Bored of the creaking press-fit bottom bracket on your bike? Token might have solved this problem with its brand new Thread Fit, an aluminium threaded press-fit bottom bracket. The company has also developed a clever thru-axle with a unique design that requires just two rotations to secure the wheel into place.
Thread Fit
The Thread Fit bottom bracket comprises a pair of aluminium cups with two injection moulded surfaces made from plastic and fibreglass surfaces (a process it calls Fusion) that press against the inner surface of the bottom bracket shell that ensures a snug fit inside the frame, and eliminates play and therefore any creaking noises.
The bearings sit inside this aluminium barrel, wrapped in plastic and fibreglass, providing a secure and solid platform for the bearings to spin freely, extending their life. The replaceable bearings feature titanium coated races and ceramic balls, which it calls‘TiCeramic’.
The two halves of the bottom bracket are simply threaded into the bottom bracket, either using a special tool it has developed or a standard tool, similar to that used to fit externally threaded bottom brackets. Token says it eliminates any issues with frames with poor tolerances, but that’s not all, it also reckons the Tread Fit extends the life of the bearings and makes the bike stiffer.
“We don’t want to start a fight but we think it’s fair to claim that there are some problems with press fit bottom brackets. They creak, don’t last all that long and are installed and removed with tools that cavemen would recognise. TOKEN’s Thread Fit bottom bracket solves the creaking issues, improves bearing life and adds stiffness to the bottom bracket,” says Token.
The entire bottom bracket weighs a claimed 115g and with seven combinations of bearings it is compatible with most current press-fit standards.
We don’t have a UK price for the new Thread Fit bottom bracket just yet, but it is available now, and we’ll be getting one in for review.
Axle 2 Turn thru-axle
If that wasn’t enough innovation, Token has also reinvented the thru-axle with the launch of the A2T (Axle 2 Turn) thru-axle. Okay, that’s not quite accurate, but it has developed a thru-axle that requires just two rotations to tighten, which means “extremely fast wheel removal.”
On the end of the thru-axle shaft is a unique thread pitch which has been one year in development and been through five revisions, and is now patented. Compared to regular thru-axles, it requires just two full rotations to open or close. The bolt on the end allows adjustment of the final closing position of the lever.
It’ll be available in 12 and 15mm versions and Token is in talks with some manufacturers about adopting it because obviously, you can’t just use it with any current thru-axle bike.
Be interesting if any manufacturers do adopt it. Anything that makes it easier and quicker to operate a thru-axle is a good thing in our books, so here’s to see some bike brands showing an interest in it. Given the long lead times of many of the bigger bike companies, it could be a few years before that happens.
More info soon, and hopefully a review of the new bottom bracket, very interested in trying that out.
39 thoughts on “Token launches threaded press-fit bottom bracket and rapid turn thru-axle”
Doesn’t the fact that Token,
Doesn’t the fact that Token, plus various other companies like wheels manufacturing, and Praxis works, have had to come up with solutions to press-fit creaking, show that Press fit is a load of rubbish? Less about “stiffness” and more about enabling bike manufacturers to reduce manufacturing costs and knocking out cheaper frames? Press fit sucks.
cyclesteffer wrote:
Actually, press fit as a concept is good, the problem is in the implementation. It only takes a small difference in diameter in frame or cup size for there to be an issue, so if the manufacturers take take care, there’s no problem. The issue is that a large number of frame manufacturers do not take enough care with their build tollerances.
All sealed bearing bottom brackets are in effect press fit, even the ones you thread into the frame, it’s just in that in those cases the bearings are press fitted into the cups in the factory by the BB manufacturer who ensures good tollerances between bearing and cup.
I have a couple of bikes with Press Fit BBs, and have serviced many from the like sof Merida and Giant, none of which have any issues, however I’ve also seen a number of ‘value’ brands that have had endless issues.
cyclesteffer wrote:
I’ve got PF on my 2008 Scott Addict and never had a problem with it, infact I’m still using the original bb (Shimano Dura-ace) and I’ve done many thousands ok km on it including 2 Etapes and in all weathers, so not all PF suck.
I thought i was going to have
I thought i was going to have to go the wheels manufacturing route. But my creaks turned out not to be the pf30 i run quarq crank (basically sram) which require spacers on a 68mm shell. Even though their wasnt any side play i made up another thin spacer out of some packaging (the stuff you need a knife open) and inserted it. I’m going on 250 miles and not a single creak Previously i was regreasing every 100 miles and it would creak in less than 20 so doing well. Well see where i am in a 750 miles to confirm solved. Pf30 while not ideal is not always the issue i have to agree thought that a machined aluminimum shell would be better. I think cannondale swapping from pf30 to bb30 on the new evo is an admission it has caused lots of problems even though they say its to increase stifness.
I recently swapped a friends press fit shimano bb who insisted it was creaking guess what changed it and the creak was still their. Turns out it was the rear cassette noises on bikes are often really difficult to diagnose.
