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review
Aerozine Road Bottom Bracket£19.99
VERDICT:
Expensive looking, value for money bottom bracket that keeps the rain out; smooth running too
Weight:
81g
Contact:
At road.cc every product is thoroughly tested for as long as it takes to get a proper insight into how well it works. Our reviewers are experienced cyclists that we trust to be objective. While we strive to ensure that opinions expressed are backed up by facts, reviews are by their nature an informed opinion, not a definitive verdict. We don't intentionally try to break anything (except locks) but we do try to look for weak points in any design. The overall score is not just an average of the other scores: it reflects both a product's function and value – with value determined by how a product compares with items of similar spec, quality, and price.
What the road.cc scores meanGood scores are more common than bad, because fortunately good products are more common than bad.
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Aerozine have produced one of the lightest bottom brackets we've ever had in on test and thanks to smooth-running bearings there is no bedding in period. It's available in lots of pretty colours too.
The Aerozine BB-05-RD-68, to give it its full name, uses external bearing cups which are forged from aluminium before being finished on a CNC machine to give tight tolerances for a snug fit in your frame. Using alloy also means the weight is kept down to just 81g. The overall finish is very good indeed with no burrs on the thread or machined faces. Installation is therefore easy; you only need to screw it in with your fingers before a little nip up with a spanner. The notches in the cups are the same as Shimano's and almost everyone else's so if you've already got a bottom bracket spanner it'll work fine.
The bearings are the important part though and the sealed steel units used here are beautifully smooth straight from the first pedal stroke, smoother than the Shimano 105 (200 miles) unit it replaced. The caps are plastic and upon removal of the cups they do seem to be keeping the moisture at bay working in partnership with the plastic shell and o-rings.
We've had plenty of wet weather over the test period and the unit is still creak free even though it is coated in grit and mud thanks to my lackadaisical stance on bike maintenance.
Aerozine offer it in both BSA or Italian threading with the option to go ceramic on the bearing front. The anodising looks smart and comes in a range of six colours which make the Aerozine bottom bracket look much more expensive than its actual twenty quid price tag.
Overall the Aerozine Road BB is a cracking value for money unit that looks smart and so far is offering impressive durability. The bearings may not be replaceable but for £19.99 you're not going to mind replacing the whole thing when they wear out.
Verdict
Expensive looking, cheap bottom bracket that keeps the rain out; smooth running too
If you're thinking of buying this product using a cashback deal why not use the road.cc Top Cashback page and get some top cashback while helping to support your favourite independent cycling website
road.cc test report
Make and model: Aerozine Road Bottom Bracket
Size tested: 68mm - Steel Bearings - Blue
Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?
A road use external cup BB unit thats priced around Shimano's mid-range offerings though the performance feels better.
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?
Forged & CNC'd alloy cups
Sealed steel cartridge bearings
Plastic sleeve
68mm shell width
anodised finish (silver, black, blue, red, gold, pink)
Rate the product for quality of construction:
8/10
Rate the product for performance:
8/10
Rate the product for durability:
8/10
Seems impressive so far, we'll keep you posted should things change.
Rate the product for weight, if applicable:
8/10
Rate the product for value:
8/10
Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose
Easily installed and smooth from the off.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
The expensive looks and smooth bearings.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
The alloy can mark quite easily if you need to be a little forceful with the spanner.
Did you enjoy using the product? Yes.
Would you consider buying the product? Yes.
Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes.
About the tester
Age: 35 Height: 180cm Weight: 76kg
I usually ride: Whatever needs testing or Genesis Flyer, fixed of course! My best bike is: Kinesis T2 with full Centaur Red
I've been riding for: 10-20 years I ride: Every day I would class myself as: Expert
I regularly do the following types of riding: time trialling, commuting, club rides, sportives, fixed/singlespeed,
As part of the Tech Hub here at F-At Digital, our senior product reviewer Stu uses the knowledge gained from putting well over a 1,000 products through their paces (including hundreds of bikes) to write in-depth reviews of a huge range of kit. After first throwing his leg over a race bike back in 2000, Stu's ridden more than 160,000 miles on road, time-trial, track, and gravel bikes, and while he's put his racing days behind him he still likes to smash the pedals rather than take things easy. Although, as he spends a fair bit of his time reviewing ebikes these days he's becoming an expert in letting the motor take the strain. He's also waiting for 23mm race tyres to make a comeback!
Latest Comments
- momove 29 min 43 sec ago
What entitlement! "Who is going to pay for my vehicle when I damage it?" You are!
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By the way if ebike riders are never seen on cold days who the hell was that I accompanied to her school this morning on her bike when the Garmin...
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It would be a great memory too, but a potential cracked headtube joint on the next pothole would be a nastier memory.
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Lovely looking bike, the ability to reverse the saddle clamp is very useful - on my old Defy I had to buy a whole new post to get more setback.
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Instead of banning ALL e-bikes, why don't they actually enforce the existing laws to prevent the use of unrestricted electric bikes, almost always...
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Gordon in his little chain ring halfway down the block and tagging manufacturers in to his post - what a bell
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Woke also means "not asleep". Glad to be of service. Dddrrriinnngggg !
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It was the same prior to brexit. The UK has always done fk all about identifying foreign drivers. Its just too much trouble for our lazy authorities.
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7 comments
Durability pretty poor IME.
Bearings rough after 9 months ~ 5000 km
Shoulda gone with first instinct which was Hope.
Hmmm yes sounds like a faff...think I'll just buy, fit, forget - until the next time.
Cheers all
Trying to shim a tapered GXP spindle to fit in a straight 24mm Shimano BB is a horrible idea that will fail.
There are countless GXP BB options from both SRAM and aftermarket producers.
GXP is stepped which is why reducer shims like hope will always work. I have used hope bb for several years with both SRAM force and apex cranks with no creak issues except when bearings died, then changed bearings. I went to hope when got fed up changing truvativ bb every few months. I have also used reducers on Shimano bb with success as well. I can see no reason why they would not work with this bb as well, but why spend extra £8 for something that probably only lasts as long as SRAM version?
Just been asking in "the other place" about a more durable GXP replacement for my SRAM Force groupset.
The option suggested there was a Hope BB with SRAM/Truvativ adapter. Pricey compared to this, but apparently durable and has replaceable sealed cartridge bearings.
See http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/replacing-sram-gxp-team-bb86-roa...
So is that something I can replace my ageing GXP unit with? Or is the chainset (Sram Rival) constrained to a GXP replacement?
you might be able to use it with a shim, if such a thing is available but GXP has 2 different internal size bearings where as shimano uses the same size both side.
Probably best to get another GXP to be on the safe side. I found the first units (all black) pretty crap but the newer grey ones seem pretty reliable. the non-drive bearing always goes first though.