campy UT....CRREAK-CRREAK...help!

Quoted message said:

a new-ish set of campy chorus UT cranks and record BB cups.

now that i've accumulated ~100 miles on them, they've begun to CREAK
to high-heaven when i'm riding standing and swinging my bike from side-
to-side.

i've never had a creak problem before using a variety of cranks/bbs
(campy NR, campy cartridge, shimano DA cup/cone, shimano UN-XX
cartridge, FSA ISIS, FSA mega-exo) installed on a variety of frame
materials (steel, Ti, carbon).

this frame, a couple year old colnago C40HP, has never had a creaking
problem using campy record cartridge or FSA mega-exo BBs.

i followed installation of the UT crank/BB to the letter. they were
silent for the first ~100 miles, now this...

any ideas?

So far, every noise or binding problem we've seen with these style
cranksets traced to a BB shell with uneven faces or misaligned
threading. Consult your dealer and check with Campagnolo gauges.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

just had the BB shell re-faced. it had been faced before, but only
the drive-side as it had used only w/ cartridge bearing BBs w/ the
fixed drive-side cup.

LBS faced both sides and i re-fitted the crank/bb combo. it's creak-
free now riding around the car-park, but we'll know fore sure in a
week or 2.

w

A Muzi said:

So far, every noise or binding problem we've seen with these style
cranksets traced to a BB shell with uneven faces or misaligned
threading. Consult your dealer and check with Campagnolo gauges.

Quoted message said:

a new-ish set of campy chorus UT cranks and record BB cups.

now that i've accumulated ~100 miles on them, they've begun to CREAK
to high-heaven when i'm riding standing and swinging my bike from side-
to-side.

I imagine that the threads on the frame are now less-than-perfect.
Andrew suggests checking that, but another thing you can do is wrap the
bb threads with a couple turns of teflon tape (used for plumbing).
Excellent stuff.

--

David L. Johnson

Arguing with an engineer is like mud wrestling with a pig...
You soon find out the pig likes it!

actually, teflon-tape is SOP for my BB installs, and that was the case
this time as well.

the BB insert in the C40 is made of Ti (6/4 i think) and the UT cups are
aluminum, so i think my BB shell is fine.

David L. Johnson said:

I imagine that the threads on the frame are now less-than-perfect.
Andrew suggests checking that, but another thing you can do is wrap the
bb threads with a couple turns of teflon tape (used for plumbing).
Excellent stuff.

w.a. manning said:

actually, teflon-tape is SOP for my BB installs, and that was the case
this time as well.

the BB insert in the C40 is made of Ti (6/4 i think) and the UT cups are
aluminum, so i think my BB shell is fine.

David L. Johnson said:

I imagine that the threads on the frame are now less-than-perfect.
Andrew suggests checking that, but another thing you can do is wrap the
bb threads with a couple turns of teflon tape (used for plumbing).
Excellent stuff.

hmmm, the C-40s I have prepped all had aluminum BB inserts, hence the
ability to face the BB shell...

all research and visual inspection shows them to be made of Ti as of
2002. maybe you've been assembling pre-2002 c40s!

http://www.velonews.com/race/tour2002/articles/2636.0.html

"The development of the C40 is ongoing. The carbon is now lighter and
stiffer, and the stays and bottom bracket have changed since the first
of its Paris-Roubaix victories. Early models had aluminum bottom bracket
sleeves like most carbon frames. Now, Colnago's titanium sleeve is
knurled on the outside and has four teeth locking into notches in the
carbon shell (see photo). It is far more expensive, but it is much
better; titanium cannot corrode, and it has stronger threads and bonding."

Qui si parla Campagnolo said:

hmmm, the C-40s I have prepped all had aluminum BB inserts, hence the
ability to face the BB shell...

w.a. manning said:

all research and visual inspection shows them to be made of Ti as of
2002. maybe you've been assembling pre-2002 c40s!

http://www.velonews.com/race/tour2002/articles/2636.0.html

"The development of the C40 is ongoing. The carbon is now lighter and
stiffer, and the stays and bottom bracket have changed since the first
of its Paris-Roubaix victories. Early models had aluminum bottom bracket
sleeves like most carbon frames. Now, Colnago's titanium sleeve is
knurled on the outside and has four teeth locking into notches in the
carbon shell (see photo). It is far more expensive, but it is much
better; titanium cannot corrode, and it has stronger threads and bonding."

Qui si parla Campagnolo said:

hmmm, the C-40s I have prepped all had aluminum BB inserts, hence the
ability to face the BB shell...

Probably. We dumped Colnago about then.