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Submitted by
matt wittler
a
from rough and readyDate Reviewed: July 16, 2006
Strengths: strong, rebuildable (if you know what your doing), they last longer than most.Weaknesses: they are heavier than road bb's, which last just as long, they don't come short enough for most 2x9 applications. they are expensive if you ride in muddy conditions, then again all bb's will wear fast.Bottom Line: if you need a bottom bracket that flat out works, and will work for a while. this is a good buy. it's not as heavy as some of the other shimano's
Favorite Trail: downieville polly creek
Duration Product Used: 2 Years
Price Paid:
$46.00
Purchased At: tour of nevada city
Similar Products Used: dura ace, fsa (everyone they make) and i broke one in half. race face bb's,
Bike Setup: kelly delux, sid wc, 2x9 drive train with xo, and carbon crank.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Vince
a Cross Country Rider
from Orange CountyDate Reviewed: August 23, 2004
Strengths: Light, clean, initially smoothWeaknesses: * seals are not reliable
* had to be replaced before 1 year mark
* Shimano considers it normal wear and won't warranty it. Bike was not used in wet rain riding or abnormal conditions. My old Specialized crank bb & 4 year old XT bottombrackets lasted longer then this!!! Bad design - either build it 100% sealed or make it more servicable.
Bottom Line: Raceface, Truv would be my next choice - until Shimano either steps up on warranty or makes a better BB. Pretty lame of Shimano for a $400 MSRP crankset up. WEAK..
Too bad you can't give negative chili's.. This would be a negative 10 on the bb. Though the cranks are sweet. But sweet cranks with a lame bb - is not a good setup.
Favorite Trail: San Juan
Duration Product Used: 1 Year
Price Paid:
$50.00
Similar Products Used: XT bb, specialized bb, etc.
Bike Setup: full XTR minus brakes
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Bellulla Bob
a Racer
from Rhode IslandDate Reviewed: January 27, 2004
Strengths: It spins (for a while)Weaknesses: Seals suck big time; not so rebuildable; doesn't tolerate wet weather...brakes down beyond repairBottom Line: this BB sucks. Use for less than a season, before it started to have play. Brought to my lbs to have it cleaned and serviced and it was beyond repair. When they opened it up, a full cup of rusted water came pooring out - the seals let water in, but not out! Its a good thing they don't make it anymore....
Favorite Trail: Vietnam
Duration Product Used: 1 Year
Price Paid:
$46.00
Purchased At: lbs
Bike Setup: Tracer
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Hon Lung
a Cross Country Rider
from Hong Kong, ChinaDate Reviewed: June 20, 2002
Strengths: Shimano XTR BB M950 :
- Needle rollers can support very heavy radial load.
- Ball rollers helps to eliminate the axial play.
(Radial load and the axial load was support by different rolling element so it can eliminate any rolling resistance due to axial preload)
- Better appearance.
- Can be disassembly for maintenance (where M952 cannot)Weaknesses: - Difficult to adjust its lateral alignment.
Bottom Line: Suitable for a DIY rider.
Favorite Trail: X country in dark tunnel
Duration Product Used: 3 months
Price Paid:
$28.00
Purchased At: CC
Similar Products Used: Shimano XTR BB M952
Bike Setup: Full Dynamix Olympic Frame, RockShox SID RACE Carbon fork,
Crossmax UST Disc, Hope Mini Disc Brake.
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
John-Jacob-Jingleheimer Smith
a Cross Country Rider
from Santa Barbara, CA, USADate Reviewed: January 24, 2002
Strengths: Stiff, Rebuildable, Light and Serviceable. I like Serviceable.Weaknesses: You actually need to know how to properly adjust and maintain a bike or have a good mechanic.Bottom Line: Wow! First of all there are 2 XTR BBs: The cartridge M952 and the Original M950. I have the original M950. I've had this thing for 4 years! It's been in four different frames!Every now and the I add grease and readjust it and not only does it still work, but it works great! If you cannot properly adjust bearings buy the 952. If you can and you want the stiffer (needle and ball bearings) lighter version, spead more for the M950. Wow, sums it up well. If you're gonna complain about difficult setups don't buy top of the line. 4 years, 1 BB = Good value to me.
