Anyone have anything they'd like to rant about?

Not a rant, a question.

I need new chainrings for a gravel bike. Ultegra 11x2 34/50 is currently the set up. I shopped around and damn those big rings are spendy. I found a 105 11x2 34/50 crankset for less than the cost of the replacement rings and ordered that. To the point of having to choose which size rings I wanted.


Part Num 702868
Shimano 105 FC-R7000 Crankset (175mm, 11-Speed, 50/34t, 110 BCD) Hollowtech Crank Army Hollowtech II Spindle Interface, Black
$112.99
Quantity 1




Well, the crankset showed up yesterday and it is just that, a crankset with no rings.

Am I an idiot?

You could maybe rant about it, since it does specify the ring sizes... I would maybe be a little leery of buying a "Crank Army", though. I'd return it if I were you.

It would not be crazy to find a 105 crankset with rings for around $120, though. You could also find a GRX 600 CS with 46/30 rings that will fit your BB and offer much better ratios for off-pavement riding, assuming your FTP is not 450W.

The bigger question is: why would you want 175mm? All of the cool kids are going 165 now, as shorter arms have proven more efficient for everyone regardless of height.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by climberevan

You could maybe rant about it, since it does specify the ring sizes... I would maybe be a little leery of buying a "Crank Army", though. I'd return it if I were you.

It would not be crazy to find a 105 crankset with rings for around $120, though. You could also find a GRX 600 CS with 46/30 rings that will fit your BB and offer much better ratios for off-pavement riding, assuming your FTP is not 450W.

The bigger question is: why would you want 175mm? All of the cool kids are going 165 now, as shorter arms have proven more efficient for everyone regardless of height.

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If they call it a crankset, not crank arms, and if they have you choose tooth count, then you should expect to get rings.

If someone is selling arms only, should be like this:

https://www.jensonusa.com/Shimano-10...SABEgL_A_D_BwE

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bunion 2020

Not a rant, a question.

I need new chainrings for a gravel bike. Ultegra 11x2 34/50 is currently the set up. I shopped around and damn those big rings are spendy. I found a 105 11x2 34/50 crankset for less than the cost of the replacement rings and ordered that. To the point of having to choose which size rings I wanted.


Part Num 702868
Shimano 105 FC-R7000 Crankset (175mm, 11-Speed, 50/34t, 110 BCD) Hollowtech Crank Army Hollowtech II Spindle Interface, Black
$112.99
Quantity 1




Well, the crankset showed up yesterday and it is just that, a crankset with no rings.

Am I an idiot?

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Is that Ultegra crank part of the recall? If so, you might get a whole new crankset out of it, with rings.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by climberevan

The bigger question is: why would you want 175mm? All of the cool kids are going 165 now, as shorter arms have proven more efficient for everyone regardless of height.

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Been riding 175s for a really long time, about 40 years. Never was very cool.

Quote:

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Is that Ultegra crank part of the recall? If so, you might get a whole new crankset out of it, with rings.

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Was not aware of the recall. Yes they are listed as a part of the recall.

https://bike.shimano.com/en-US/infor...ll-notice.html

Time to go through Shimano. THIS IS WHY I FUCKING LOVE THIS PLACE!
THX

I have that same Ultegra crankset, same chainrings, on a supposed gravel bike too - - a GT Grade from around 2016 - - that has very poor tire clearance for a gravel bike. I don't use it as one though, I bought it to use as a road bike with upright geometry and hydraulic brakes.

^^^ pretty much the same scenario. Bought this one from my best riding buddies widow after he died. This is a Giant Revolt. Real nice bike and fun to ride on all the farm roads around here that are rapidly getting paved.

I might have a set of chainrings, let me look today.
Gawd I need to have a massive sale on TGR.

Also that is not a shimano part number. The cranks are available with or without rings. the "without rings" does retail for that amount.

The shimano PN for the 175mm cranks with 50/34 rings and 175mm arms is IFCR7000EX04L, upc is 689228889057, and msrp is 166.99

Personally i still ride 175 cranks because i'm tall and have long legs and don't really need or want my saddle to be even higher up- my cg is high enough. Especially consider a gravel/cx bike without a dropper- with 165 cranks my post is 10mm higher up and that's 10mm less clearance I have when cornering and standing up and descending and trying to absorb bumps and get low and back on descents. Today i was riding my hardtail with a rigid post (because still waiting on tools and parts from fox for the dropper) and yeah that post is tall enough.