Brilliant – another bottom
Brilliant – another bottom bracket standard to confuse the hell out of me for when I want to change the spinny bits on my bike
It’s a hole in a fucking frame – why is it so bloody complicated?
danthomascyclist wrote:
Haha!
Seems there are so many ‘standards’ now that there is no standard *facepalm*
danthomascyclist wrote:
It’s not another standard. If you have a frame with a press-fit bottom bracket, you can install this instead of the plastic press-fit cups that are usually found in press-fit bottom brackets. It’s designed to cure the problem that many people have previously highlighted with press-fit bottom brackets.
Me? I’ve never had a problem with press-fit on a SuperSix Evo I’ve been riding for the last 4-5 years, but maybe I’ve just been lucky. I’m not a fan of the removal process of the standard press-fit bottom bracket, so this new Token system interests me because once it’s fitted, just the bearings need to be removed when they’re worn
Had endless issues with press
Had endless issues with press fit on my Cervelo. The only solution has been to fit a one-piece BBInfinate unit. It’s not neccessarily the fitment of the cups in the frame that cause the issue it’s the alignment (or lack of it) that causes the problems as there are stresses in the assembly and these stresses cause movement as the cranks turn. The BBInfinate deals with both alignment and fit issues in one hit. It’s an obvious solution to the whole PF standard. I’m a convert.
AWP wrote:
Same here with my R5. One look at Campagnolo’s BBRight cups is enough to see that there’s simply not enough material interfacing with the frame, and no amount of Loctite would stop the cups walking out. BBInfinite is a good solution, but I didn’t like the look of the uninstallation process and went with a threaded Wishbone unit instead, which works a treat. The Token design is a direct copy of this.
To all those saying that PF is fine and the creaks are loose QRs, pedals and saddles and/or that those of us with issues are hamfisted imbeciles, you’ve been lucky!
srchar wrote:
I’ve had an FSA BBright adapter (for shimano cranks) fitting to my R5 from the start and its been (touch wood!) silent….bearings still running smooth after 2years of use. The FSA unit is alloy and loads of contact area for the frame to seat in…..looks like a recuring theme with units which have solved creaking.
BBInfinate does look good but I guess that would ruin the life time guarenty ?…..mind you the FSA unit may have done the same !
srchar wrote:
Same here with my R5. One look at Campagnolo’s BBRight cups is enough to see that there’s simply not enough material interfacing with the frame, and no amount of Loctite would stop the cups walking out.
[/quote]
I don’t think that necessarily follows
Although I can only speak for BB86 not BBRight, using campag’s cups with the same reatively shallow fitting into the frame shell. They are properly snug, the bearing races are firmly seated on the cranks, in the same position that campag originally intended for U/T, with a highly torqued central bolt to join both pieces of the axle in the middle and pull both halves together.
No extra adapters, shims or any other point of contact with the shell. It just works.
This could be a reflection of the quality of Campag’s system, or the close tolerances of the frame itself, or more likely both!
Creak, creak, creak, creak..
Creak, creak, creak, creak.. press fit on my Bianchi.
Hideous thing. That’s after the LBS took it out and redone it too.
Re “Creak, creak, creak,
Re “Creak, creak, creak, creak..” – Might be worth plopping a dob of grease on your chainwheel bolts & the areas where it fits on to the spider.
My apologies if the above reads as an invitation to initiate your parents immediate maternal forbearer in how to evacuate an egg through the application of sub atmospheric pressure…..
Just off out for a spin to
Just off out for a spin to test for CREAK CREAK CREAK! Refitted damn thing yesterday. Living in hope!
I bet that this new Token jobby costs a crank arm and a leg ! Will it be guaranteed not to creak ? ? ? Mmmmmmm !
Batchy wrote:
Further to the refitted bb86 ( Shimano Ultegra). Silence for first 12 miles then FFS CREAK CREAK CREAK CREAK CREAK f…Ing CREAK!
It spins beautifully and silently until I put some power through then it’s CREAK CREAK CREAK CREAK CREAK CREAK CREAK! No it’s not my seat post , chainset bolts, pedals,cleats or my knees. It’s my press fit bottom bracket . CREAK CREAK CREAK CREAK CREAK ! !
The headline suggests Token
The headline suggests Token have done something revolutionary, which seems something of an overstatement given (as pointed out) Praxis have been doing something similar (albeit without the integrated plastic/fibreglass bit, which does seem a bit clever) for some time as have Hope (although you need their fancy tool).
I have several bikes with PF BBs – road and MTB, Hope PF BB and plain vanilla, £20 Shimano plastic PF ones – and I’ve never had a problem with creaking on any of them (touch wood and all that). I think threaded external BBs are a bit simpler to fit but so far my PF BBs have been fit and forget.
Agree with the arcaic manner
Agree with the arcaic manner in which a pressfit has to be removed and installed.
