{"id":63300,"date":"2026-08-18T09:31:47","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T07:31:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/?p=63300"},"modified":"2026-09-11T09:55:50","modified_gmt":"2026-09-11T07:55:50","slug":"boitier-pedalier-filete-vs-press-fit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/threaded-vs-press-fit-bottom-bracket\/","title":{"rendered":"Attache filet\u00e9e vs attache press-fit : guide complet"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"63300\" class=\"elementor elementor-63300\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2b4c87b e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"2b4c87b\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-14a80c7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"14a80c7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<style>\n.green { color: #2d7a2d; font-weight: 500; }\n.red { color: #c0392b; }\n.callout { background: #f0f7f0; border-left: 4px solid #435655; padding: 16px 20px; margin: 24px 0; border-radius: 4px; }\n.bold-row td { font-weight: 600; border-top: 2px solid #435655; }\ntable { width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; margin: 24px 0; }\nth { background: #435655; color: #fff; padding: 10px 14px; text-align: left; }\ntd { padding: 9px 14px; border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e0e0; }\n.faq-section h3 { color: #435655; margin-top: 20px; }\n<\/style>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n{ \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\", \"@type\": \"BlogPosting\", \"headline\": \"Threaded vs Press-Fit Bottom Bracket: Complete Guide\", \"description\": \"Threaded vs press-fit bottom brackets compared: what creaks and why, weight and stiffness trade-offs, service reality, and how to make press-fit behave.\", \"url\": \"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/threaded-vs-press-fit-bottom-bracket\/\", \"datePublished\": \"2026-08-18\", \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-18\", \"author\": {\"@type\": \"Person\", \"name\": \"Ilan Lemos De Abreu\"}, \"publisher\": {\"@type\": \"Organization\", \"name\": \"CyclingCeramic\", \"url\": \"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\", \"logo\": {\"@type\": \"ImageObject\", \"url\": \"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/cyclingceramic-logo.png\"}}, \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\"@type\": \"WebPage\", \"@id\": \"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/threaded-vs-press-fit-bottom-bracket\/\"}, \"about\": [{\"@type\": \"Thing\", \"name\": \"Bottom bracket\"}, {\"@type\": \"Thing\", \"name\": \"Press fit\"}, {\"@type\": \"Thing\", \"name\": \"Bicycle maintenance\"}], \"keywords\": \"threaded vs press-fit bottom bracket, press fit bottom bracket creaking, BSA vs BB86, T47 bottom bracket, bottom bracket standards\" }\n<\/script>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n{ \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\", \"@type\": \"FAQPage\", \"mainEntity\": [\n{\"@type\": \"Question\", \"name\": \"Is a threaded or press-fit bottom bracket better?\", \"acceptedAnswer\": {\"@type\": \"Answer\", \"text\": \"Neither is better in absolute terms, and in practice the frame decides for you. Threaded is easier to install correctly, easier to remove, and more tolerant of an average workshop, because a thread can be tightened to a defined torque. Press-fit allows a larger bearing diameter and a lighter frame interface, which is why it was adopted for 30 mm spindle cranksets, but it depends entirely on the frame shell being machined to tolerance. A well-made press-fit installation is silent and efficient. A marginal one creaks, and no bottom bracket brand can fully compensate for that.\"}},\n{\"@type\": \"Question\", \"name\": \"Why does my press-fit bottom bracket creak?\", \"acceptedAnswer\": {\"@type\": \"Answer\", \"text\": \"The creak comes from micro-movement at the interface between the cup and the frame shell, not from the bearing. In our experience the main variables are the material and the machining of the cups themselves, combined with the tolerance of the frame bore. If the fit is marginal, the cup moves a fraction of a millimetre under pedalling load and releases it as noise. Assembly grease reduces creaking noticeably but cannot fully eliminate it when the interface itself is out of tolerance, which is why a persistent creak is usually a fit problem rather than a lubrication problem.\"}},\n{\"@type\": \"Question\", \"name\": \"Can I convert a press-fit frame to threaded?\", \"acceptedAnswer\": {\"@type\": \"Answer\", \"text\": \"Only with a dedicated conversion kit designed for your exact shell, and it is a workshop job rather than a home fix. Some press-fit shells can accept an insert that provides a threaded interface, which turns the pressed joint into a threaded one and removes the creak mechanism. It adds weight and it is not reversible on some designs. Before going down that route, it is worth having the existing installation checked properly, because a large share of persistent creaks are down to preparation and tooling rather than the standard itself.\"}},\n{\"@type\": \"Question\", \"name\": \"Are threaded bottom brackets making a comeback?\", \"acceptedAnswer\": {\"@type\": \"Answer\", \"text\": \"Yes. After a decade in which press-fit dominated high-end road frames, several major manufacturers moved back to threaded shells, and T47 emerged as the compromise standard: a threaded interface with the large 47 mm diameter that press-fit designs introduced. The reason is service, not performance. Press-fit did what it was designed to do on weight and bearing size, but it transferred the tolerance burden onto frame production, and the noise complaints that followed were expensive for brands and irritating for riders.