Ceramic Vs Steel Bottom Bracket

Steel bearings are commodity items that are composed of hardened steel balls and a steel inner and outer race.

Ceramic vs steel bottom bracket.

Quality hybrid ceramic bearings are better than steel bearings in a bicycle bottom bracket application because they have rounder balls for lower resistance better races for lower resistance and are grease efficient in low rpm low heat environments for lower resistance. When analyzing the individual components that contribute to the total frictional losses of a bottom bracket the frictional losses due to the seals and lubricant is greater than the frictional losses. While the first two items were more prevalent distinguishers between ceramic and steel bearings in the past today there are often comparably built steel versions of a given bearing assembly. Ak posted by ard kessels.

If there is one thing we see a lot in comments sections about ceramic bearings it is people claiming ceramic bearings do not offer benefits and are not. Ceramic is not always better than steel. The ceramic balls are often silicon nitride or equivalent. Ceramic bearings are in actual fact hybrid.

They use ceramic balls and usually a steel inner and outer race. For bottom bracket applications the maximum sustained rpm may be 130 explains lew. Silicone nitride si3n4 grade 3 balls roll on black oxide races ground to a mirror finish after receiving magnetite and cryogenic treatments for hardness and longevity. Ceramic bearing equipped bottom brackets or hybrid ceramics to be more precise are generally much more expensive than their stainless.

Ceramic bottom brackets ceramic oversized derailleur pulleys tools and accessories ceramic bearings vs. Full ceramic bearings use ceramic races which can be lighter and provide the lowest friction but come at a durability cost. Which ones do you need. A bb30 bottom bracket that uses ceramic bearings will weigh 3 5 grams less than its stainless steel counterpart.