My own approach is to install the arm on the spindle dry (no grease or oil) and bang it on there using a mallet and a rag to protect the crankarm.
Next, install the crank bolt and washer greasing the threads and the underside of the bolt. Tighten.
Torque to 240 inch pounds. Ride 50 miles, and retorque (without backing off) exactly once. Done.
===================================================== Mark Petry 206.618.9642 Beautiful Bainbridge Island, WA mpetry@bainbridgeisland.net ===================================================== "Most of American life consists of driving somewhere and then returning home, wondering why the hell you went."
John Updike, "Rabbit at Rest" =====================================================
Message: 3 From: "Stephen Barner" <Steve@sburl.com> To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org> Date: Thu, 1 Aug 2002 22:34:41 -0400 Subject: [CR]Re: Greasing BBs
My experience has been different than Mark's. I have had problems with crank arms moving too far on the flats due to grease on the tapers. I read in some Campy literature many years ago that 'the oil from the side of the nose is sufficient' (wildly paraphrased). After many inappropriate shop jokes, I decided that it makes good sense, even if I am not Italian and have a diet light in olive oil. This reference also recommended seating the arms on the spindle with a mallet (a leather covered wood block protects the finish on the arm), using the bolt to hold the arm on, not to act as a press. A more important factor, however, is the torque specification for crank bolts. I have never seen this listed. Does anyone know if this information is available anywhere? It would have to be different for different cranksets, due to variations in aluminum alloys and bolt strength.
After reading Jobst's post, I must say that he continues to do an excellent job convincing me that he doesn't have a clue as to what he is talking about, even if he does sound as if his conjectures and fantasies have some basis in fact. If your dustcaps ever serve to keep your crank bolts from falling out you are in serious need of a new mechanic. Speaking of dustcaps, there really is nothing wrong with them, and they do protect the threads. Always grease them, even if they are plastic. Cut a round piece of rubber from a thin innertube and place it between the bolt and cap on those that come off with a hex key. It keeps water from collecting inside the cap
I would never use locktite on any part of a crank unless it was the only way to keep a French or Italian right cup from loosening up in an oversized or stretched BB shell. Always grease the threads of the cups before installations and make sure the right cup is as tight as you can get it without snarfing the finish or flats. I use disk brake wheel bearing grease in the bearings. It's low viscosity yet stays put, doesn't dry out like white lithium, and it's cheaper than snot. Heck, you can add some food coloring, print your name on the tub and sell it in bike shops for a princely markup like some famous component manufacturers do. Does anyone out there actually believe that bike lubricants are specially formulated for use in bicycles?
Steve Barner, stirring the oil back into my last tub of Campy grease on Bolton, Vermont. Is this stuff supposed to separate like cheap peanut butter? Maybe it really IS peanut butter!
----- Original Message ----- > From: Mark Bulgier <mark@bulgier.net>