\"}},\n{\"@type\": \"Question\", \"name\": \"Does a ceramic bottom bracket stop press-fit creaking?\", \"acceptedAnswer\": {\"@type\": \"Answer\", \"text\": \"No, and any brand claiming it does is overselling. Creaking originates at the cup and frame interface, so it is a fit and material question, not a bearing question. What a quality ceramic unit does change is the friction and the failure mode: Friction Facts measured 0.56W against 1.57W for a standard Shimano Dura-Ace BB86, a 64% reduction, and hybrid ceramic internals avoid the rapid seizure that finishes most standard steel bottom brackets after water ingress. Our assembly greases also reduce creaking, without pretending to eliminate it.\"}}\n] }\n<\/script>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7ff168c e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"7ff168c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c6104dc elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c6104dc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<article><section id=\"section-intro\"><p>The threaded against press-fit argument is usually presented as a verdict, and it is not one. Both interfaces work when they are made and fitted correctly, and both fail in their own way when they are not. The difference is where the tolerance burden sits: a threaded shell carries it in the thread, which can be cut, checked and torqued, while a press-fit shell carries it in a machined bore that has to be right the first time, in production, on a frame that may have been painted afterwards.<\/p><p>That is why the debate never resolves. This guide covers what actually differs mechanically, what really causes press-fit creaking, why the industry drifted back to threaded shells and then invented T47, and what you can do if you already own a press-fit frame and want it to stay quiet.<\/p><p><a href=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-63414\" src=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4-12x12.jpg 12w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4-600x600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4-100x100.jpg 100w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-4.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/p><\/section><section id=\"section-1\"><h2>What Actually Differs at the Interface<\/h2><p>On a threaded bottom bracket, cups screw into a thread cut into the frame shell: 1.37 inch by 24 TPI on BSA, 36 mm on Italian, M47 by 1 mm on T47. The joint is mechanical. It has a defined torque, it pulls itself tight rather than relying on friction alone, and it can be removed and refitted many times with a standard tool.<\/p><p>On a press-fit bottom bracket, cups or bearings are pressed into a smooth machined bore, usually 41 mm, 42 mm or 46 mm depending on the standard, and held by interference fit. Nothing threads, nothing torques. The joint holds because the cup is very slightly larger than the hole it sits in, and it stays quiet only as long as that interference is maintained across the whole circumference.<\/p><div class=\"callout\"><strong>The number that decides everything.<\/strong> Press-fit interference is measured in hundredths of a millimetre. Too little and the cup can micro-move under load, which is the creak. Too much and you risk deforming the cup, which loads the bearing unevenly. That window is small enough that frame machining tolerance, cup material and the tool used to press the cup all move the outcome, before the bearing has turned once.<\/div><p>Everything else follows from this. Threaded is more forgiving because the thread creates its own clamping force. Press-fit is more sensitive because the fit is the clamping force. Neither statement is a criticism of either standard, and if you want the full catalogue of shell widths and bores, our <a href=\"\/bottom-bracket-types-comparison\/\">bottom bracket types comparison<\/a> lays out every standard side by side.<\/p><\/section><section id=\"section-2\"><h2>Why Press-Fit Creaks, and What Actually Causes It<\/h2><p>Creaking is the single reason press-fit has a poor reputation, and it is worth being precise about the mechanism, because most of the internet blames the wrong part.<\/p><p><a href=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-8.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-63418\" src=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-8-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-8-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-8-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-8-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-8-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-8-18x12.jpg 18w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-8-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-8.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/p><p>The noise comes from micro-movement between the cup and the frame shell. Under pedalling load, the bottom bracket area of the frame flexes, and if the interference fit is marginal, the cup slips a fraction of a millimetre, sticks, and slips again. That stick-slip cycle is what your ear hears as a creak, and it is usually loudest at high torque, standing on a climb or accelerating.<\/p><p>From what we see in the workshop, the main variables are the <strong>material and the machining of the cups themselves<\/strong>, combined with the tolerance of the frame bore. A cup that is dimensionally correct and made from a material with the right stiffness sits properly in a correctly machined shell and stays silent. A cup that is a few hundredths undersized, or made from a plastic that relaxes over time, moves.