Bottom bracket clamp bolts come loose

[marshall2389]

I've got a mid-2015 S30. The BB clamps are tightened with two bolts. If I tightened the bolts enough to prevent lateral BB movement but not so much as to deform and deteriorate my BB then the bolts come loose after a few minutes of pedaling. I don't want to put thread lock on the bolts since I frequently have to adjust the boom length. Any ideas on how to keep the bolts from loosening?

 

[RojoRacing]

Put blue thread lock on them. Why would you not want thread lock on the clamp bolts? It not like it's going to permanently lock down the bolts. They'll just be sticky enough to prevent them from moving on their own. Also there's a decent range between just tight enough so you can't move the BB laterally and so tight as to deform the cups. My guess is you need to tighten a little higher into that range.

 

[marshall2389]

I didn't know blue would be sticky instead of locked/brittle. Thanks.

I've experimented with tightening the bolts progressively tighter 1/16th of a turn at a time. Once they're tight enough to stay where they are my BB only lasts about a thousand miles.

 

[RojoRacing]

Well it does become brittle, just not as bad as red. Still it's effective enough for several adjustments then you can just toss another dab on as needed.

There's like 20 different kinds of locktite compounds and some of them are more of a soft set to hold tight through repeat adjustments. The stand blue isn't one of them but works well enough for 99% of things it's just good to keep on hand.

 

[ratz]

I didn't know blue would be sticky instead of locked/brittle. Thanks.

I've experimented with tightening the bolts progressively tighter 1/16th of a turn at a time. Once they're tight enough to stay where they are my BB only lasts about a thousand miles.

Elliot for the miles you are putting in, you might want to invest in an rwc bb; the cups it stronger and will last longer: http://enduroforkseals.com/id180.html the $99 one without the ceramics should be perfect for your all weather riding.

 

[ratz]

Well it does become brittle, just not as bad as red. Still it's effective enough for several adjustments then you can just toss another dab on as needed.

There's like 20 different kinds of locktite compounds and some of them are more of a soft set to hold tight through repeat adjustments. The stand blue isn't one of them but works well enough for 99% of things it's just good to keep on hand.

The "white" marine stuff is pretty gummy if you find it; it works well

 

[marshall2389]

Thanks for the input, Ratz. I prefer to buy high quality parts that will last many miles but it sucks that every time I get hit it costs hundreds or thousands of dollars. These road parts are sure fragile. My old Quest made it through a lot of hard knocks without performance reducing damage. This S30 with road parts breaks far more easily.

 

[ratz]

These road parts are sure fragile.

Indeed in some cases that's true. After my 3rd BottomBracket I went to the $200 XD-15 which I haven't had to think about since; expensive peace of mind; but well worth it.