Bicycle Crank Arm Length

Not sure how to say this Buddy, but........

I agree! I've got a pair of 175's I'm going to try in place of my 165's. Guess what happens if I don't like them? I go back!

I don't have any problems except on hills............., the 'up' side. It's NOT the 22 ring and 34 cassette biggie, it's the 700 wheel/tire! The trike is heavy, I'm heavy and the load I carry is heavy. This is my life, and I'm enjoying each and every moment and I'm really looking forward to 'trying those longer, by about 3/8"(!), cranks. I look at it this way, I wouldn't even think of shoveling snow with short handled dust pan (with perhaps a fanning motion), I'd use a long handled shovel filled only to a respectful level!

I recently saw a pic of an early Bacchetta prototype, the cranks resembled stilts in length! Not sure the reasoning, it just looked 'smart'! If there was a perfect crank length (Not sure how this would be determined and by whom!), do you think everyone would be using them?

This kind of discussion must somehow be similar to someone describing how they feel. Guess what?,,,,,,,,,,,,They're right!

I don't have the cycling experience most of you have, don't claim to. So I'm listening to your stories in hopes my experiences will somehow find attachment! Please continue.

 

Short folks don't always have short legs. Anyway, if you have never done
a century with 130mm arms, you haven't lived and if you have, you likely
won't do it again.

More important is ones body weight. Pay attention, look around you. Drop
20, 30, 40, 50, 60,.......100 pounds and notice how you get down the road
oh, so much smoother, faster and easier. Two examples: Ward and Don.

 

I can definitely tell the difference between 175mm and 155mm cranks. I can comfortably spin 175's at 70-75 rpm all day long but tire out much quicker if I try maintaining a cadence of 90-100 rpm. However, I can spin 155's at 90-95 with the same comfort level and endurance as 175's at 70-75 rpm.

Which is "better"? That's personal choice and only by experimenting with both can you decide which you like better. But just like when first switching to recumbents, you need to give yourself plenty of time to adjust to a different crank length before deciding which you like better.

You may even decide you like them both, 175mm for one type of riding (or bike) and 155mm for another. Just as with recumbents in general, there is no "one right answer" for crankarm length for everybody and every situation.

Me, I run 175's on the V-Rex and 155's on the Ti-Rush.

 

Personalized optimum performance.

Please excuse this hasty post, but the SUN is shinning!

I'm not sure it this info has been hashed out on RRI, but it was on BROL years ago. Perhaps for a 'richer' conversation the Murray crankset should be mentioned:

http://home.intekom.com/murraytourdeforce/cranks.htm

With this it would be possible to dial-in a personal best set-up over a long period of riding/testing and adjust to different conditions from one ride to another. Additionally, I believe I keep hearing of one leg being being more adversely affected than the other with say knee issues; I would assume the condition was a result of both crank lengths being the same. What if............, through personal testing it could be determined that a different-length set-up would be better? After all (and unlike precision equipment), each leg is independent when it comes to performance curves, so why, subject them to the same demand?

I would imagine that for the most part, we primarily think of the 'push' and the extension of the leg, but on the other is the 'pull' and retraction. Might this become more of a contributing factor!

I don't know............, but just sayin'!

 

One Other Variable for Your Kind Consideration

- pedal height.

Due to a life-changing event (contact with a Ford station wagon),
my right leg is about an inch shorter than my left leg,
which retains it's stock length.

I'm used to compensating for the difference now, after
over 20 years of practice.

However, I'm aware that almost everyone has one leg longer
than the other. Most differ by fractions of an inch.

If the distance ("Q") between the pedals makes a difference
in comfort and power, then why not pedal height?

I used to have shoes that compensated for my short right
leg with a thick sole and tall heel: I felt unstable on them.
So would you, if you are (like me) unused to high heels.

Pedals are different, especially if they mechanically keep
your feet attached... but I dunno. Never tried to thicken
my right pedal....

Think about that, along with closed/open positions, Q-Factor,
crank length, crank stiffness, pedaling cadence, pedal type, shoe type and so on!

:

 

Why not?

If a person found their pedaling/crank length 'sweet spot', the tweaking to the crank system would only have to be done once and you could have different shoes for different seasons without having to alter each pair!

Nice 'Yaking'!

 

Shorter Cranks

The mind is truly powerful and I work on control of the mind daily. So when I can get the mind to peddle my bike at any speed that I will my mind to make it go then I will have achieved a True special state of being. I'm just not there yet!

 

Yah and at $375 a set, I think I will let them keep them and buy a stock size. I can buy 6 stock size peddle at that price! WOW!!!

 

Time is money!

Most people know what (their) time is worth!

 

Ed,

It is funny you say that because I am a consultant and I charge by the hour. I am VERY aware of what my time is worth.

 

Update on adjustable carbon crank availability:

Many thanks for your interest in my cranks Ed. Sadly they are no longer in production.

Regards,

Graeme.

 

Very nice ED. Didn't know that. I've found that 175mm crank arms work
well for my 43" X-seam. Just did 36 miles on the Virginia Creeper trail
and as you know, half of that is going up-grade. The leverage is nice
and spinning at 70 rpm is non-tiring.

 

More ideas............, and fodder for criticism

http://www.hscycle.com/Pages/adjustablecranksystem.html

Nice list of crank length considerations. An adjustable crank set that can be changed in 30 seconds! Yes, the cost is over $500, but let's say you charge $250.00/hr consulting; that would be $4.17 per minute, or $2.09 to change the crank length!

Let's say you were on a tour and the route consisted of long flats and periodic long steep climbs. The long crank could be set for the climbing power stroke and left there for the descent for that high torque top end, then changed to a shorter crank length for the short-stroke high-cadence flat land.

I still can appreciate the ability of the search for the crank length sweet spot which would be a ridiculous exercise searching through a wad of different length crank sets, pulling chains, swapping rings, mounting pedals and hoping you got all the hardware securely fastened and still not have the quick-change flexibility that might be handy in the scenario mentioned above.

Check out their Cycling Analysis: http://www.hscycle.com/Pages/cyclinganalysis.html

It will likely be a very long time before I invest in a $500-$600 crank set, but my no-cost imagination is kicking-in now! If I had a set, do you think I'd leave it attached if I sold the ride? Wonder what a used set would be worth? Again, just sayin!

Other sites: http://www.powercranks.com/Productdescription.html
http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/first-look-powercranks-xlite-adjustable-crankarms-19572/

Interesting road test: http://www.superclydesdale.com/?p=697
Pendulum crank-set?: http://www.kinetics.org.uk/html/specials.shtml
What the.....!: http://thebloomingpoint.com/revelox-innovative-bicycle-crankset-version-rc1
Sizer Cycle: http://www.calfeedesign.com/product/sizer-cycle/

 

If you are spinning that much faster and also easier, then you also must be going faster. Therefore short cranks are faster than longer cranks?????