<\/p><p>Three things follow that are worth stating plainly.<\/p><p><strong>The bearing is almost never the source.<\/strong> A creak that appears under load and disappears when you soft-pedal is an interface noise. A bearing problem sounds different: rumbling, grinding, or a rough feel when you turn the cranks by hand with the chain off.<\/p><p><strong>Assembly grease helps, and does not cure.<\/strong> A purpose-made <a href=\"\/shop\/assembly-grease\/\">assembly grease<\/a> at the cup and shell interface reduces creaking noticeably, because it fills micro-gaps and stops dry surfaces from sticking and releasing. It does not compensate for a shell that is out of round or a cup that is undersized. We would rather say that clearly than sell grease as a cure.<\/p><p><strong>Preparation and tooling do more than people expect.<\/strong> A shell cleaned back to bare metal, cups pressed square with a proper press rather than driven in, and no paint or contamination in the bore, resolve a meaningful share of creaks on their own.<\/p><\/section><section id=\"section-3\"><h2>Why the Industry Drifted Back to Threaded<\/h2><p>Press-fit was not a mistake, it was a solution to a real problem. A BSA shell is 1.37 inches across, which does not leave room for a 30 mm crank spindle with a proper bearing around it. Removing the thread and machining a larger bore, 46 mm on PF30 and 386EVO, gave frame designers room for larger spindles, wider shells for stiffness, and one less metal insert to bond into a carbon frame. It also saved weight at the frame and at the bottom bracket.<\/p><p>What it did not do was transfer well to volume production. The tolerance window that keeps a press-fit joint quiet is tight, and it has to survive frame layup, curing, machining, painting and assembly. When it did not, the rider heard about it, and the noise complaints that followed became a warranty and reputation problem for frame brands rather than a component problem.<\/p><p>The result over the past few years has been a visible move back towards threaded shells on high-end road frames, and the emergence of T47 as the reconciliation: an M47 by 1 mm thread cut into a shell with the same large diameter that press-fit introduced. You keep the 30 mm spindle compatibility and the big bearings, and you get an interface that can be torqued and removed with normal tools.<\/p><p>That is the honest summary of the history. Press-fit solved a design constraint and created a manufacturing one, and T47 is the industry answering both.<\/p><p><a href=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-6.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-63416\" src=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-6-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-6-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-6-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-6-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-6-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-6-18x12.jpg 18w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-6-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-6.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/p><\/section><section id=\"section-4\"><h2>The Case for Press-Fit, Fairly Stated<\/h2><p>Press-fit is easy to dismiss and that would be wrong, because on a frame built to tolerance it does exactly what it was designed to do.<\/p><p><strong>Larger bearings and larger spindles.<\/strong> A 46 mm bore accommodates a 30 mm aluminium spindle, which is stiffer and lighter than a 24 mm steel one for the same job. That is a genuine engineering gain, not marketing.<\/p><p><strong>Less material at the frame.<\/strong> No threaded metal insert to bond into a carbon shell means less weight and one fewer bonded joint to fail, plus more freedom in how the frame around the bottom bracket is shaped.<\/p><p><strong>Fewer parts in the joint.<\/strong> A pressed cup has no thread to strip, cross-thread or seize, which is a real failure mode on threaded shells, particularly on aluminium frames that have been serviced carelessly or left with a corroded steel cup in place for years.<\/p><p>The trade is service friction. Press-fit needs the right press, a properly prepared shell and a mechanic who does it carefully, whereas threaded is more tolerant of a rushed job. If your frame is press-fit and your installation is good, you are not losing performance, and you should not be talked into worrying about it.<\/p><\/section><section id=\"section-5\"><h2>Head to Head<\/h2><table><thead><tr><th>Criterion<\/th><th>Threaded (BSA, ITA, T47)<\/th><th>Press-fit (BB86, BB30, PF30, 386EVO)<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Installation<\/td><td class=\"green\">Torqued to spec, standard tool<\/td><td>Requires a press and a prepared bore<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Removal and refit<\/td><td class=\"green\">Repeatable, low risk<\/td><td>Cups can be damaged on removal<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Creak risk<\/td><td class=\"green\">Low, thread provides clamping<\/td><td class=\"red\">Higher, depends on frame tolerance<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Spindle options<\/td><td>BSA limited to 24 mm class, T47 opens 30 mm<\/td><td class=\"green\">Native 30 mm support on 46 mm bores<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Weight at the frame<\/td><td>Threaded insert adds material<\/td><td class=\"green\">Lighter frame interface<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Failure mode<\/td><td>Thread damage, seized cups<\/td><td>Micro-movement, ovalised bore<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Workshop tolerance<\/td><td class=\"green\">Forgiving<\/td><td>Unforgiving of a rushed job<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><p>Read the table as two different risk profiles rather than a scoreboard. Threaded concentrates the risk in the thread, which is visible, checkable and repairable. Press-fit concentrates it in a fit you cannot see, which is why it fails quietly and then loudly.