Bottom Bracket Advice

enoonan

Lo All,
I have an old Raleigh Road bike that I am fixing up as a commuter. The current bottom bracket is a Cup & Cone system and the bearings and cups are shot. The axel is in good condition though.
I was thinking of changing it out for a new sealed system. The original axel length is 124.5mm but I cannot seem to find a sealed modern BB in that length. There are ones that are 122.5mm and 127mm available but I am not sure if these would do. Would anyone have had a similar experience?
My other option I was thinking of would be to get a new set of Cups and bearings. Was thinking something like this would be an option http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/yst-atb-sealed-bottom-bracket-5-piece-cup-set-prod22176/

Thanks in advance for any advice or thoughts.

Eoin

piston

Does your bike have a double chainset? If so, you will probably find the axle is longer on the drive side whereas any modern BB will be symmetrical. This can get confusing, measure it from the centre to drive side and multiply by 2. If you have nay doubts, a decent bike shop should be able to match it up with something.

Personally, I would just buy 22 loose 1/4" ball bearings (~€1) and rebuilt the original with fresh grease. It's not a major job.

Just be careful if your Raleigh is one of the bog standard gas pipe special models from the 1970s or before as they had a 26tpi bottom bracket cup like the the old Raleigh roadsters.

enoonan

Thanks for that Piston.

Most appreciated. I didn't realise that the newer BBs were symmetrical.

It is an 1983 Raleigh that I have so the modern threads work grand. I would rebuild the old BB but I need to get new cups also.

Thanks again

Eoin