Titanium or Steel Bottom Bracket (single and double bearing)
Starting with a custom heat-treated titanium alloy spindle that’s 20% stronger than your grandma’s Ti 3/2.5, and 40% lighter than your mama’s steel. 175g.
Steel - Ingenious asymetric design puts the beefy side of the spindle on the drive side to handle even the beefiest bumping and grinding.
Submitted by
Gordon Shumway
a Cross Country Rider
from Omicron Perci I 8
Date Reviewed: February 2, 2006
Strengths: sealed tighter than a frog's ass, light, bearing replacements are abundant, if installed and maintained PROPERLY, the thing should last many years.
Weaknesses: the company got purchased by the horrible GT/Riteway. if you see two interlocking circles for a logo, that stuff is the junk sycros stuff.
in fact, the only place to find the stuff made in canada is on eBay.
Bottom Line:
with the increase in weight of the average american and decrease in skill, it's obvious that most people would have problems with these brackets. if you weigh more than 170 pounds and/or have very little skill (and by that i mean, you don't let the bike take the brunt of every obstacle on the trail...you knwo who you are, fatty!) don't buy these.
in most cases they aren't even installed properly and people will complain that they creak, or that the bearings failed, or that the cups got damaged. how does a cup get damaged without having put a tool to it? and who weilds that tool?
PLEASE, if you're fat or lack skill or don't know a competent mechanic, don't buy these brackets. i'm still looking for 3 more for my coffers.
also, please don't think that the current incarnation of syncros is anything like the syncros of yore. also, don't make the same mistake with Race Face. yes, i said it, they are NOT the same company they once were. and neither are their products.
Similar Products Used: a few shimano UN 72 and 91 bottom brackets.
Bike Setup: what's the difference?
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
max
a Cross Country Rider
from frederick, md, usa
Date Reviewed: October 20, 2005
Strengths: adjustable chainline, good bearings
Weaknesses: weak spindle
Bottom Line:
I recently decided to try the other side of my ENO flip-flop and threaded on a track cog. On the third ride the spindle broke on the non-drive side. I'm only 145 lbs.
Submitted by
milan
a Cross Country Rider
from edmonton, alberta, canada
Date Reviewed: August 16, 2005
Strengths: weight
Weaknesses: ocasional creak
Bottom Line:
I've had the Syncros ti BB in my team LTS since 98/99 and before that in my Zaskar LE for 2 years. So that's almost 9 years now and only had it creak a few times at the start of one season. I had it properly tightened and It has spun straight and quiet the whole time. The bike has had Rhino cranks and King hubs the whole time that this BB has been in there and never given me a problem.
Similar Products Used: shimano xt, lx, some oem cheapos
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Dave
a Cross Country Rider
from EUROPE
Date Reviewed: September 3, 2004
Strengths: Light, robust, put it in and forget about it, water tight.
Weaknesses: They dont make then anymore
Bottom Line:
Bought this Hardcore Ti BB back in 99 as part of a closeout from my LBS. Installed it and forgot about it. Has over 5000 miles on it and has withstood everything and still runs smooth. Tis a shame that SYNCROS dont make them anymore.
Submitted by
Ryan Torrenga
a Cross Country Rider
from Warrenville, IL 60555
Date Reviewed: August 13, 2003
Strengths: Light weight for cromoly spindle and double row bearings. Good Bearings.
Weaknesses: Not very strong.
Bottom Line:
I bought this BB thinking it would be a strong BB. With a cromoly spindle and and 4 rows of bearings you would think that this bottom bracket would be indestructible. However this was not the case. After a few months of riding I noticed that my chainrings were looked bent. I began to worry that I bent my cranks, but when I pulled my cranks and BB off I noticed that the spindle was bent. I found this hard to believe since I weigh 145lbs and I just spent a lot of money on most heavy duty BB that syncros made. After I realized this bb was a piece of crap, I went out and bought a raceface bb and have had no problems since and the raceface bb was a lot cheaper.
Bike Setup: Manitou Hard Tail: RaceFace Cranks (and now BB), XTR Derailleurs and V-brakes, AC hubs.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
k e
a Weekend Warrior
from Victoria BC, Canada
Date Reviewed: October 21, 2002
Strengths: smooooooth operation... the shop guy liked the installation
Weaknesses: BROKE
Bottom Line:
I had this put on my bike because the stock bb was wrong for my front derailleur... shifting was untuneable even by the guys at bicyclitis, and they been doin this for a while... didn't get much chance to use the bike for a couple of years, only had it out a few times... then had evil BC transit screw up my transportation for 9 months.. grrr... anyhow, rode my bike every day for that time, almost all commuting, some minor urban assault and a handful of trail rides, but i'm not so good... my limit was around 2-3 ft drops... not many though... didn't have time for it... so i'm riding my bike home one day, and boom... my crank just FELL off! in the middle of a major road! I weigh just under 200 lbs, but i was sHockED that such a product would just fall off! anyhow, i was told afterwards that the company had folded or something because of many warranty requests... or were no longer validating any sort of warranty or some such... was disappointed. very... however, bicyclitis had basically given the bb free, just charged a few lousy bucks to do the switch-over and call around for one of the appropriate length... so i figure i did ok... saved me apparently around 100 bucks... i'm happy with their work, but unimpressed with syncros... too bad too bad.
Submitted by
Paul
a Cross Country Rider
from VIctoria BC 15 mins from HARTLAND
Date Reviewed: June 20, 2002
Strengths: light, STIFF (stop whining, DHers, its an XC BB!!), virtually ZERO maint
Weaknesses: look. it's noisy. that's what titanium bottombrackets DO. they're ALL LIKE THAT! stop whining!
