The Best Road Crank is...

[carlo_sg]

Found this article, very interesting...

Could settle some arguments, or even start some.

Cranksets were basically tested for weight & stiffness.

 

 

http://www.fairwheelbikes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5361

[Minion]

 

Interesting test.

 

Red, Dura-Ace, Record - they're all in the same ballpark according to the stiffness results.

What would also be quite interesting is to see a test performed across brand ranges e.g. compare Record vs. Chorus vs. Centaur or Dura-Ace vs. Ultegra vs. 105.

 

Edman2008-08-25 11:48:21

[mbaymike]

that would be quite interesting edman....

[singletrackmind]

That pink tune crank looks really nice but would never use it, sounds like a total waist of cash. Happy with my DA right now

[swift]

Interesting that they chose not to go with the FSA K-Force Light (hollow tech) cranks. I ride these and they are hands donw the best i have ever used... rated better than the FSA SLK cranks tested here.

[Christie]

I would like to see where the Cannondale Hollowgram SI rates.

[greatwhite]

be interesting to see how the new 7900 crank stacks up against the others since it is supposedly ligher and stiffer than its predesessor tested here.

[fandacious]

That pink tune crank looks really nice but would never use it' date=' sounds like a total waist of cash. Happy with my DA right now [/quote']

 

dont show it to pantani... or the gold one @ the bottom

[kingjreid]

 

not a chance!!!

 

 

these cranks are the best on the world!!!

 

EC90 Cranks  How do you make the best carbon crank in the world? Start by thoroughly testing every high-end crank currently available for ultimate strength, fatigue strength and stiffness. Then hand those numbers to a world class team of engineers and designers, with one simple goal: make a better one. To do this we started with our CNT Composite, the most advanced carbon fiber material in the bike industry today, and developed our own blend of foam core molding, bladder molding and compression molding to create a highly refined carbon structure, and a superior level of performance in a carbon crank. It doesn't get any better than this.

 

kingjreid2008-08-25 12:43:38

[turtlek]

thats very interesting i would however like to see the differences of all the lower end cranks in the different brands AKa ultegra and chorus as edman also commented!!!

[Christie]

turtlek, the test was also discussed on weightweenies. One of the guys posted data from the Tour magazine crank test as well, which included ultegra & chorus, the thread is very interesting:

http://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=45148&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=45

One of the guys also found an error in the way the guy who did the test calculated his stiffness vs weight ratio.

 

From the initial results, the best cranks seem to be Zipp, Storck, THM

 

The big manufacturers Shimano, Campy, FSA (not the latest version) & SRAM are all fairly close, but Record is lighter for the same stiffness.

 

The Easton crank is heavier than the light cranks, but lighter than the big manufacturers. It is less stiff than all of the above, though. 

 

 

One must also remember that the results will also depend on the test setup, direction of loading etc.

[Speed Devil]

Either way I on't swop my DA's for anything in the world!

 

If I was a top cyclist then maybe yes, but as an ordinary cyclist it makes no sense to spend all that extra cash on something stiffer and lighter when I won't benefit anything.

 

Besides, I still think DA makes the sexiest cranks

[Minion]

There's a follow up review that also includes the EC90:

 

http://www.fairwheelbikes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5468

 

[carlo_sg]

Did anyone notice that the new Ultegra SL is stiffer than 7800 Dura-Ace and Record!

http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll253/carlo_sg/62561391oz3.jpg

[scotty]

Just hope nothing goes wrong with your FSA crank, local agents service sucks.

[Big JD]

Did anyone notice that the new Ultegra SL is stiffer than 7800 Dura-Ace and Record!

Yes - But you have to look at the stiffness to weight ratio where Record clearly comes out top.