Ceramic Bearing Vs Steel Cycling

Lubricants vary greatly in viscosity thickness finding varying points in a trade off between bearing protection and lower friction.

Ceramic bearing vs steel cycling.

This is mostly due to the additional time spent to perfect a quality ceramic ball. Internal bearing construction ceramic bearings are not 100 ceramic. Cost of purchase for ceramic and steel bearings. The influx of ceramic bearing development into the bike industry sparked needed focus on reducing rolling friction in bearings.

The ceramic balls are often silicon nitride or equivalent. They use ceramic balls and usually a steel inner and outer race. Hybrid ceramic vs steel bearings. Ceramic vs steel bearing bb for durability.

Ceramic bearings are often represented as the ultimate way to minimize rolling friction on your bike. However the reality of why some bearing designs are faster than others doesn t always align with what is presented. Is this the first time it s happened or is this a reoccurring problem. Ceramic bearings are in actual fact hybrid.

This article to try to assist with this fun little area. Steel bearings are commodity items that are composed of hardened steel balls and a steel inner and outer. On the one hand much of the cycling public associates bearing upgrades with going ceramic and on the other hand there is a healthy chunk of cyclists from all demographics who believe ceramic bearings are just marketing hype and a waste of money. Next there is the lubricant.

Most cycling bearings feature a steel race though some do use a ceramic race which we will briefly touch on later.