Bottom Line:
Awesome BB, lowest friction I've found in anything double-row and pretty close to the best single-row models out there. Ti-Prep applied properly keeps it pretty quiet cept during really heavy sprinting... and then everything on the bike makes noises anywho :P Haven't had to adjust it yet and it's been running happily for a couple years now... 5/5 for my value but unfortunately not everyone gets a deal like I did so 4/5 for you ppl payin regular price... it's still very much worth it if you need this kinda performance
i drived a syncros ti Bottom Bracket in my gt-psyclone and after 4 months it breaks - no hard jumps - only softride, better use a shimano - low price and hard enough for dh(xtr)
Weaknesses: difficult to install for normal cycle mechanics and shop ownwers
Bottom Line:
The Syncros Hardcore Bottom Bracket is a "no-problem" part when you install it correct.The Bearings are smooth and the spindle is stiff.When you would have the best function you should put teflon tape arround the shells and use Loctite for the tapers.Then you have no problems.
Similar Products Used: Sycros Hardcore Steel version,Shimano LX
Bike Setup: Rocky Mountain Element,XT,Race Face Cranks,Control Tech
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Bernard
a Cross Country Rider
from Ulverston
Date Reviewed: September 11, 2001
Strengths: None
Weaknesses: Arrived with axle so poorly machined that bearing faces were running 10 thou out of true. Appalling aftersales service. Shop sent bottom bracket back to Syncros, five e-mails no reply.
Bottom Line:
Perhaps I am asking too much to want a straight bottom bracket axle. You send a badly made product back to the manufacturer. They do not reply. They do not even return the badly made parts. I have wasted my money. If you like this kind of thing buy Syncros. For me this deserve zero chilis.
Submitted by
carlos
a Cross Country Rider
from Texas
Date Reviewed: August 3, 2000
Strengths: -light (my dbl bearing Ti's 165g!) -strong -easy to install (if you read the instuctions!) -lots of seals to keep out the crud -stiff
Weaknesses: Ya have to read the instructions to get a long lasting, creak free, performance.
Bottom Line:
I've had my Syncros Ti, double bearing BB for about a year now and I've had no problems with creaking, snapping spindles, or any of the other problems listed below. I've submerged it under water a hand full of times, ridden in the pourin' rain more times that I'd care to mention, and slogged through mud and wet clay. Those O rings are awesome!
Perfromance depends on three things. Installation, frame material, and intended use.
Installation
The Unpolitically Correct Canuck (see review below) has some great troubleshooting tips. There are also a few at www.syncros.com. Also, don't assume that because you've worked at bike shop or have a bike shop do the installation that it's being done right. Installation, whether it's cables or a seat post, MUST be a methodical process. Here are some examples of a non-methodical mindset:
-people who would rather ride a tube with a slow leak than change it.
-people who don't line up the label on the sidewall of their tire with the valve stem on the tube.
-people who buy cyclocomputers to show off how many miles they've logged rather than using it as a tool to measure service intervals.
-people who simply wipe the threads on bolts and BB cups rather than clean them with a toothbrush (this one makes a world of difference).
Materials
I've got a Litespeed and this usally presents a problem as titanium has a tendancy to gall (form a bond at the molecular level) with most metals. This can be remedied by the use of Ti Prep. Also, the cranks and any frame prep play a big part in this as well.
Intended Use
This is by far the most abused facet of mountain biking components. I won't even give examples since there are too many to list. One good one is folks who use race light equipment on full sus. bikes. Why is it that most folks gasp at the sight of a Ti hardtail with a Rock Shox Boxxer but not give a second thought to a 200 lb. rider on a Ti BB or a set of Bonti Race Lites?
And what's up with Syncros support? I still haven't recieved my stickers. :(
Similar Products Used: Shimano UN-72, Syncros double row and single row bearing cromo BB.
Bike Setup: '98 Litespeed Obed with lots of syncros parts.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Patrick Beeson
a Cross Country Rider
from Bluff City, TN, USA
Date Reviewed: July 8, 2000
Strengths: Light wieght, durability, and coolness...
Weaknesses: CREAKING!!! and a little problem with the bb shell teeth rounding off...
Bottom Line:
This bottom bracket, Syncros TI Double bearing, was quite nice in the beginning with its light weight and all, but that soon changed....once the noise started that is. This damn thing, bless its little heart, makes quite a racket. The plus side is, if you can live with the noise, its quite a durable product as I have never had any problems with it at all, still smooth after a couple years of abuse. I wouldn't have bought it for full price(I work at a shop) as Shimano XT is just too good, and cheap.
as a shop guy you think i could get this damn creaking to stop, no. i torqued the cups to the spec., but that is so tight it take to people, this does stop creaking for a couple of weeks. i trashed the teeth on the cups trying to remove them after the creaking came back, louder than ever. to syncros credit(now gt)they sent me new cups, free. i put the old shim. un-71 back in, and no problems. i am afraid to reinstall the squeaker, again, and could not sell it at velo swap, anyone interested?
Submitted by
Droffats Remark
a Cross-Country Rider
from Milwaukee, WI
Date Reviewed: November 30, 1999
Strengths: It does the job and has the adjustable chainline
Weaknesses: It is challenging to get the chinline right. Soft aluminum cups.
Bottom Line:
The most recent design is not as bad as the old design that got knocked here. If the Shimano models werent disposable (and splined), I would have gone back though.