Favorite Trail: The dirt one with lots 'o' rocks.
Duration Product Used: More than 3 years
Price Paid:
$70.00
Purchased At: Cycle Scene
Similar Products Used: Square taper stuff. Hey, when I bought it thats all there was.
Bike Setup: Seven Sola with parts and stuff. Hi Chuck!
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Duncan Blake
a Cross Country Rider
from MelbourneDate Reviewed: November 18, 2001
Strengths: Lightweight, Engineeringly sound, Nicely finishedWeaknesses: Price, Practically unsound, Hard to adjustBottom Line: This BB is a good setup for those with good mechanical know-how, but has the unfortunate problems of working loose the cups and the crank fixing bolts. Loctite may fix these.
The sealing of the system is pitiful and requires an immaculately clean setup to avoid any graty noises. the cups remain in good condition, but the axle pits, suggesting that the cro-moly used is not as hard as good polished/shot-peened alum cups?!?!?
The set up would be far better with a cartridge setup as the alum lockrings do not tolerate a lot of tightening and loosening before rounding off the corners....oh and buy a quality C-Spanner.
Cannot wait to see if ISIS beats it
Oh....when working well this setup is brilliant, pity it is not for the amateur mechanic
Favorite Trail: Lysterfield/Moab...multiple
Duration Product Used: 2 Years
Price Paid:
$130.00
Similar Products Used: UN 52, UN 72, UN 92, Sweet Parts (Road)
Bike Setup: Giant ATX LE, Hope Hydraulics, 2000 SID SL's, etc....
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
John McKenzie
a Cross Country Rider
from Chino Hills, CADate Reviewed: September 21, 2001
Strengths: NoneWeaknesses: poor attention to detail, This should be a sealed unit from all the elements.Bottom Line: This is some low end c r a p. Squeaks, Creaks, and clicks. Yea you can rebuild it but it always comes back.
Don't buy one!
Favorite Trail: All of them
Duration Product Used: 3 months
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
clarence
a Weekend Warrior
from timminsDate Reviewed: September 16, 2000
Strengths: light, maintainable, splined, needle + ball bearingBottom Line: I had the sealed xtr b.b version and was annoyed when I could not open them up after they got contaminated and developped play after only a couple of months. With the m950 b.b. you get a lighter unit, needle bearings for additional stiffness, plus they are maintainable. I've opened them up about twice a year to clean and regrease them and changed one of the bearing races once because of a cavity (they are removable). If B.B.s were made waterproof they would not be able to rotate. Sealed B.B.s are not sealed, they are just relatively sealed. I prefer maintainable B.B.s because if water or other contaminants enter I can fix it. I also regularily check the B.B.s adjustment when the crankarms are installed by adjusting the tension ring. Works great in conjunction with the XTR crank. Stiff... great power transfer. Good performance for the cost.
Favorite Trail: in the hills
Duration Product Used: 2 Years
Price Paid:
$40.00
Purchased At: cambria
Similar Products Used: xtr m952, xt
Bike Setup: Cannondale, xtr groupset, c.k. heads., w.i. hubs, syn.ti seatpost,
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Kelly
a Weekend Warrior
from SF.CADate Reviewed: September 4, 2000
Strengths: It's an Ultegra, not an XTRWeaknesses: It's an Ultegra, not an XTRBottom Line: Splined is cool but I had a creak I coudln't identify. Anyway, go for raceface, but use Shimano BBs if you know what's good for you. I love the turbine LPs for their machining more than anything. Give props to RaceFace, even if their bearings aren't up to par.
K
profeign@hotmail.com
Favorite Trail: who cares
Duration Product Used: 6 months
Purchased At: Doesn't matter; got used
Similar Products Used: Lots
Bike Setup: Dope ass connondale with dual disks and a lefty
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Mark
a Cross Country Rider
from Denver, CODate Reviewed: August 30, 2000
Strengths: This is for the M950 model.
