Crankset

Parts
[edit] Cranks
The two cranks, one on each side and usually mounted 180 out of phase, connect the bottom bracket axle to the pedals.

[edit] Sizes

A left crank attached with a cotter. Cranks can ary in len!th from 1"0 mm to 18" mm to accommodate different si#ed riders,len!ths for adult riders ran!e from 1$" mm to 1%%." mm. &eople with a shorter inseam 'inside le! measurement( usually use shorter cranks, while those with lon!er inseams use lon!er cranks. )arious formulae exist to calculate appropriate crank len!th for arious riders, howe er, the len!th an indi idual cyclist feels most comfortable with may ary from this. *enerally the same rider will prefer shorter cranks for fast cadence acti ities such as time triallin! and track racin!, while lon!er cranks are preferred for lower cadence use such as mountain bikin!. +ost ma,or manufacturers offer crank len!ths from 1$"mm to 180mm in -." mm increments.

[edit] Materials
Cranks are constructed of either an aluminum alloy, titanium, carbon fiber, chromoly steel, or some less expensi e steel. Tubular steel cranks 'such as Tio!a.s /e ol er( can be li!ht and ery stron!, are usually found on bmx bikes, and are slowly findin! their way to mountain bikes '0irt ,umpin! and 1rban assault( . Aluminum cranks may be cast, hot for!ed or cold for!ed '2cold2 in this context means the billet from which the crank is to be made is heated to a specified temperature well below the meltin! point, not room temperature(. Cold for!in! !i es the metal additional stren!th, and the cranks can therefore be made li!hter without increasin! the risk of breaka!e. 3himano 24ollowtech2 aluminum cranks are made by for!in! the main arms around a hard steel insert which is then withdrawn, lea in! an internal oid to sa e wei!ht. They are then welded up before final machinin!.

[edit] Attachments
[edit] To the bottom bracket

A one5piece crank as seen from the ri!ht side. There are a ariety of methods used to attach the crank to the bottom bracket axle or spindle.

6lder crank use a wed!e5shaped pin, called a cotter pin, for attachment to the bottom bracket. 7ewer cranks slide onto o a s8uare tapered axle 'with one of at least two non5interchan!eable dimensions '3himano and Compa!nolo ha e competin! standards in s8uare taper, thou!h most parts made by other manufacturers are to the 3himano standard(, and with one of two orientations( o a hexa!onal tapered axle 'Tune components cranks are an example( o splined 'with one of at least two non5interchan!eable specifications, the 9393 spline bein! the most common splined standard as this standard was decided on and supported by se eral companies. Companies with their own standard for splines include 3himano '6ctalink 5 - standards, one for :T/, one for e erythin! else(, Tru ati e and 0+/( bottom bracket axle and are held in place by a bolt installed into the axle of the bottom bracket. ; en newer desi!ns ha e the bottom bracket axle, usually hollow and lar!er diameter than is possible for <<.s with bearin!s held inside the << shell of a bike frame, for reduced wei!ht and increased stiffness, permanently attached to the ri!ht crank '=3himano> and others( or the left crank '/ace ?ace(. The left crank slides onto a spline and is ti!htened with one or more pinch bolts '3himano( or is pressed onto a spline by a bolt on the << axle axis '/ace ?ace(. The latest from Campa!nolo, called 1ltra5Tor8ueT+, has each crank permanently attached to one half of the axle 'called semi5axles( which then ,oin in the middle of the bottom bracket with a 4irth ,oint and a bolt.="> Certain companies such as Cannondale ha e made their own completely proprietary << standards re8uirin! chan!es in the << shell of the bicycle frame in order to accommodate the bottom bracket@crank desi!n. ?inally, many children.s bikes and older, or less5expensi e bikes ha e one5piece cranks where the two cranks and bottom bracket spindle are for!ed as one piece of steel.

3ee the bottom bracket article for more details.

