Weight Weenies

I've narrowed my choice of cranks down to 2.

I'm looking for opinions on whether to go with a KCNC k- type crank that comes complete with BB for £300 and weighs 668g, or a 2011 SRAM red crank for £175 and then try to get a lighter BB and maybe lighter chain rings to get the weight down for around the same price as what the KCNC is complete.

I'm putting it on a canyon cf and want to predominantly use the bike for climbing so it will be a compact crankset. I'm also trying to make the bike as light as possible but don't have an endless budget.

What would you choose and why? And can anyone give me likely weights I could achieve for the SRAM red as I have found very conflicting weights for just the crank. Also the BB and rings for the SRAM would need to be available in the UK as I've struggled to find some bits that have been recommended before.

Thanks

I just got the KCNC K2 crankset from Dulight.fr http://www.dulight.fr/product_info.php?cPath=116&products_id=1340, superb value for money given its weight (saw a pic of the set with bb only weighing 648gms). The 170mm is not in available in 50/34 though, so get the 172.5/175mm ones instead. one reason I bought it is because it includes a bsa 86 English threaded BB that I need, if you need others you'll need to inquire.

Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com

I recently made a similar cranket decision and ruled out the KCNC right off the bat. Although it has tremendous value, it's an anodized alloy crankset and will begin to look weathered very quickly when the color rubs off from shoe heel, buckle or strap contact. If you have small feet that might not be as much of a concern. Plus, the KCNC can't be readily found used for a greater savings while used Sram Reds are easy to find.

You could prevent this by getting some 3M transparent tape (I forgot what it's called) and applying it to the cranks.

Why not the new sram 2012 crank? It will be lighter than both and can be found onkine within your budget. my understanding is that the kcnc is flexi too.

sram! the sram red crank is actually very good. I've been very impressed. I have the original iteration of it and has held up very well. Excellent price per performance in my opinion.

That's a good idea on covering up the crank arms with protective tape - the loss of the anodized colors and graphics on the rings will only give me a reason to change to the K3 cobwebs rings though so I'm not so concerned about that!

NiFTY wrote:Why not the new sram 2012 crank? It will be lighter than both and can be found onkine within your budget. my understanding is that the kcnc is flexi too.

The cheapest I can find the new SRAM crank is £340 without BB which I could stretch to but dont really want to if I can make a 2011 one lighter.

I am going towards the SRAM now but only if I can find a lighter BB and rings to make it lighter than the 740g claimed weight. Any help???

I haven't ridden the KCNC crank but I did fit the 2012 BB30 crankset three weeks ago.

My advice - save up for it, the new crank feels really good to me. Nice positive shifts, good looks, its not coming off the bike any time soon.

RMcC, have you decided on the crank?

I am looking for a new crank myself right now, and I am considering the KCNC K Type Road RD1, KCNC K Type Road RD2, Campagnolo Athena, Campagnolo Athena Carbon, Campagnolo Chorus, SRAM Rival, SRAM Red.

Does anyone know what the difference between the RD1 and the RD2 is? The former is available for 130 € while the latter costs twice as much, 260 €.

I would definitely go with the new Red. I have seen them on sale for as low as $320 shipped.

I just got rid of two new red cranks for less than that. Trust me, you won't get the old red lighter than the new.
Weight aside (the humanity!) you could pick up an old red crank and add praxis, rotor, or stronglight rings for the same money as a new red and likely have nearly identical performance. The old red rings are terribly flexy in my experience.

KCNC may be light but any of the big three will typically be more solid (plus Sram has had the chance of refining their road offerings over the past decade).

RMcC wrote:

NiFTY wrote:Why not the new sram 2012 crank? It will be lighter than both and can be found onkine within your budget. my understanding is that the kcnc is flexi too.

The cheapest I can find the new SRAM crank is £340 without BB which I could stretch to but dont really want to if I can make a 2011 one lighter.

I am going towards the SRAM now but only if I can find a lighter BB and rings to make it lighter than the 740g claimed weight. Any help???

You can get the 2013 Sram Red Exogram crank on the bay for as low as £217 including shipping (without BB) the ones from this seller are 172.5 and 50/34 rings.

Can you give more clue how to find the seller with these cranks in this price?

Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com