[CR] Ode to Bottom Brackets.....

I first confess that I'm far from being a master vintage bike mechanic.... but to ME... the elusive vagaries of trying to figure out the proper bottom brackets for my projects.... sometimes just MAKE ME NUTS !! And the waters just get muddier for me when ya throw in anything FRENCH !!!

My mondia super http://www-hsc.usc.edu/%7Erpinder/Mondia.html project (yes.. it turned out to be french..not swiss !) is getting more and more interesting, as I am trying to mount a very nice TA cyclotourist double crankset, with 28/48 gearing, on the baby. The campy french BB that came with the frame wouldnt cut it - so I got pretty excited about a BEAUTIFUL Edco with an axle length of 116. But alas, now that it has arrived, it too has 'issues' !!! Those little bolt heads on the small inner ring mount of the TA cranks are JUST tight enough to bump up against the lock ring (Edco's are adjustable on both sides). Stay tuned..i'm not sure how.... but there surely will be a happy ending! [ i'm thinkin about tryin VeloOrange's sealed french BB's... but alas..they are JIS tapered .. ]

Now..to the ode. I discovered it in the Frank Berto 1988 book on upgrading your bike, back on page 80 in a section called 'Crankset Standardization', where he is lamenting the lack of standards... he writes:

/"Where does all of this leave you if you want to replace your crankset with minimum hassle? First, buy your crankset complete with the bottom bracket set. Second, buy your crankset from a pro bike shop and have them do the installation. Third, buy an English threaded frame, if you can, to avoid about half of the frustration. If you want to keep your costs down and reuse your existing bottom bracket, just accept the fact that you won't know if your new crankset will fit until you try it." / so there !

Rich 'cranked up' Pinder
Sherman Oaks, CA