[edit] To the pedals

?racture of an aluminium crank. <ri!htA brittle fracture. 0arkA fati!ue fracture. Crank arms ha e a threaded hole 'or 2eye2( at their outboard end to accommodate the pedal spindle. Adult or multi5piece cranks ha e a B@1$ inch hole with -0 T&9 'a combination that appears to be uni8ue to this application(. 6ne5piece or children.s cranks use a 1@- inch hole. 3ome crank on children.s bikes ha e more than one pedal hole so that the pedal can be mo ed to accommodate !rowth. The ri!ht5side 'usually the chain side( hole is ri!ht5hand threaded, and the left5side hole is left5hand 're erse( threaded to help pre ent it from becomin! unthreaded by an effect called precession. &edal spindles are hard steel, and !radually fret and erode the crankarm where the two meet. This can e entually be a cause of crank breaka!e, which commonly occurs at the pedal eye. 3ome manufacturers ad ise the use of a thin steel washer between the pedal and crank, but this is ineffecti e because the hard washer frets a!ainst the crank instead. A solution, su!!ested by Cobst <randt, is to use a D" de!ree taper at the surface where crank and pedal meet, as this would eliminate precession5induced frettin! and loosenin! 'it is already done for most automobile lu! nuts for the latter reason(. 4owe er, this would re8uire manufacturers to chan!e a well5established standard which currently allows most pedals to be fitted to most cranks.

[edit] Spider
6n older styles, the spiderEthe multi5armed piece that connects the chainrin! to the bottom bracket axleEwas a separate piece from the crank arm. The most common modern cranks ha e an inte!rated spider on the dri e5side crank arm. 4owe er, +iddleburn, TA, and 3urly currently produce cranks with separate detachable spiders, enablin! a wide ariety of chainrin! patterns to be used with the same cranks. 3piders usually ha e D or " arms, althou!h some models ha e had as few as F and many as 10 arms with $ ha in! been popular in the past.=$>

[edit] Bolt circle diameter (BCD)

The holes on the spider arms used for attachin! chainrin!s can ha e a ariety of dimensions, referred to as the bolt circle diameter, commonly abbre iated as <C0. Cranks desi!ned to mount one or two chainrin!s will almost always use a sin!le bolt circle diameter. Cranks desi!ned to mount three chainrin!s will almost always use two different bolt circle diametersG the lar!er to mount the two outer rin!s and the smaller to mount the inner rin!. +ost modern two5chainrin! cranks use either a 110mm or 1F0mm bolt circle diameter. <olt circle diameters of common 2named2 cranksA

Track 1DD <C0 /oad double 1F0 <C0 '3himano and others(, or 1F" 'Campa!nolo( /oad triple 1F0@%D <C0 '3himano and others(, or 1F"@%D <C0 'Campa!nolo( Compact@tourin! double 110 <C0 or 'Campa!nolo carbon Dx110@1x11F <C0( Compact@tourin! triple 110@%D <C0 +ountain bike 'D arm( 10D@$D <C0 +ountain bike '" arm standard( 110@%D <C0 +ountain bike '" arm compact( BD@"8 <C0 ?or an extensi e list of bolt circle diameters and their applications, see 3heldon <rown.s <olt Circle 0iameter Crib 3heet.

[edit] Chainrings

A 3himano chainrin!, detached from ri!ht crank Chainrings 'also called 2chainwheels2 or 2sprockets2, althou!h sprocket is used this way mostly in the <+: community=F>( en!a!e the chain to transfer power to the 'usually rear( wheel. They usually ha e teeth spaced to en!a!e e ery link of the chain as it passes o erG howe er, in the past, some desi!ns 'called skip5tooth or inch5pitch( ha e had one tooth for e ery other link of the chain.=%>

[edit] Sizes
<y con ention, the lar!est chainrin! is outboard and the smallest is inboard. Chainrin!s ary in si#e from as few as -0 teeth to as many as "" or more. Chainrin!s also come in se eral widthsA

F@1$2 for old5time bikes 'especially skip5tooth or inch5pitch(, hea y duty <+:, Horksman, and exercise bikes 1@82 for track, <+:, cruiser bikes, one5speed, three5speeds, and the rare derailleur bike. F@F-2 for road, hybrid, mtb bikes, sin!le5speed and "5, $5, %5speed freewheels. "@$D2 for any bike with B5 or 105speed cassettes

[edit] Materials
Chainrin!s are constructed of either an aluminum alloy, titanium, steel, or carbon fiber.

