I'm not sure if you are exactly right. Sven designed the bearings with his father - who has a background in mechanical engineering. So they didn't source a stock part. They are buying a made-to-spec part - *their* specs. The lube is an off the shelf product, but again, it's something that they source for this specific application. So mostly what you expected, but maybe a bit more elegant. They do in fact have an application for patent, the gist of which Sven has shared with me and which I have agreed to keep confidential.

I just got back from the UAE, but I hope that Sven and I can work up a better draft of his website in the next week or so with a lot of the good info from this thread.

In any case, to revise the previous answer. In the mighty HAWK vs Chris King challenge, I think the HAWK is worth a look. I won't pretend that Hawk has the reputation of Chris King - that sort of thing isn't built overnight. And there are some differences in how the part is manufactured, which may or may not matter to you. But I do believe after Sven's contribution to this thread and his emails to me that the Hawk is a company with some great ideas and some solid products. If you are looking for a new BB, I wouldn't say buy the Hawk over the King. But I don't know that I'd say definitely buy the King over the Hawk. At the very least, if you were considering a Hawk, I wouldn't try to talk you out of it; I'd say, "go for it."

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"Non est ad astra mollis e terris via." - Seneca | rappstar.com | FB - Rappstar Racing | IG - @jordanrapp

Why do you hate the Swiss? ;-)

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http://bikeblather.blogspot.com/

Tom,

I agree with you if a product is ABEC and / or ISO certified that things are in place to keep the quality up. I also agree with you that an ABEC 7 is "better" than ABEC 3 or 5, if you fly an airplane or a F1 car. Going into that industry you have a certified bearing AND (very important) a certified mold to put the bearing inn to.

In the case of a bicycle ABEC 3 is already to much for the industry. You are pressing a bearing into a cup that has no certification. You just have to make sure you have a good quality control when you press them into your cup and that's why at Hawk Racing all bearings are pressed in-house.

Just a thought about the tolerance on bearings for a bicycle.

Sven,
I think you're confusing me with Jordan...

I'm just participating in this thread by making smarta$$ comments to Jordan :-)

BTW, I agree with you about "overkill" on bearing ratings for bicycles...from a drag standpoint, I'm more interested in the seal configuration and making sure the preload is set correctly than the roundness/sphericity of the balls themselves...

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http://bikeblather.blogspot.com/

Tom,

I am glad we are on the same page on the bearings and now you understand why I started my whole research on bearings for the cycling industry.

Have a great weekend.

Sven

Its been 2 years, How is the Hawk BB holding up?

Yeah... I want to know as well

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Twitter

I installed a Hawk BB on my P2 ~ 18 months ago. (threaded BSC with Rotor crank)
I would guess I have ridden about 1,000 - 2,000 miles on that bike over that time period. Mostly in dry weather but not always. (I now that realize neither Training Peaks nor Garmin have a good way to generate a report for "mileage over time from a specific bike" even though TP tracks equipment usage!)

Within the past few weeks, I have noticed an increasing loud grinding sound that has started coming from the bottom bracket area (as others have described it, "like it is full of pebbles").

No complaints at all prior to this although I expected to get more time/mileage before failure. (I think I got about 4,000 from my prior Rotor SABB with Enduro ceramic bearings)

I am trying to find out (from Hawk) if I can replace the bearings or if I need to replace the entire BB.
If I have to replace the entire BB, I may go with an Enduro X-15 (which is what I have on my road bike) or a CK.

OK, so I got curious about these.
Their Folmer claim to fame is simply the lube they use.
They still don't seem to have this magical patent even after 8 years.

Reports from the field are no better or worse than other aftermarket BB manufacturers.

Anymore updates on how the Hawk BB has lasted? Just ordered one after big recommendations from cycling buddies I trust.

ABEC 3 bearings for a billion dollars.
Non existent patent.
Load of bullshit marketing.

Buy one and let us know how you go.

The biggest drag by far in any BB bearing is the seals.
If it spins super freely, it has shit seals and will not last in rainy weather.

