Are Enduro Bearings just complete crap??

Discuss light weight issues concerning mountain bikes & parts.

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skyfire1202
Posts: 193
Joined: Wed Apr 16, 2008 7:43 am
Location: Sapporo City, Hokkaido, Japan
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by skyfire1202

I installed Zero ceramic bearings from Chris in my Ultraterra TNTs for a season and a half of XC racing (in rain and mud, and snow sometimes) and 2 seasons on my Tune AC38 BB, powerwashed sometimes, they still run smooth, but checked them because of this thread and everything looked like they were the day they were first installed. I had lower class Enduro ceramic bearings on my SLR wheels before I got the Extralites and they were still great when I sold them. I'm even planning to buy Zeros again for my new build, just saving up for them. Maybe the negative feedbacks were due to improper/careless installations? I invested on a good bearing press tool too from Chris and I coated the outside of the seals with grease before installing them. :thumbup:
Last edited by skyfire1202 on Fri Nov 20, 2009 4:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Berg
Posts: 98
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2009 9:04 pm
Location: Denmark

by Berg

Allright, here is an update on how my communication with Enduro Bearings aka. Real World Cycling (RWC) turned out:

After some debate back and forth, I have today received a full refund from RWC on both the BB and hub ceramic hybrid bearings I had complained about!
So that is certainly good service, especially considering that they were purchased back in 2007, and had been sitting in my cupbord for a while before use.

But: I am still very sceptical as to the quality of these bearings, and will not be buying anymore of them right now.
However I do still have quite a few Enduro Abec5 lying around, which I will likely install in some road hubs in the spring, and I am also running Enduro in my MTB front hub now. So I will give them another chance for sure! :)

Should the Abec5 bearings to out to be super long lasting and smooth, I will make sure to also post the good news here!

Marcel Frenk
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Jun 09, 2007 4:27 pm
Location: Nijmegen (NL)

by Marcel Frenk

I have no experience with Enduro bearings.
What I can recommend from my own experiences are the tiramic bearings from Token.
Ceramic balls, and the steel rings in which they spin are treated with a ti-nitrid coating to prevent them from rusting.
I have a 2007 generation carbon epic, and use these bearings for the headset en the crankset.

Using ceramic balls in a bearing is OK, but doesn`t help much if the rings are made out of plain steel.

Ole
Posts: 213
Joined: Wed Jan 12, 2005 6:29 pm
Location: Oslo, Norway

by Ole

I have had countless Enduro hybrid ceramics disintegrate inside customers' Extralite hubs, sometimes ruining parts of the hub in the process. Regular steel bearings have never done this. Maybe the new Enduro Zero are better?


Ole.

ProTech
Posts: 286
Joined: Sat Nov 26, 2005 1:53 pm
Location: Montreal

by ProTech

Enduro bearings are junk.
Regardless of being ceramic or regular they simply don't last.

Put NSK or SKF in your good components, that's what I've learned.
If you want really good low friction bearing, instead of using ceramics, try the NSK VV. They are the best for the money, they use a non contact rubber seal.
They have lower drag resistance than new set of Enduro ceramics.

Agreed with Ole , with Enduros I see a customer back in a few months upset with bearing failure.

Alex_ucsb
Shop Owner
Posts: 214
Joined: Fri Oct 24, 2008 1:31 am

by Alex_ucsb

As I've heard, the problem stems from the balls within hybrid ceramic bearings being harder than the races themselves, causing said races to become scarred and deformed over comparitively short periods of use. Thus, it behooves anyone trying to run hybrid ceramic bearings to get bearings which have very hard races.
if anyone knows of any please PM me

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Dan Gerous
Posts: 2413
Joined: Sun Aug 12, 2007 6:28 pm

by Dan Gerous

I agree they're crap.

I took my crankset off yesterday as part of my off-season tear down, almost no milage since I installed the Enduro Ceramic Grade 5 BB30 bearings (it's my race bike but I ride a lot with a few other bikes) and they're pretty much dead... Never again Enduro.

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Kayba
Posts: 143
Joined: Wed May 24, 2006 8:11 pm
Location: W-City

by Kayba

Same here. I tried both the Zero Grade and Grade 5 ceramic bearings in BB30 and the bearings were dead within a few weeks. I ordered some steel Enduro bearings now. We'll see how long they will last.

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Dan Gerous
Posts: 2413
Joined: Sun Aug 12, 2007 6:28 pm

by Dan Gerous

I have some regular non-ceramic and ceramic Cannondale BB30 bearings (not sure who makes them) to use, I wont pay for ceramic next, it makes no difference in performance, saves minimal weight and costs a lot more. I may get some SKF for my dead wheel bearings...

Phill P
Posts: 1870
Joined: Sat Jun 02, 2007 1:10 am
Location: Nambucca, NSW, Australia
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by Phill P

Depending on the generation the Cannondale ceramic bearings were terrible. I heard the local distributor was trying to warrentee failed ceramic dale bearings with thier EZO steel bearings.

Keep in mnd guys that while we are hearing a lot of bad stories from pashionate people who's bearings ahve failed, we probably aren't hearing from those with good stories. OK there might not be many when it comes to enduro......but that isn't true of all brands.
Technical Director at www.TUFFcycle.com

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tomyboy123
Posts: 155
Joined: Thu Oct 23, 2014 8:40 am
Location: Europe

by tomyboy123

Sorry for reviving old thread...
I am just wondering what type of grease ENDURO uses in their regular Steel bearings?
I checked the new bearings on Look Zed 2 crank and there is nice dark blue-greenish transparent grease.
Can't find any similar colored grease on the market. :noidea:
Just need information for future maintenance and try this grease, except this one.
http://www.bike24.de/1.php?content=8;na ... duct=29275

TheDarkInstall
Posts: 725
Joined: Sun Jan 26, 2014 3:44 am

by TheDarkInstall

Thread revival.

Enduro Ceramic Zero bearings rough as hell in an Extralite UltraFront SPM after a few weeks of totally dry use, and no water or chemicals going anywhere near the bike.

Rubbish. Had some Enduro bearings die a few years ago too, in a different hub. Only using these Zeros because that is what Extralite puts in their hubs as stock.

Will be swapping out for steel NSK, SKF or NTN.

Avoid.

Jepas
Posts: 71
Joined: Wed Feb 22, 2012 6:56 pm

by Jepas

This is real public service from the WW forum. I was lucky enough since my bike was almost fitted with a pair of Enduro bearings at the LBS after some grinding noise under power on my PF30 BB. Lucky I said, because the LBS sales guy told me that they would swap the original bearings (steel FSA bearings) with Enduro ones. When asked about their quality against SKF (one of the saffest bet for me) I was told Enduro were better. After this I will keep away from this LBS and Enduro bearings.

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