[edit] Construction
Cheaper cranksets may ha e the chainrin!s welded or ri eted directly to the crank arm or spider. +ore expensi e sets ha e the chainrin!s bolted on so that they can be replaced if worn or dama!ed or to pro ide different !earin!. /eplacement chainrin!s must be chosen with a bolt5hole count and spacin! that matches the spider. Chainrin!s desi!ned for use with multi5chainrin! crank arms may ha e ramps or pins to aid in shiftin!. The middle chain rin!, in the case of a triple crankset, usually has the most shapin! to aid in shiftin! up and down. The smallest chainrin! usually has the least, if any shapin!.

[edit] Variations
[edit] Tandem cranksets
6n tandem bicycles the pedallin! contribution of both riders is often combined and coordinated by the crank arms. There may be a second set of chain rin!s, often on the opposite side from the re!ular dri e train, one on each crank set and connected by a separate chain. The most common implementation has both cyclists pedalin! at exactly the same pace and usually in phase, althou!h it is possible to confi!ure the system for out5of5phase pedalin!. The most common tandem crankset is a set of four cranks. <oth left cranks ha e spiders and chainrin!s to be connected by a timin! chain, and only one of the ri!ht cranks has a spider for the dri e chain. There are tandem cranksets a ailable called independent pedalin! system cranksets, which allow each cyclist to pedal, or not, at their own pace.=8>

[edit] Chain guards

3ome cranksets incorporate a chain !uard that consists simply of a plastic or metal rin! outboard of the lar!est chainrin! and sli!htly lar!er in diameter to help pre ent the chain from touchin! or catchin! clothin!. <icycles that are !oin! to be used in abusi e applications, such as freeride and <+:, will often incorporate a ery hea y5duty chain !uard that is desi!ned to protect the chainrin!s from physical dama!e caused by impact with fixed ob,ectsG also called .bash!uards., these commonly replace a third 'lar!e( chainrin!.

[edit] Freewheeling cranksets

3ome cranksets ha e been produced that incorporate a ratchetin! mechanism to accommodate coastin!. 9n this case, the chain continues to rotate with the rear wheel when the rider stops pedalin!. The ultimate !oal of freewheelin! cranks is to allow the rider to shift the chain while coastin!. 3himano.s discontinued ?? system '?ront ?reewheelin!( is one of the more commonly seen examples, althou!h it was one case of a solution in search of a problem.

[edit] Left-side-drive
This confi!uration consists of a left crank arm with a spider and chainrin!, and a ri!ht crank arm without a spider. This is exactly the opposite of a normal confi!uration. The special crankset must also be paired with a rear hub that can be dri en from the left side. These hubs typically ha e left hand threads for a special freewheel, which is also threaded left hand and ratchets the opposite direction of a normal freewheel. 9f the freewheel and hub were threaded with ri!ht hand threads, the tor8ue applied by pedalin! would loosen and unthread the freewheel from the hub. Ieft5side5dri e is sometimes done with a fixed !ear dri etrain. <ecause a correctly installed track co! can not be loosened from the hub no matter which way tor8ue is applied, it can be used for left5 side dri e without re8uirin! special left hand threaded parts. 7ote that a normal ri!ht5side5dri e crankset can not be installed backwards to create a left5side5 dri e bicycle because the threaded pedal holes at the end of the crank arms would be backwards of normal. ; en thou!h some kinds of pedals could simply be installed on the wron! sides to !et around this issue, precession would tend to loosen them o er time, causin! the pedals to become detached and@or dama!in! the pedal threadin! in the crank arms.