I’d like to try this as I’m sick to the back teeth of bottom bracket creak. All the 4 bikes I owned wit pressfit creaked.
I must be very lucky as I’ve
I must be very lucky as I’ve never, ever had any noises or issues with my press fit BB’s and they’ve not been touched since I installed them. Maybe I’m just a fantastic mechanic.
Rapha Nadal wrote:
Me neither. Despite putting it together myself and subjecting it to a lot of ‘power’, shall we say?!
Surely PF BB creaks come from the interface between the bearings races and the cups/ frame?
(In which case you have a incorrectly made frame shell or inadequately assessbled/ designed BB)
I don’t see how this eliminates the problem.
As for stiffness, I can see how the screwed- in sleeve might make it stiffer – for crap bottom brakets that tend to flex! But I don’t think there’s a general problem with a lack of stiffness in PF BB’s – PF is generally specified in order to get a larger, stiffer BB, compared to traditional threaded fitting.
Creak creak creak. Press fit
Creak creak creak. Press fit BB. Regreased. Creak creak creak. Seatpost out, grease applied. Silence.
Beatnik69 wrote:
Creak creak creak. Press fit BB. Regreased. Creak creak creak. Seatpost out, grease applied. Silence.
— Beatnik69
Exactly. Most are quick to jump on the creaky BB theme but forget that the tubes used in most modern bikes are quite large and will therefore amplify any minor creaks quite significantly.
Unfortunately, this then means that a minor creak can become a time consuming process of elimination!
Aye, other riders never
Aye, other riders never thought about isolating the creak either. Just you genuises
unconstituted wrote:
Aye, other riders never thought about isolating the creak either. Just you genuises
— unconstituted
*geniuses
Enjoy your creaky bike.
BB86 on my TCX SLR 2. Zero
BB86 on my TCX SLR 2. Zero problems with creaking or otherwise. And that’s with both FSA and Shimano bottom brackets.
I can understand the general feeling of dread with press-fit bottom brackets but they’re not universally bad. I hear more horror stories with BB30 and PF30.
Yet another example of https:
Yet another example of https://xkcd.com/927/
I think this comments section
I think this comments section just goes to show how controversial pf30 can be.
I honestly think most of the issues are tollerancing issues on the width of the shell and most issues are the axle sliding left and right in the bearings.
I bought a KCNC BB so I could
I bought a KCNC BB so I could use an Ultegra chainset with my dolan frame instead of press fit. Isn’t this the same thing?
Or am I confused?
Broony84 wrote:
No this allows you to fit cranks designed for BB30 and PF30 e.g SRAM and Cannondale into PF30 frames (as well as having adapters that allow you to fit shimano cranks as in your case)
According to my LBS, legit
According to my LBS, legit creaking with them is relatively rare if assembled correctly*. So far in my personal experience the creaking has always turned out to be something else. My current list includes :
Hopefully that will help someone diagnose their own issues quickly. Now that I have a proper precise torque wrench for large torques (Halfords own brand pro model is one of the best, would you believe) I’ve not any more creaks in a long while. Touch wood.
* That said, I know some Cannondale’s have/had squiffy tolerances but a good LBS will either ream the frame themselves or you may be able to get C’Dale to do it in some circumstances.
People also keep talking
People also keep talking about misalignment between the 2 cups & bearings. I can’t see how this would ever be a real issue if you can get the crank axle theough both bearings. The inner race of a bearing is machined to a very tight tollerance. The axle assuming it follows normal limits & fits best practice would be tiny like in the microns ( i’d have to dust of my machinists handbook to work it all out).
With pf30 their are more points of potential failure and finding exactly which one it is is maddening and suspicion always falls on the bb.
Token Y U no make Campag
Token Y U no make Campag Ultra-Torque version?
userfriendly wrote:
http://www.wishbonetw.com/product.php
http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics
.
Not sure why they’d need to
Not sure why they’d need to make an ultra torque version. As per 700c the campag metal cups are all you need. BB86 anyway. Much better solution than the nasty plastic shimano sleeve that was in the frame when it arrived
I too give up with all the BB standards.
TRiPEAK Ceramic Bearing
TRiPEAK ceramic bearing offered Campagnolo solution.
http://www.bibglobal.com
So it’s a threaded bottom
So it’s a threaded bottom bracket; well done Token and about time somebody sorted out the press fit nonsense
alg wrote:
No it still presses in! It’s quite possible someone could buy this and still get creaking, especially if the frame is not quite to spec.
They’re not the first with
They’re not the first with that idea – I have a Rotor BB30 to 24mm bottom bracket on a Condor Super Accacio to allow me to use Shimano cranks in its BB30 shell.
Identical to the Token one – two halves screwed together using standard BB tools.
Wow, what a copy exactly thread BB!!
The original design of this thread BB was from the Brand “TRiPEAK Ceramic Bearing”.
It gurrantied zero creak from it’s patented snug ring.