Dug this out of a mystery MTB a customer dragged in off the street and I'm fascinated by how smooth that break is. It was certainly a surprise when I saw the spindle come out with the NDS cup. Are we thinking it was just a shitty defect? Bad metallurgy? Seized up by rust and broken when someone tried to put power through the pedal? I've been wrenching in shops for about seven years now and it's the first time I've seen a BB fail like this.
by BrightlyEnuf
4 Comments
It’s too old to be a defect. Is it a weak spot in the metal? Yes. Is it because of how they made it? Maybe. But if it held up for long enough to look like that, it’s not a defect.
it has been hard working for 10 years , had enough, and refused to do any more.
I slid into a pole while crossing a bridge and the crank/pedal took the impact but cracked the spindle in a similar point. A week later, cranking hard up a short rise the spindle failed and I took a ride on the handlebars, through the bushes. So, yes definitely possible to damage and break a spindle.
fatigue