[edit] Independent crank arms

At least one manufacturer offers a crankset in which the crank arms may rotate independently. This is supposed to aid in trainin! by re8uirin! each le! to mo e its own pedal in a full circle. 3ee &owerCranks. A different system mounts the chainrin!s on a bearin! mounted eccentric to the << with linka!es connectin! the ri!ht and left cranks '&i oted around the << axis( to the chainrin!s. The cranks can turn independently to each other on the << axle. The purpose of this is to pull the upward crank past the top dead centre point before the lower crank reaches bottom dead centre, eliminatin! the dead centre in the pedallin! action of normal cranks. 3ee /otor Cranks.

[edit] Ovoid chainrings

3e eral manufacturers ha e tried non5round chainrin!s, such as 3himano.s <iopace and /otor.s J5 /in!s=1>. These are desi!ned to pro ide aryin! le era!e at different points in the pedal stroke, effecti ely chan!in! the !ear ratio at different an!les of rotation to pro ide some type of ad anta!e.

[edit] Compact crankset

9n the context of mountain bikin! the term compact crankset refers to smaller triple cranksets, !i in! a small benefit in wei!ht at the expense of increased wear and also !i in! the bike better clearance o er obstacles. Typical ratios would be --@F-@DD teeth as opposed to -8@F8@D8 or -D@F$@D$ teeth. These would be used with smaller cassettes '*enerally cassettes are a ailable with 11 tooth minimum !ear si#es for compact chainsets while standard chainsets were desi!ned for cassettes with a 1F or 1D tooth top !ear(, !i in! the same o erall ratio. Compact chainrin!s are the dominant standard for mountain bike cranks for the past decade or so. 9n the context of road cyclin!, compact drivetrain typically refers to double cranksets with a smaller 'usually 110mm( bolt cycle diameter than the standard 1F0mm or Campa!nolo.s 1F"mm. As of -00$, all of the ma,or component manufacturers such as 3himano and Campa!nolo offer compact cranks in their midran!e and hi!h5end product lines. The compact crankset pro ides a

compromise between the standard road double crankset 'with FB@"- or FB@"F tooth chainrin!s( and the road triple 'with F0@D-@"- or F0@FB@"F tooth chainrin!s(. The compact crankset has two chainrin!s and typical ratios are FD@D8, FD@"0 and F$@"0. This pro ides nearly the same lower !ear ratios as a triple but without the need for a third chainrin!, a triple front derailleur and a lon! ca!e rear derailleur. 7ote that both 3himano and Campa!nolo recommend and sell front derailleurs specifically desi!ned for compact cranksets, claimin! better shiftin!. Compact !earin! is not necessarily lower than standard !earin! if cassettes with smaller sprockets 'such as 115-F( are used. A hi!h !ear of "0x11 on a compact dri echain is actually sli!htly hi!her than the "Fx1- of a standard set. Compact !earin! usually has a lar!e percenta!e ,ump between the two chainrin!s. 9n balance, it may also allow small ,umps in the rear by allowin! a closer ratio cassette to be used, except for the BK ,ump at the hi!h end between the 11 and 1- tooth sprockets.

[edit] ent crankarms

+arketed and known by a ariety of names 'L5cranks, &.+.& cranks, etc.( non5strai!ht crank arms ha e been introduced se eral times. 4owe er, 2as lon! as the distance from crank axle to pedal is fixed, there is no pedalin! ad anta!e in usin! bent crank arms2.=B> &ossible differences from comparable strai!ht crank arms include more wei!ht and more flex.
Bolt Pattern

Q: What is the "Bolt Pattern"? A: A Bolt Pattern has two main components:

Lug !attern" The lug pattern describes the number of bolts on the wheel. Most cars are 4- or 5-lug, while trucks and SUV s are 5-, !- or "-lug.

olt Circle #iameter" The bolt circle diameter #or pitch circle diameter - $%&' measures the diameter #in millimeters or inches' of the imaginar( circle on which the bolt are placed.

