Smart Cycling Bike Shop, Inc.

Making your equipment work better.

Sometimes you find answers when you were not looking for them. These answers are often called surprises. This summer I started using the new FSA ceramic outboard bearing bottom bracket on my Dura Ace cranks. I have read and heard plenty of things about how great ceramic bearings are. Some manufacturers make very high quality bearings, some manufacturers less so. These ceramic bearing sets promise lots of improvement. All ceramic bearings seem to be expensive.

Some equipment changes can leave you wondering if there was a real performance improvement. In this case I noticed the difference within the first ten feet of pedaling. It was as if someone had taken all the resistance out of my drive train. The ability to pedal smoothly improved dramatically. I could go on about the many reasons why you would want to use ceramic bearings, but I won’t. Instead what I suggest you do is go to your bike shop and ask to compare an FSA out board bearing set with the brand that you have on your bike right now. Just hold the outside of the bearing assembly and turn the bearing set with your finger. Try your own brand first and then the FSA. You will see what I mean.

But there is more to this surprise story than just a bottom bracket. I recently wrote an article for www.tdottriathlon.com about some FSA products I road tested. After the article was posted on their website, I was contacted by Ric Hjertberg, the Technology Manager for FSA. When I was getting my USA Cycling Mechanical license, Ric was one of my instructors. He is a very bright and friendly guy.

During our conversation he told me about a few great tricks to save anything, especially wheels, that have ball bearings in them. The idea is called Self Healing Bearing Technology and he gave me a very simple example of how it works. Imagine a brand new asphalt road; smooth and flat. Now spread rocks, screws and nails all over the surface. Nobody would want to ride down that road because they wouldn't want to get a flat tire. However, if you drove down the road with a steamroller, all the rocks, screws and nails would get driven into the pavement. Once again you would have a nice flat, smooth road. The rocks, screws and nails become part of the pavement.

 The ball bearings in a pair of wheels get exposed to all kinds of grit, moisture, dirt and corrosion. Over time this damages the bearings and the race. It causes the bearing race surface to be pitted and get ground away. Once the bearing or race surface is pitted, everything is garbage. Having your bearings turn into garbage is one thing. Having the race of your beautiful Dura Ace hub turn into garbage is another. Steel bearings have been known to do that to hubs.

Now imagine that the race surface of your hub is the above mentioned asphalt road. The road grit, dirt and moisture that gets into your hubs is like those rocks, nails and screws. Ceramic bearings, when placed into the hub, act like the steamroller that smashes the debris down into the pavement. Ceramic bearings are much harder than a conventional steel ball bearing. Ceramic bearings remain round when a steel bearing would get pitted or lose its shape. This is the idea behind self healing bearings. Putting a single ceramic bearing into each set of bearings does the same thing. Even if grit or corrosion gets into the bearing assembly, that one ceramic bearing acts like a steamroller and buries the grit into the surface of the race.

Check out the SKF website;

http://www.skf.com/portal/skf/home/industries?contentId=0.000336.000510.000624.000742.004102.001640

SKF is a world leader in bearing technology and have been involved in the idea of self healing bearings from the beginning. Another technology company involved in the self healing bearing business is Boca Bearings. Check out their website at

http://www.bocabearings.com/

The advantages of using ceramic bearings is not just about improving the rolling resistance of machinery. Products like high performance wheels, bottom brackets and pedals can all have their life spans extended just by adding a single ceramic bearing to each assembly. To learn more about ceramic bearings, stop by and visit us.