Mynesweepers Valve Stem fail.
Spent all last night fucking around getting a couple wheels set up. Whatever I did, I'd still fail the soapy water test with air coming out at the valve and at spoke holes. Re-taped, same problem. Finally changed out to an old CushCore valve and now have zero air loss. Since my testing wore me out, I left the tire overnight and most of today. When we decided to go for an afternoon ride, I just threw it on the bike without adding any sealant and all the air stayed where it was supposed to be. As far as I can tell, the rubber cone stopper on the Mynesweeper valve is a lot softer than the CushCore stopper and maybe just deforms too much when compressed.
Gotta say, tubeless has been kicking my ass hard enough that I've been tempted to use tubes. I doubt I'll go that far, but the thought has certainly occurred to me multiple times. Instead, I'm more likely to go without inserts on front tires since at least then it's easier to keep pulling the tire off to fuck around with it.

If I have time when setting up a wheel for the first time or when re-taping, I like to put some caulk around the stem. Let it cure for a few hours before airing up the tire. I believe it helps to ensure that the rubber cone area seals well.

I could get into that


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I've used the E13 Quick Fill valves on mine and several other bikes. It's a really great idea and makes Stan's (why use any other brand?) refils way more cleaner and easier.
https://www.ethirteen.com/products/q...l-plasma-valve

Specialized putting out a sworks that has no cable routing, thus axs only. Scary precedent for me.

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Originally Posted by Canada1

Specialized putting out a sworks that has no cable routing, thus axs only. Scary precedent for me.

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And file under "things not to rant about": no headset routing on any of the regular Epic or EE models. Kudos there.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Canada1

Specialized putting out a sworks that has no cable routing, thus axs only. Scary precedent for me.

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Shimano better get their wireless shit together quick. Where Specialized goes, many others will follow.

But yeah, agreed that this sucks.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Canada1

Specialized putting out a sworks that has no cable routing, thus axs only. Scary precedent for me.

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No brakes?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by smmokan

And file under "things not to rant about": no headset routing on any of the regular Epic or EE models. Kudos there.

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agreed. I generally buy bikes in recent years based on where one of my kids has a pro-form, but have successfully avoided headset cable routing. That would be a deal breaker for me.

Fuck Specialized.

I'm sorry, but how can anyone that knows anything about the industry, and has a soul, support this company.
They're well known for fucking over and intimidating their own dealers, they sue anyone who breaths anywhere near "their" intellectual property, they are all-in on any shitty technology if it cheapens their costs, and they're the king of cheap-ass-manufacturing.

They are the backcountry.com of bike manufacturing.
I don't care how cheap their bikes are or even if they work, there are tons of good bikes available out there. Why support THEM?!

^^^ After dealing with them directly over the last year+, I generally agree with you. I was hoping to be proven wrong about working with them, but they verified pretty quickly everything that I had pre-conceived notions about prior to the partnership. Their corporate employees just don't give a f*ck, and they certainly know how to treat people like shit.

That said, they're so popular because their bikes are generally awesome (and priced pretty well), and they're widely available in most markets across the country. Most people don't care about how a company treats people/partners/suppliers/etc unfortunately, otherwise a majority of large corporations would be bankrupt.

Just here to pile on Specialized. Fuck them and the horse they rode in on.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by smmokan

That said, they're so popular because their bikes are generally awesome (and priced pretty well), and they're widely available in most markets across the country.

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There are a shit-ton of good bike companies out there that do the same without being the skid-mark of the industry.
I get a noob buying one but people that know better should just say no.
My .02 (and rant)

I just bought a Specialsauce. I've never worked in the bike industry, but have heard negative things about them, so I've avoided buying in the past. It is undeniable that they make quality products.
I have a friend who has worked for them for a long time and they've treated him well.
The bike I bought was for commuting to work and it can play trail builder as well...Tero X. It was and is the ideal bike for me and I didn't see any other "bike" brands with this design. Plus my LBS sells them and I like to support those guys. They also sell SC mtn bikes which I ride. And SC is under a huge corporate umbrella now too, so who knows what they're like as a Corp.

Got the thing on dirt yesterday for the first time to do some trail maintenance and it worked perfectly for me and it's been a great work and grocery store commuter. This is my first ebike...it has a kickstand too [emoji16]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...db87576a53.jpg

Follow up. The Online shop I ordered the crankset from agreed that their listing was confusing, sent me a fed-ex return label and promptly credited back the charge to my card. My Ultegra crank is in a LBS being evaluated as a part of the recall. IMO even "if" it is replaced I will probably need to purchase at least a new 50T.

So it goes. T-shirt weather here this weekend, going for a ride.

NorCal, or at least the north bay, feels like kook central. I don’t know if it’s the good weather, less intimidating trails, or disposable income but in the PNW I never saw so many people completely out of their element or just straight up doing goofy stuff in the woods. On my ride today I almost got smoked by a dude on an enduro blasting full speed down a gravel climbing road, then saw a group of three fit 30-something guys on baller build e-bikes, and finally watched a poor dude on an XC hardtail try to carry his bike down a steep off-map loamer.

Another mini rant is people taking a picture of a small ass tree across a trail and uploading a picture of it to trail forks. Could cut that thing with a hand saw in the time it took you to type.


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