Bolt circle diameters can be listed in either inches or millimeters. Following industry trends, all bolt patterns on this site are listed in millimeters. ere is a list o! common bolt patterns and their con"ersions:
olt !attern Conversions mm inches

$-%&& 4)*.+4 '-%&& 5)*.+4 $-%&( $)$*+' '-%&( ')$*+' $-%%& 4)4.** '-%%& 5)4.** '-%%+ 5)4.4, $-%%$*, $)$*' '-%%$*, ')$*' !-,,4.* -)$*' '-%%' 5)4.5'-%+& 5)4..5-,-/.. ')$*.' 5-,-. ')' !-,-. -)' '-%,& 5)5.,'-%,' 5)5.* --%,' !)5.* 5-,*+.. ')'*' !-,*+.. -)'*' "-,!5., ()-*' (-%.& ")!.!+ /old 0 common reference

Chainring Bolt Circle Diameter Measurement

It's important to have the correct olt circle diameter (BCD) !hen orderin" replacement chainrin"s# $se the dia"ram and chart elo! to determine %our BCD&

Measure the distance in millimeters et!een t!o ad'acent chainrin" mountin" holes (center to center)# $se this distance (x) to (ind %our BCD in the chart elo!& Distance (x)
# hole chainrings

BCD #&mm '%mm (%mm **+mm *,,mm *$+mm *$#mm *%%mm #&mm )%mm )&mm *+%mm

$%.$mm %$.#mm ##.%mm )%.'mm '*.#mm ').%mm '(.#mm &%.)mm

% hole chainrings

%*.+mm %#.$mm %&.*mm '$.)mm

'(.,mm

**,mm

What do I need to know to buy new chainrings for my crankset

1irst, check (our chainrings #sometimes called 2chainwheels2' to make sure the( need replacing. 3n general, the rings (ou ride in most wear 4uickest and usuall( the( re also the smaller rings. So check those regularl(. To do this, simpl( inspect the teeth shapes closel(. 5ecause the smaller rings wear fastest, there s a good chance the large rings will be in good condition, which allows comparing the teeth on the large ring with the teeth on the ring (ou think ma( be worn out. 3f the teeth look smaller and hooked, it s a sign that the chainring is worn out. 0owever1 don2t worr3 if a few teeth on each side of the chainring appear smaller than the others* On some rings the32re actuall3 made that wa3 to act as 4shifting gates14 an innovation that improves shifting* 6s long as the ma7orit( of the teeth look full and resemble the ones on a good chainring, the ring is oka(. Sometimes (ou ll feel a worn chainring after (ou 8e replaced the chain. There will be a roughness in the pedal stroke because the new chain won t mesh perfectl( with the old teeth. 6nother s(mptom of a worn chainring, usuall( on a mountain bike, is something called 2chain suck.2 This is when the chain gets pulled up b( the worn teeth on the ring while (ou re pedaling and gets 7ammed between the chainring and the frame. Usuall(, replacing the ring sol8es the problem. 3n an e)treme case, a completel( worn-out ring can e8en allow the chain to skip when (ou re pedaling hard or climbing. 9hat happens is the teeth can no longer hold the chain under pressure and the links actuall( lift up and o8er the teeth creating an anno(ing and dangerous hiccup in (our pedaling, which is best described as 2skipping2 for the wa( the pedals 7erk forward when the chain slips. 3t s also possible to ruin a chainring b( bending it while tr(ing to ride o8er a log or railroad tracks. :r e8en b( getting (our pants caught in the teeth. 3f (ou re not sure whether (our chainring#s' needs replacing, we re happ( to take a look and let (ou know. %hainrings 8ar( in design and si;e. <ou can 7ust bring (our old one in for us to match up, or if (ou d rather, (ou can look at (our chainring and gi8e us the following details= The brand and model and t(pe, such as Shimano #brand' >T #model' +-speed #t(pe'. The number of teeth on the chainring #usuall( stamped on the side? or (ou can simpl( count'. The number of chainring bolts #usuall( 4 or 5'. The 5olt %ircle &iameter #5%&'. This is the measurement of an imaginar( circle on the chainring bisecting all the bolt holes. The best wa( to determine this is b( measuring the e)act distance #center to center' between - ad7acent bolt holes. Then find that number on the correct chart /elow to determine the 5%& for (our chainring. C# chart for '-/olt chainrings 5olt to 5olt #measure center to center'
*-.+mm