Anyone who claims their bearings are so much better than any other ABEC rated bearing is lying and taking your money.

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Make Inside Out Sports your next online tri shop! http://www.insideoutsports.com/

I bought a set a few years back after the initial Friction Facts report (and they were half the price they are now). Did what it was supposed to for a few years. Now I have Wheels Manufacturing 6806 ACBs on almost all of my bikes. The only time I would be able to tell a difference is if one went bad.

Quite. Just buy a Hope BB with stainless steel bearings and enjoy it working properly for many, many years.

I'm a bit surprised at the level of hate that was directed at Hawk Racing in this thread. Friction Facts tested a bunch of BBs and Hawk was 0.01W from winning outright (I don't count the Gold Race BB, as that BB has no seals and is meant for indoor track use).


https://www.hawk-racing.com/...et-efficiency-study/


Independently tested with great results, money-back satisfaction guarantee, what's to hate again?

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Amateur recreational hobbyist cyclist
https://www.strava.com/athletes/337152
https://vimeo.com/user11846099

Surely you jest...

I too have used Hawk BBs and don't know about the hate... should I read the whole thread or can you tell the back story?

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Eric Reid AeroFit | Instagram Portfolio
Aerodynamic Retul Bike Fitting

“You are experiencing the criminal coverup of a foreign backed fascist hostile takeover of a mafia shakedown of an authoritarian religious slow motion coup. Persuade people to vote for Democracy.”

Read the thread, Hambini would be proud, it's fun.

BB's are not about low friction, they are about longevity.
1 watt extra drag over he easiest spinning for a cheap and easily available Shimano that lasts 60000km is a no brainer good option.

Is there any evidence that Hawk BB's have poor longevity?

Anyone? I'm not sure that's a true statement. ABEC ratings seem like a rating with a very narrow (if important) spec. Manufacturing tolerances are important. But they say nothing about the effectiveness of the seals, the quality of the materials used, that the balls and races work well as a system (e.g. the balls don't wear down the races quickly), that the bearings are easy to clean and maintain, that they handle off-axis loads well, etc.

Chris King uses angular contact bearings that are easy to clean and re-grease. That's, in my opinion, what makes them awesome. Not the ABEC-rating. Also the Wheels Mfg. angular contact bearings (Enduro-based, I think).

Materialistic waste aside, surely 3-4 Shimanos/SRAM BBs outlast a single Hawk or Chris King.
Or is that what this thread is discussing?

Maybe.. Particularly Shimano, which I don't have much experience since I've been on GXP-style cranks for over a decade now. But I was going through SRAM GXP BB's at a frustrating rate. Approximately every 6 months. The Wheels Mfg angular contact (Enduro) GXP BB I have in there is over two years now, and silky smooth. But even more than just the simple cost analysis, there's something satisfying about just having quality parts on a bike. That's what Chris King, for one, is all about - parts that can last the life of the bike, and are serviceable.

I have Hawk Racing BB’s and wheel bearing on both my road bike and TT bike for a little over 5 years and counting. Between the 2 bikes I put in 10- 12,000 miles per year. All of the Hawk components are still working as good as new. As a side note, the only head set I have owned that did not outlast my bike was a Chris King. That is not to say CK is not a great brand, sometimes sh## happens! I keep my bikes a long time, and if you maintain and clean your bikes, head sets rarely fail :-)

I have a Hawk BB on my old Felt B10 (now in consignment) that had close to 10K on the BB in all sorts of weather and performs like new. I put a Hawk BB on my LOOK road bike in January 2016 and it has been through all sorts of weather and with about 8K on it. I typically use my new Felt so the road bike is not seeing as much activity, but I do like the Hawk BB. Then I went and did the crazy thing and replaced the jockey wheels with Hawk.

I've kind of become a fan of Hawk Racing.
Previously it seemed like I had to put a new SRAM GXP BB on every year. So far the HAWK BBs have been a decent value because the are still functioning like new.