<\/p><p><a href=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-7.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-63417\" src=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-7-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-7-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-7-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-7-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-7-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-7-18x12.jpg 18w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-7-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/CyclingCeramic-Articles-wheel-bearing-and-bottom-brackets-7.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/p><\/section><section id=\"section-6\"><h2>Making a Press-Fit Bottom Bracket Behave<\/h2><p>If you already have a press-fit frame, the standard is not the problem to solve. The installation is. In order of what actually resolves creaks.<\/p><p><strong>1. Prepare the shell properly.<\/strong> Remove the old cups, clean the bore back to bare material with a solvent, and check for paint runs, residue or old retaining compound. A contaminated bore prevents a correct fit no matter what goes into it.<\/p><p><strong>2. Press square, with the right tool.<\/strong> Cups pressed at a slight angle sit unevenly and load the bearing off-axis. A proper press aligns both sides on a shared axis. Driving cups in with a hammer and a socket is how bores get ovalised, and an ovalised bore is a permanent problem.<\/p><p><strong>3. Use an assembly grease at the interface.<\/strong> Our <a href=\"\/shop\/assembly-grease\/\">assembly grease<\/a> is formulated for fitting rather than long-term lubrication, which is exactly the job here: cups, shells and bearing seats at installation. It reduces creaking and makes the next removal cleaner.<\/p><p><strong>4. Check the crank side too.<\/strong> A significant number of creaks blamed on the bottom bracket come from the crank interface, the chainring bolts or the pedals. Isolate before you press anything: swap pedals, re-torque the chainring bolts, and ride it again.<\/p><p><strong>5. If it persists, the interface itself is out of tolerance.<\/strong> At that point the options are a retaining compound suited to cylindrical fits, a shell shim, or a conversion kit that gives the frame a threaded interface. All three are workshop decisions that depend on your exact shell, and all three are more sensible than replacing bottom brackets repeatedly and hoping.<\/p><div class=\"callout\"><strong>Diagnosing before you dismantle.<\/strong> A creak under load that follows your pedal stroke and gets worse standing up points at the bottom bracket or crank interface. A rumble or roughness you can feel turning the cranks by hand, chain off, points at the bearing. A noise that appears only when you brake or turn is neither. Fixing the wrong one is how a simple job becomes a season-long annoyance.<\/div><\/section><section id=\"section-7\"><h2>Where the Bearing Choice Actually Matters<\/h2><p>Once the interface question is settled, what runs inside the cups is a separate decision, and it is the one with measured numbers attached.<\/p><p>Friction Facts, the independent Colorado laboratory whose 2016 testing remains our reference, measured a CyclingCeramic bottom bracket at 0.56W against 1.57W for a standard Shimano Dura-Ace BB86 unit.<\/p><table><thead><tr><th>Bottom bracket<\/th><th>Measured friction<\/th><th>Difference<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Shimano Dura-Ace BB86 standard<\/td><td>1.57W<\/td><td>Baseline<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>CyclingCeramic<\/td><td class=\"green\">0.56W<\/td><td class=\"green\">-1.01W (64%)<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><p>The durability difference matters at least as much. The common failure mode on a standard steel bottom bracket is rapid seizure once water reaches the bearing, because the steel corrodes and the bearing goes from rough to locked in a short space of time. Silicon nitride balls do not corrode, and on races hardened to Rc 62 and above they polish the race rather than pitting it. That is why our bottom brackets carry a 4-year warranty, and the full lab figures are on our <a href=\"\/quality\/test-data\/\">test and lab data page<\/a>.<\/p><p>What ceramic does not do is fix a creak. Creaking lives at the cup and frame interface, so it is a fit question, and a bottom bracket brand that promises to cure it is promising something outside its control. We cover both families in every common standard, threaded and press-fit alike, and the <a href=\"\/support\/bracket-for-bottom-brackets-cyclingceramic\/\">bottom bracket support page<\/a> has fitting and torque guidance for each. If you want the full argument on whether the upgrade is worth it, our <a href=\"\/ceramic-bottom-bracket-vs-standard\/\">ceramic bottom bracket versus standard comparison<\/a> covers it with the caveats included.<\/p><\/section><section id=\"section-faq\" class=\"faq-section\"><h2>Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2><div><h3>Is a threaded or press-fit bottom bracket better?