My bottom bracket went from crunchy to smooth in 2 hours with a $6 tool

I chased a creaky bottom bracket on my old Trek for months. Tried cleaning the threads, new grease, even a different crank. Last weekend I finally bought a proper Park Tool BBT-22 for like six bucks at the co-op. I pulled the cups, cleaned out all the old gritty grease from 2019, and put fresh marine grease in. Put it back together with the right torque and it glides now, no noise at all. Anyone else found that just cleaning and regreasing the cup threads fixes 90 percent of creaks?

2 comments

2 Comments

nancygrant1mo ago

Sometimes that creak just comes right back a week later after a regrease though.

keith_rodriguez1mo ago

Man, you nailed it. I did the exact same thing on my commuter bike last spring and it went from sounding like a haunted rocking chair to dead silent. People really sleep on how much crap builds up in those threads over time. A little elbow grease and some decent marine grease is honestly all most creaks need. I think a lot of folks go straight to buying new parts when the fix is just a cheap tool and 20 minutes of work. It's wild how many bikes out there are just one good cleaning away from being quiet.