Known for chasing efficiency through ceramic bearings, CeramicSpeed’s BSA Bottom Bracket for SRAM DUB MTBs is an upgrade for the most discerning mountain bikers– where every watt counts. Although it is out of reach for most, if you want an added edge over your rivals, it's worth considering.
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CeramicSpeed BSA Bottom Bracket for SRAM DUB MTB - Technical details
The CeramicSpeed bottom bracket dials the whole bottom bracket up a notch and, as a brand with a history of working with NASA, it comes as little surprise. Each bearing is hand-made, taking 50 to 70 days to build a single ball bearing.
This SRAM DUB MTB version is built and sealed especially for off-road conditions and it’s designed for durability and efficiency, and to work with DUB 29.88 cranks.
The bearings roll on ceramic balls as well as hardened-steel races as well as a metallic coating that’s three microns thick, says the brand. The latter is claimed to resist corrosion, making the races harder and smoother.
In the box, you get the full shebang. There’s the BB itself, the spacer tube that sits between the cups, a bunch of spacers and a small tube of CeramicSpeed’s Long Life Grease. There’s also a cool sticker thrown in for fun.
CeramicSpeed claims a weight of 87g whereas I weighed it at 86g. That does make it weightier than a standard DUB bottom bracket by 11 grams, according to my scale.
For installation, it requires a 12-notch BB tool.
CeramicSpeed BSA Bottom Bracket for SRAM DUB MTB - Performance
Before coming into this test, I haven’t had the best experiences with CeramicSpeed’s BBs due to perhaps the wrong type being installed on a Factor Lando HT. To put it simply, it didn’t last very long, welcoming in dirt and water within only a kilometre.
However, the SRAM DUB bottom bracket built for mountain bikes is a completely different story. I’ve been riding this BB for the best part of the year, having faced wet weather and muddy trails throughout testing, and it’s still spinning as freely as it did when new. But I must say, it has got slightly noisier as some dirt has ingressed. Again, it’s spinning perfectly fine, but, considering the investment, better sealing would be appreciated. Then again, this is a product designed for efficiency, so improving sealing could add more stiction.
Installation is as simple as most other bottom brackets and included in the pack is the full gamut of spacers and dust covers. When replacing a dead SRAM DUB BB, it was just a case of copying over the new spacers, using the old ones as a reference for size.
As we’re on the subject of installation, CeramicSpeed also sent us the optional preload ring. It isn’t as easy to adjust as regular-styled alternatives. It can’t be tweaked by hand – instead, it can be rotated by threading a small Allen key or similar through a hole to be used as a handle for leverage. The result is a super sleek-looking preload ring, but it can get tricky when it comes to clearance for that Allen key, as main pivot bolts can get in the way. That said, you don't need the CeramicSpeed variant and can easily use your existing ring.
Once on the bike and ready to go, I was immediately impressed with the efficiency the bottom bracket produced. There’s so little friction that mates have been complimenting me on my newfound power transfer. There’s an incredibly clear boost in efficiency thanks to how little friction is present between the ball bearings and races. That’s even with a smidge of dirt ingress.
A marginal downside compared to a regular SRAM DUB BB is that the CeramicSpeed variant is slightly heavier. The former comes in at 75g, whereas CeramicSpeed’s BB tips the scale at 86g. Between friends, 11 grams is hardly noticeable but for those seeking the absolute ultimate in lightweight, it comes as a bit of a surprise that a bottom bracket that’s more than £300 pricier isn’t bringing the heat in the weight department. But that said, it has lasted longer while running smoother.
CeramicSpeed BSA Bottom Bracket for SRAM DUB MTB - Verdict
With an asking price of £350, CeramicSpeed’s SRAM DUB MTB bottom bracket is a serious investment. There’s a lot of competition to consider, even in the ceramic-bearing bottom bracket market. One example is C-Bear’s, which costs less than half the money. It takes things a step further, too, as it’s designed to be installed without spacers, utilising its cups to take up the space needed to properly set up a DUB crank while moving the bearings closer to the crank itself.
Then there’s Enduro Bearings’ Maxhit bottom bracket, which gets an interesting design. It uses 440C Stainless Steel AC balls, but rather than using cartridge bearings sat in alloy cups, the cartridge bearings are the cups. It gets larger balls in pursuit of longevity. Additionally, the brand provides a lifetime warranty that also covers corrosion, so it’s its durability you’re after over efficiency, Enduro Bearings’ Maxhit BB is well worth a look.
CeramicSpeed’s BSA Bottom Bracket for SRAM DUB MTB is about saving every watt possible while upping durability. For the average rider, it’s probably not the most affordable upgrade, let alone the most necessary but, if you're a competitive racer or professional rider wanting marginal advantage over the competition, it's something to consider.
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