<\/h3><div><p>Neither is better in absolute terms, and in practice the frame decides for you. Threaded is easier to install correctly, easier to remove, and more tolerant of an average workshop, because a thread can be tightened to a defined torque. Press-fit allows a larger bearing diameter and a lighter frame interface, which is why it was adopted for 30 mm spindle cranksets, but it depends entirely on the frame shell being machined to tolerance. A well-made press-fit installation is silent and efficient. A marginal one creaks, and no bottom bracket brand can fully compensate for that.<\/p><\/div><\/div><div><h3>Why does my press-fit bottom bracket creak?<\/h3><div><p>The creak comes from micro-movement at the interface between the cup and the frame shell, not from the bearing. In our experience the main variables are the material and the machining of the cups themselves, combined with the tolerance of the frame bore. If the fit is marginal, the cup moves a fraction of a millimetre under pedalling load and releases it as noise. Assembly grease reduces creaking noticeably but cannot fully eliminate it when the interface itself is out of tolerance, which is why a persistent creak is usually a fit problem rather than a lubrication problem.<\/p><\/div><\/div><div><h3>Can I convert a press-fit frame to threaded?<\/h3><div><p>Only with a dedicated conversion kit designed for your exact shell, and it is a workshop job rather than a home fix. Some press-fit shells can accept an insert that provides a threaded interface, which turns the pressed joint into a threaded one and removes the creak mechanism. It adds weight and it is not reversible on some designs. Before going down that route, it is worth having the existing installation checked properly, because a large share of persistent creaks are down to preparation and tooling rather than the standard itself.<\/p><\/div><\/div><div><h3>Are threaded bottom brackets making a comeback?<\/h3><div><p>Yes. After a decade in which press-fit dominated high-end road frames, several major manufacturers moved back to threaded shells, and T47 emerged as the compromise standard: a threaded interface with the large 47 mm diameter that press-fit designs introduced. The reason is service, not performance. Press-fit did what it was designed to do on weight and bearing size, but it transferred the tolerance burden onto frame production, and the noise complaints that followed were expensive for brands and irritating for riders.<\/p><\/div><\/div><div><h3>Does a ceramic bottom bracket stop press-fit creaking?<\/h3><div><p>No, and any brand claiming it does is overselling. Creaking originates at the cup and frame interface, so it is a fit and material question, not a bearing question. What a quality ceramic unit does change is the friction and the failure mode: Friction Facts measured 0.56W against 1.57W for a standard Shimano Dura-Ace BB86, a 64% reduction, and hybrid ceramic internals avoid the rapid seizure that finishes most standard steel bottom brackets after water ingress. Our assembly greases also reduce creaking, without pretending to eliminate it.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/section><section id=\"section-conclusion\"><h2>Bottom Line<\/h2><p>Threaded and press-fit are two ways of holding the same bearings in the same place, with the tolerance burden in different hands. Threaded puts it in a thread you can torque and check. Press-fit puts it in a bore that has to be machined correctly and prepared properly, and rewards you with a larger bearing and a lighter frame when it is. The industry&#8217;s return to threaded shells, and the arrival of T47, is a verdict on manufacturing consistency rather than on engineering.<\/p><p>Practically: you do not choose, your frame does. What you do choose is what goes inside it and how carefully it is fitted. A <a href=\"\/shop\/bottom-bracket-bsa-shimano\/\">BSA unit<\/a>, a <a href=\"\/shop\/bottom-bracket-t47-68-shimano\/\">T47 external cup unit<\/a> or a <a href=\"\/shop\/bottom-bracket-bb86-shimano\/\">BB86 press-fit unit<\/a> all run the same Grade 3 Si3N4 internals with the same 64% measured friction reduction and the same 4-year warranty. Fit them with <a href=\"\/shop\/assembly-grease\/\">assembly grease<\/a> at the interface and the correct <a href=\"\/shop\/cyclingceramic-socket-tool-all-bottom-bracket-2026-version\/\">bottom bracket socket tool<\/a>, and most of the noise this debate generates never reaches your bike.<\/p><\/section><\/article>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The threaded against press-fit argument is usually presented as a verdict, and it is not one. Both interfaces work when [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1939,"featured_media":63415,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1479,264],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-63300","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guide","category-workshop"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63300","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1939"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63300"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63300\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63438,"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63300\/revisions\/63438"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63415"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63300"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63300"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclingceramic.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63300"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}