Cannondale Aficionados / Owners

Hi. Sure I've missed this but thought I'd check...

Purely out of interest have Cannondale gotten any better at manufacturing bottom brackets that don't creak on their new bikes?

Remove bearings then add medium strength Loctite as they go back in and same for the Spidering, remove & refit with Loctite.

All the bottom bracket creaking stopped with the move to rear thru axles.

Swapping chainsets over on Supersix...some while since I did this so technique not on point. Put inner removal tool in to cranks, twiddle twiddle twiddle...oh. It has screwed right through the crank and dropped in to the bracket shell.

Please tell me I am not the first to make this dumb error?

Loctite’s 641 retaining compound is made for this. Many people have credited it with preventing creaking. I’m 5,000 km in on a BB30a with Loctite 641 and nary a creak.

Bazinga!

how much does this kind of job cost at the LBS?

The crank spider interface and lock-ring thread should have blue Loctite on from the factory, and if you remove the lock-ring and / or the spider the old Loctite should be removed and fresh Loctite added. If it is not used you get a very similar tick / crack to that which a rough BB will make.

Loctiting the bearings in and / or the axle to the bearing surface is not done at the factory and should be done only as a last resort. The adoption of PF30 makes it pretty unlikely you'd need to do this.

I read that the 641 bearing/retaining compound, rather than other loctite glues, is safer to use as it is designed to fill gaps, retain bearings but not be permanent like a glue.

I bought one of those tools to push out the loctited bb30 threaded adapters back when I got the liquigas supersix. Obviously when I had converted it back to bb30 I knew I'd never again in my life need this tool and since it cost me 45 quid I thought I'd recoup some of the cost.

Anyway, now I need one again. Anyone has?

It's more 'glue like' than Loctite blue 242, and yes it's not like a CA glue or epoxy or something that's usually a permanent fixture.

My bb30a was making such a noise it was frankly pathetic... in the end I stripped it down, cleaned it then rebuilt it using Wakos brake protector... and you know what? It bloody did the trick...

Loctite’s 641 retaining compound is made for this. Many people have credited it with preventing creaking. I’m 20,000 km in on a BB30a with Loctite 641 and nary a creak.

Copper slip on press fit BBs also works wonders

There's nothing special about the set up of the headset bearings on a Topstone is there?

Not sure why Cannondale insist on supplying their bikes with the dreadful 25mm conical spacer but I'd like to remove it ASAP.

Nice colour

https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/207812/

Thanks. Aware of Tester's stuff and I guess from that, you're implying that it's just a normal headset clearance?

Going to my LBS tomorrow so will ask if they've got any 1 1/8 caps in their parts bin.

@rob_g_clarkson is this the stuff rides of Japan was using on his open?

Yep, it's the very same

There is normally a low stack headset top cap cover inside the the taller cone one.

There is on topstone carbon models at least anyway.

I read that somewhere too.
Not on the "budget" ally ones :(

https://www.bike-eu.com/market/nieuws/2021/04/cannondale-eyes-upstream-investments-as-european-repositioning-continues-10140275

Interesting- thanks for posting.

I am a Cannondale fan, so good to hear this.