5olt %ircle &iameter #5%&'

5!mm

*4.*mm

5"mm

4*.5mm

.4mm

55.4mm

+4mm

!4..mm

,,/mm

.!.4mm

,*/mm

.+.5mm

,*5mm

"4.!mm

,44mm

C# chart for $-/olt chainring 5olt to 5olt #measure center to center'

4,mm

5olt %ircle &iameter #5%&'

5"mm

45.*mm

!4mm

4".,mm

!"mm

.*.!mm

,/4mm

.+.-mm

,,-mm

olt Circle #iameter 5 *C*#*6

6n a crank set, the diameter of the circle formed by the stack bolts. 3tandard double chainwheel sets use 1F0 mm or 110 mm diameters. +odern triple chainwheel sets ha e two diameters, a lar!e one for the two outer chainrin!s, and a smaller diameter, with a separate set of bolts, for the !ranny rin!. ?ull5si#e triples usually use 110 mm@%D mm, or 1F0 mm@%D mm for newer 2road triples.2 Campa!nolo uses 1F" mm@%D mm. Compact triples commonly use BD mm@"8 mm.

Some crank si7es"

2C5C2 is the distance between ad,acent stack bolts. This is easier to measure directly than the actual <olt Circle 0iameter.

+easurin! <C0A This 110 mm <C0 rin! measures $D.% mm center5to5center. +ultiplyin! this dimension by 1.% will !i e you the actual <C0 for a " bolt chainrin!. 1se 1.D for D bolt chainrin!s

) Bolt Cranks&
BCD (mm) ,), ,-,0) ,03 ,4. ,44 ,,. ,,/ ,,3 1Smallest *in" --, 01 0. 0. 0. 0/ 0) 00 41 Center+ Center (mm) ..#. .-#/ 21#) 2/#2)#4 2,#2 /1#/.#4 /-#2 ))#Application )ery old Campa!nolo standard 'pre .$%( '6bsolete( 6ld Campa!nolo standard, still used for track applications. Current Campa!nolo standard 3tandard /oad double and triple 'outer -( 7er ar '6bsolete( 3tron!li!ht BF, others '6bsolete( 6fme!a, 3/ '6bsolete( 6ld Campa!nolo '6bsolete( Tourin! double, standard triple outer Compact triple outer

14 ./ 2). )/

03 4. 443 43

)0#0 )3#) -0#) 0-#0 04#1

3himano 0ura5Ace triple inner. 3tron!li!ht BB, some 3/ triples. '6bsolete( 3tandard '2full5si#ed2( triple inner, used with 110 mm, 1F0 mm or 1F" mm rin!s. Compact !ranny 3un Tour Compact !ranny '6bsolete(

- Bolt Cranks&
BCD (mm) ,-/ ,,4 ,3/. /Smallest *in" -004 44 44 Center+ Center (mm) ,30#4 21#4 20#/ -.#, -)#0 Application 3himano :T/ +B$0 4ollowtech D5arm outer 3himano :T/ +B"0, +B"- D5arm middle@outer 3himano :T/ +B$0, :T, I: D5arm outer 3himano :T/ +B"0, +B"- D5arm inner 3himano :T/ +B$0, :T, I: D5arm inner