Form vs. Function

[ChUkKy]

Lately Ive seen quite a few comments about certain brands being crap, namely Crank Brothers commonly known on the Hub as Crap Brothers...

 

Now my question is, are their products really that crap?

 

Admittedly Crank Brothers products do look good but performance wise are they not there with the rest of them or what is it that would make them crap?

 

Heres an example, I have a set of Candy SL pedals and love them, I havent had any issues with them at all but are they crap (in hubbers opinion)?

If they are crap, what would be a better alternative for me to consider when replacement time comes (I do not like SPD's)?

 

I would like to buy at some stage a seatpost, stem and bars which function well and also look good, Crank brothers was an option intil I saw the comments and had to ask the hub world... Could it be the value for money aspect with their products?

[Guest]

I also have CB all over my GT - that's the way it came out...handlebars, seat post, pedals... and I must admit I have absolutely no complaints about any of them, in fact, I would like to get new EggBeaters....also dislike SPDs.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

I think the Crap Brothers tag came out in conjunction with the first (and subsequent) Joplins. They have a penchant for failing, repeatedly. Blown seals, leaking posts, (excessive) play in the posts and so on. They may or may not have sorted the issues out, but insofar as the tagline goes, that's the product that pretty much screwed them over ito image.

 

Saying that, I would like a pair of mallets for my bikes.

[patches]

my first Crank Brothers experience...

 

...saw a headset on CRC marked down form R600 to R200. I applied shopper's-logic and said "it must be good if it went for R600".

 

The description also said it had "sealed bearings".

 

When I received this very eye-pleasing headset I saw that the bearings were not what I thouhgt they were. Granted this was my assumption that the headset ran sealed cartidge bearings like 90% of the decent headsets out there. But nope, on a Crank Brothers headset that means a bumch of loose ball bearings with a flimsy polymer seal.

 

Then came the installation. Whilst installing the headest (not my favourite task) it strted going in slightly skew. So I gently tapped it out to set it straight again. As I did this it pee'd dozens of tiny ball bearings all over my garage floor. I then proceeded to remove the cups, and throw in the bin.

 

I know MissionS has had a similar experience with a CB headset.

 

Now take some of their other products as an example. Ask any Joplin owner if they'd buy another. The new Kronolog didn't even last a test period. And I've heard quite a few complaints about their fancy looking wheels.

 

So yes... their stuff looks cool. And maybe their pedals are great (I only have their 50/50s, no clips, but still not my choice of pedal in that price range). But in my uneducated opinion... CB is overpriced and poorly designed/manufactured

Edited July 10, 2012 by patches

[Guest Omega Man]

I've got a Joplin and I've had 50/50's and both products absolutely suck in my opinion. The joplin leaks and has more play than the Belagio.

 

The 50/50's just fell apart all the time.

 

If you are happy with their stuff then sweet. But based on my experience I will never buy another product with the words Crank and Bros written on it ever again.

[ChUkKy]

 

Now take some of their other products as an example. Ask any Joplin owner if they'd buy another. The new Kronolog didn't even last a test period. And I've heard quite a few complaints about their fancy looking wheels.

 

So yes... their stuff looks cool. And maybe their pedals are great (I only have their 50/50s, no clips, but still not my choice of pedal in that price range). But in my uneducated opinion... CB is overpriced and poorly designed/manufactured

 

Shot for the insight, would this apply to your run of the mill seatpost like their cobalt as well as the Iodine bars and stem... As I said before they look good but if the general concensus is that they're *** I dont want to waste bucks on it, Id rather look at something else.

[Hairy]

I had a set of Candy pedals and they were lovely to use in muddy conditions vs an SPD, but they only last a tenth (if that) of the lifespan of a set of SPD's.

 

You can of course buy the replacement bearings / service kit and rebuild your pedals, but I want something that works and does not need to be serviced often or even ever .... here the SPD's win hands down!

[Iron]

+1 Shimano XTR spd's , are the bussiness got them on all my bikes the they never need looking at .

 

CB on the other hand need more tlc than a lefty fork .

Edited July 10, 2012 by Iron

[NotSoBigBen]

I can understand the concern on components that have parts and moving stuff etc. but surely handlebars/stem/seat post 'generally' don't fall apart or rather 'malfunction' or do they

[patches]

Shot for the insight, would this apply to your run of the mill seatpost like their cobalt as well as the Iodine bars and stem... As I said before they look good but if the general concensus is that they're *** I dont want to waste bucks on it, Id rather look at something else.

 

Well, seeing as how the bars are just a piece of bent pipe and have no moving parts... they should be ok?! Maybe read some reviews from owners. Becasue the last thing you want is for bars to snap when riding rough terrian. As for the seatpost and stem. Probably also ok as they are relatively simple objects.

[NotSoBigBen]

Well, seeing as how the bars are just a piece of bent pipe and have no moving parts... they should be ok?! Maybe read some reviews from owners. Becasue the last thing you want is for bars to snap when riding rough terrian. As for the seatpost and stem. Probably also ok as they are relatively simple objects.

 

That's what I said