* Light
* Can be serviced
* Stiff
* SplinesWeaknesses: * Has to be serviced
* Crank bolts won't stay put unless you use locktite
* Requires non-standard BB tool to removeBottom Line: The M950 came stock on my FSR XC and I had some problems immediately. The crank bolts wouldn't stay tight on the drive side causing my cranks (Specialized S-Works) to come loose within 100 miles. This is a problem when you are 15 miles out and don't have a wrench to tighten the cranks. Using locktite (blue) on the bolts seemed to fix this problem. The serviceablity of the BB is a cool feature and a problem. The seals didn't seem to keep the water out very well and after about 500 miles BB was due for a serious overhaul. Pulled it out and found out the bearing races were pitted on the drive side. Once the races are pitted you are screwed. Ended up buying the new M952 XTR BB which has sealed bearings and can be installed using a standard shimano BB tool. Down side of the M952 is it is heavier by about 20-30 grams. The bottom line is the M950 BB is not the best thing Shimano has built due to it's service requirements. In my opinion a BB should be maintenance free. If you are deciding between the M950 or M952 buy the M952 and take the slight weight penalty in favor of no maintenance.
Favorite Trail: Colorado trail @ Buffalo Creek
Duration Product Used: 1 Year
Similar Products Used: Other shimano BB's.
Bike Setup: 1999 Specialized FSR XC S-Works with XTR/XT/Specialized house brand parts.
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Steve
a Cross Country Rider
from GilroyDate Reviewed: May 19, 2000
Strengths: Light weight
One of two BB that will fit the XTR CrankWeaknesses: Older Version has bad seals making everything within rust and worn out. It was on the verge of seizing before I replaced it.Bottom Line: The old version has bad seals which will give you nothing but problems down the line. Mine was on the verge of seizing before I replaced it with the Newer version (M952) XTR BB.
The newer version is more like an XT BB with the fully sealed body. I forsee no problems with the new version.
Stay away from the older version which has the cheap clear plastic sleave covering the body. The rating is based on the newer version, otherwise I'd give the older version 1 flippin pepper.
Favorite Trail: Demonstration Forest, Aptos
Duration Product Used: 2 Years
Similar Products Used: XT BB, World Class BB, White BB
Bike Setup: Schwinn Carbon Sweetspot
XTR all around
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
cjm
a Cross Country Rider
from Clear Lake, TXDate Reviewed: April 21, 2000
Strengths: The only BB that is compatible with an XTR crank.Weaknesses: Damaged after 1 year of moderate use.Bottom Line: The BB locked-up to the point where it could hardly be turned by hand without the crank. During rebuild, some of the ball bearings came loose and their track was actually scarred. I was dissapointed.
Duration Product Used: 1 Year
Similar Products Used: Several Shimano BBs.
Bike Setup: Cannondale F700
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Spunky Trumpet
a Cross Country Rider
from Great BritainDate Reviewed: March 1, 2000
Bottom Line: The old XTR BB (pre '99) was the biggest pile of arse I've yet seen from Shimano. I could go on about the need to strip, clean and regrease or the fact that doing so repeatedly actually wore down the splines of the LH crank enough to make it loose, but that would be pointless.
There is a new selaed BB out now, it's great, fit it and forget it.
Rating reflects average of old and new style
Favorite Trail: Soqeul Demo Forest, Santa Cruz
Duration Product Used: More than 3 years
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Kevin
a Cross-Country Rider
from The NetherlandsDate Reviewed: January 9, 2000
Strengths:
- high quality 'feel'
- Smooth (when new)
- lightWeaknesses:
- fiddly to set-up
- bad sealsBottom Line: After 2000 miles the axle is pitted and has rust on it. The rubber seals just don't seem to work. I'm now looking for a sealed cartridge wich matches the XTR-crank.
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Similar Products Used:
Shimano Sealed BB's (BB91)
Bike Setup:
Hard tail
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Rob
a Cross-Country Rider
from Santa Cruz, CADate Reviewed: January 4, 2000
Strengths:
Smooth, stiffness with splined spindles.....
light weightWeaknesses:
ummm...nothin yetBottom Line: So far these things are smooth and light. Threw on some CODA Tarantulas w/ the BB and am very impressed! Recommmended as a more affordable upgrade than all XTR. CODA/XTR = same weight than all XTR drivetran. :-)
Favorite Trail:
Soquel Demo Forest
Duration Product Used:
less than 1 month
Similar Products Used:
stupid BB's
Bike Setup:
Stumpjumper M2 Comp, XTR/XT, Avid 2.0
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