852
    I recently bought some new wheels with ceramic bearings. Just out of curiosity i replaced the bearings in my Reynolds with new ones and carried out my own (unscientific) experiment. I span the standard wheel and timed it until it stopped. 1 minute 48 seconds. The ceramic bearings span for 3 minutes 56 seconds.
    How much of an effect this will have in real terms i dont know, but there was a considerable difference in the test.
    argon 18 e116 2013 Vision Metron 80
    Bianchi Oltre XR Sram Red E-tap, Fulcrum racing speed xlr
    De Rosa SK pininfarina disc
    S Works Tarmac e-tap 2017
    Rose pro sl disc
  • herzog
    herzog Posts: 197
    [url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19743285#p19743285]noodleman[/url] wrote:
    I recently bought some new wheels with ceramic bearings. Just out of curiosity i replaced the bearings in my Reynolds with new ones and carried out my own (unscientific) experiment. I span the standard wheel and timed it until it stopped. 1 minute 48 seconds. The ceramic bearings span for 3 minutes 56 seconds.
    How much of an effect this will have in real terms i dont know, but there was a considerable difference in the test.

    None probably - more important is how the bearings are maintained.
  • sungod
    sungod Posts: 16,576
    it may be nothing to do with the bearings, could be the seals and/or the type/volume of lube and/or differences in alignment and/or retaining pressure on races and/or preload force

    for instance, some ceramics are lubed with oil, whereas steel ones are almost certainly greased, it makes a massive difference in a spin down test
    my bike - faster than god's and twice as shiny
  • mitchgixer6
    mitchgixer6 Posts: 729
    I did consider that ceramic bearings will last longer than steel counterparts. But the price difference is just too far off.

    For the BB I need its £20 for dura ace or £100 + for quality ceramic equivalent. No brainer really

    As for the spin test, how do you make sure you're putting the same force in every time?
  • noodleman
    noodleman Posts: 852
    I did say unscientific.
    argon 18 e116 2013 Vision Metron 80
    Bianchi Oltre XR Sram Red E-tap, Fulcrum racing speed xlr
    De Rosa SK pininfarina disc
    S Works Tarmac e-tap 2017
    Rose pro sl disc
  • sungod
    sungod Posts: 16,576
    [url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19743609#p19743609]noodleman[/url] wrote:
    I did say unscientific.

    :)
    my bike - faster than god's and twice as shiny

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