Review on 🚲 Shimano BSA Bottom Bracket (BB-MT800) for SLX and Deore XT by Eddie Gordon

If you read some of my reviews you might notice a fondness for older cycling tech. The XT bottom bracket in this test is based on newer technology that impressed me. Yes, I know these bearings have been around for a number of years, but up until recent bike purchases, all my bikes used square taper bottom brackets, which I felt was the end of all bottom bracket technology. Square bottom brackets are hefty pieces of steel and grease that can be seriously damaged. Hollow bottom brackets like the XT have a different design (you can find an exact explanation online). The big disadvantage of a square taper (for me at least) is the difficulty in finding an axle of the desired length. A direct swap is easy, but a fresh install may require multiple purchases to properly install the crank and chain. Since I ported the hollow Tech crank to my new frame, the XT bottom bracket made installation easy. The only difficulty is making sure you have the correct bottom bracket adapter (socket wrench) to screw it into a frame that is different sized by Shimano. So make sure you have an adapter. In my case, I made the mistake of assuming the Dura-Ace adapter I had would work, but it didn't, so I had to wait for it to arrive. properly marked. It is recommended to ensure that the screw that secures the plastic cable guide (on the underside of the sled body) has been loosened or removed prior to installation or removal. So time isn't necessary, but you'll find out pretty quickly if you encounter resistance. The bottom bracket contains spacers that can be helpful to properly align the chainline with the bottom bracket, which the road versions (the Dura-Ace at least) don't seem to have. Note that I use it in a touring frame, albeit with a double Shimano 105 crankset. I've had no complaints in a few months of use. If you need a new bottom bracket of this type, it's highly recommended (and relatively cheap).