Cranks, Cranksets and bearings Oh MY!

[BAD_S197]

Bike build parts 3;

I'm looking for a crankset but don't know where to start. I'm assumeing a crankset comes with the two arms the gears and the bearing cassette/axle.

Are cranks pretty much standard for mountain bikes?

If I get this one, would it be sufficient and contain all the parts necessary?

http://www.jensonusa.com/store/produ...ankset+05.aspx

Is RaceFace a decent brand?

Would anyone suggest spending a little more and if so, what brand, model?

thanks
jake

[dstepper]

Originally Posted by BAD_S197

Are cranks pretty much standard for mountain bikes?

No...start here
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cranks.html
Dean

[Pho'dUp]

I like Shimano myself. If you look around you can probably get some Shimano LXs for $20-30 dollars more and I think it's totally worth it.

[BAD_S197]

Dean

You came through with good info when I first jumped on this forum almost a year ago and whoop there it is...

thanks again

[el_d00der1n0]

Look in the market place. A few are selling cranks at pretty good prices. I think .8down had some brand new for like 75 bones.

[dstepper]

After doing some research and getting totally confused, post up what frame you have and some of the cranks and bottom brackets you think may work. You can also call the frame manufacture and ask them what they suggest using.

Me, I have old school square taper bottom brackets on compact 5 arm 175mm and 180mm cranks. 5 arm spiders gives you better choices in chainring sizes.

By far my cranks of choice
http://www.mtbtandems.com/Middleburn.html

Bottom Bracket of choice
http://www.philwood.com/BB-Stainless%20Steel.htm

Note: Phil Wood is now make stainless steel outboard bearing bottom brackets.

Dean

[BAD_S197]

I have this frame and have no clue as to what would work. Research is just making it worse.. haha

[Rob]

Get '08 Shimano XT brakes. If they are not in your budget, get '07 Shimano XT brakes. Other good choices are XTR of couse, or the LX or Hone cranksets(with outboard BB)

As long as you have a 68mm or 73mm bottom bracket the XT cranks will fit.

If it was me personally, I would get the '08 Shimano XT crankset, an Action-Tec 20T granny gear, an E13 Supercharger Bashguard and an Aj's frame guard.

http://www.ajsbikeparts.com/web-AJBIKEPARTs/AJ's%20Frameguard.htm

This thing will make sure that you never drop your chain off the granny gear and onto the BB. On very fast rocky downhills, the chain can come off the middle gear and onto the bb. The AJ's frame guard stops it and when you start to pedal again the chain goes right back onto the chainring. The frame guard is installed before you put the bottom bracket in. It replaces one of the spacers.

With the bashguard, you'll never have the chain fall off the other way either.

The Action Tec chainrings are made of Titanium and offer different choices for amount of teeth.

The Shimano XT Crankset is very stiff and has a very good design. Unlike Raceface cranks where they only have one bolt holding the non-drive side crank arm to the spindle, the Shimano uses an outer screw/cap to tension then there are two pinch bolts that bolt the crank onto the spindle.

They're proven to be very reliable and shift very well. I've heard and seen quite a bit of problems with Race Face and Truvative cranks where just one bolt is what everything is held together with.

[schleppp]

Goto www.chainreactioncycles.com

New 08 XT cranks for 162.00 dollars plus shipping of about 20 bucks I think. My brother just bought me a set from them. You won't find a better deal anywhere! If you spend over 300 dollars shipping is free!

[L8 APEKS]

I know some people like to doll-up their bikes with aftermarket brands, but like many have already said, Shimano really does make good cranks. I love my XT's.

I've ridden Race Face, Kooka, Cooks Bros. Kookas and Cooks dont' seem as stiff as the XT; but then, they were older so maybe this was just the result of an earlier design. Hard to say.

I had problems stripping the Race Face arms, but again, this could have been because a bolt backed off.

Regardless, the XT's have been trouble-free and are pretty stiff. Can't go wrong IMHO.

[Bryguy17]

FWIW i prefer shimano's for a few reasons.

1. i ride 08 XT on my bike, and they are majorly stiff compared to other cranks i've ridden (admittedly not much, but i've played around with raceface and fsa a bit)

2. for maintenance purposes, shimano is better because the crank-spindle interface does not wear out when the cranks are removed. Race face, for example, uses a spindle that is essentially an isis spindle on the non-drive side. This means that it relies on an interference fit to keep the crank centered and in place. This interference fit will break down a little everytime the crank arm is taken off, until you're left with an unusable crankset. Shimano uses splines and pinch bolts, which do not wear out like this. You just need to make sure the pinch bolts are torques correctly and all is good.

3. I have heard that shimano tends to pack their bearings a bit better than other companies like raceface or fsa. This will give you a longer laster bottom bracket, which is always nice

[Waldo]

+1 for Shimano XT's, or if you're on a budget the LX's are a great choice.

[Shu]

Originally Posted by BAD_S197

I have this frame and have no clue as to what would work. Research is just making it worse.. haha

Whatever you chose go w/ Bling Polished....

[hobie]

i want that 20 tooth gear

[theclayster]

i am selling some cranks, some basic shimano cranks(175 and square taper) with a shimano internal BB for $10 and also selling another crankset, truvativ cranks(175 and ISIS) with a racerace evolve internal BB for $50. both in great condition.

[dstepper]

Originally Posted by theclayster

i am selling some cranks, some basic shimano cranks(175 and square taper) with a shimano internal BB for $10 and also selling another crankset, truvativ cranks(175 and ISIS) with a racerace evolve internal BB for $50. both in great condition.

4 or 5 arm spider?

Dean

[theclayster]

Originally Posted by dstepper

4 or 5 arm spider?

Dean

4 bolt

[richie_rich]

I have FSA cranks on two mountain bikes and my (eek!) road bike...I haven't had any problems...3+ years old.

[Dizle]

Can i rebuild the bearing assembly on the XT's? And the crankset comes with the bb correct?

[Rob]

Originally Posted by Dizle

Can i rebuild the bearing assembly on the XT's? And the crankset comes with the bb correct?

Here's a writeup on doing that.

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=136309

Yes, the crankset comes with the BB.