BB30 chainsets - Shimano? FSA?
Discussion
Having decided I like my new CAAD10 a lot it's time to start planning some upgrades. At the moment it has a 105 5800 groupset with an FSA Gossamer Pro chainset but the plan was always to move some or all of these bits onto a commuter bike and put nicer stuff on the CAAD.
I'm starting to get more used to the Shimano shifters, so drifting away from the original plan to fit SRAM Force or Red and thinking Ultegra or DA is better value but that leaves me with a chainset dilemma.
BB30 > Shimano chainset adapters seem to get mixed reviews, and to fit a Dura Ace chainset using plastic adapters seems a little pointless so is there a better alternative? It looks better value to buy a full groupset rather than buying bits individually so the Shimano stuff appeals on that level.
The alternative is to fit the new commuter with an Ultegra chainset and 105 for the other bits and buy something like an FSA K Force Light for the CAAD but I want a 52/36 and these seem hard to come by outside of the Shimano stable unless I want to pay full retail price rather than buy online. Cannondale chainsets are too expensive so off the list already unfortunately.
So, any suggestions?!
I'm starting to get more used to the Shimano shifters, so drifting away from the original plan to fit SRAM Force or Red and thinking Ultegra or DA is better value but that leaves me with a chainset dilemma.
BB30 > Shimano chainset adapters seem to get mixed reviews, and to fit a Dura Ace chainset using plastic adapters seems a little pointless so is there a better alternative? It looks better value to buy a full groupset rather than buying bits individually so the Shimano stuff appeals on that level.
The alternative is to fit the new commuter with an Ultegra chainset and 105 for the other bits and buy something like an FSA K Force Light for the CAAD but I want a 52/36 and these seem hard to come by outside of the Shimano stable unless I want to pay full retail price rather than buy online. Cannondale chainsets are too expensive so off the list already unfortunately.
So, any suggestions?!
Quite a few people I know use BB30 adapters to run 24mm Shimano style cranks, with supposedly better outcome than the usual BB30 creaks.
I think Wheels MFG ones, or Praxis works adapters are the ones worth using.
Personally never had any issues with BB30 as long as you keep on top of maintainence.
I think Wheels MFG ones, or Praxis works adapters are the ones worth using.
Personally never had any issues with BB30 as long as you keep on top of maintainence.
Just fitted a wheels adaptor on a mates Boardman , who wanted shorter cranks and a 105 chainset on a BB30 and works a treat. Make sure its the road version, as the MTB is slightly different. I have changed the cranks on my Cannondale F29 from Sram to Shimano XT and used Wheels as well. No more creaking , its great. Fitting a bearing race against an alloy axle caused creaking
The FSA Gossamer is a decent crank only gives away maybe 100g to the Carbon SLK and nothing to an Ultegra cranks once you take the adapter into consideration so there is very little gain to be had other than looking a better. I had a nightmare with BB adapters on my CAAD10 when I wanted a shorter crank and the Ultegra crank lasted 3 weeks before it was sold. The SLK Carbon crank can be had at very reasonable prices second hand if you are prepared to be patient. The chainrings can be bought separately. You could either flog the 50/34 chain rings or keep them and use them if you do any rides with lots of climbing. I've done thousands of miles on mine with no bother other than servicing the BB every now and again and it now sits on my Tarmac.
Another option is the Cannondale SI Crankset but these are more expensive.
Another option is the Cannondale SI Crankset but these are more expensive.
paulmon said:
The FSA Gossamer is a decent crank only gives away maybe 100g to the Carbon SLK and nothing to an Ultegra cranks once you take the adapter into consideration so there is very little gain to be had other than looking a better. I had a nightmare with BB adapters on my CAAD10 when I wanted a shorter crank and the Ultegra crank lasted 3 weeks before it was sold. The SLK Carbon crank can be had at very reasonable prices second hand if you are prepared to be patient. The chainrings can be bought separately. You could either flog the 50/34 chain rings or keep them and use them if you do any rides with lots of climbing. I've done thousands of miles on mine with no bother other than servicing the BB every now and again and it now sits on my Tarmac.
Another option is the Cannondale SI Crankset but these are more expensive.
Thanks for that, very interesting. I'd kind of assumed that the Gossamer wasn't great and I'd save a chunk of weight but that's based on prejudices about OEM FSA kit but that's more the budget square taper stuff I think. Another option is the Cannondale SI Crankset but these are more expensive.
So maybe the most sensible/best option is to swap mechs and shifters but keep the cranks I have for now. So, Di2, Red, DA or Force....
go for electric gears of some kind
ultegra di2 rather than dura ace mechanical for me if that was the choice
I would normally choose campag rather than shimano, but even I am not sure how athena eps measures up to ultegra DI2 (which is about where it is at price wise)
upgrading to electric gears will feel like more of an upgrade than any new chainset imo
ultegra di2 rather than dura ace mechanical for me if that was the choice
I would normally choose campag rather than shimano, but even I am not sure how athena eps measures up to ultegra DI2 (which is about where it is at price wise)
upgrading to electric gears will feel like more of an upgrade than any new chainset imo
if you compare Dura Ace 11 speed to Ultegra 11 speed, its as good as double the money
if you go for Ultegra 10 speed, the gap is even bigger
particularly when you look at the price jump for the Dura Ace cassette over the Ultegra one
but you are right, Dura Ace looks a whole lot nicer
it all comes down to how much you want to spend I suppose
I'd still go Ultegra DI2 over any mechanical system, but I would be working hard on the man maths to make Dura Ace work
if you go for Ultegra 10 speed, the gap is even bigger
particularly when you look at the price jump for the Dura Ace cassette over the Ultegra one
but you are right, Dura Ace looks a whole lot nicer
it all comes down to how much you want to spend I suppose
I'd still go Ultegra DI2 over any mechanical system, but I would be working hard on the man maths to make Dura Ace work
jamiebae said:
Thanks for that, very interesting. I'd kind of assumed that the Gossamer wasn't great and I'd save a chunk of weight but that's based on prejudices about OEM FSA kit but that's more the budget square taper stuff I think.
So maybe the most sensible/best option is to swap mechs and shifters but keep the cranks I have for now. So, Di2, Red, DA or Force....
Personally based on experience I think that's the best idea and like I said keep an eye out in the classifieds on BR/Ebay for a set of Cannondale or FSA cranks. If you buy a groupset then you will be able to flog the chainset with ease (£80-85 for Ultegra and £150-£200 DA).So maybe the most sensible/best option is to swap mechs and shifters but keep the cranks I have for now. So, Di2, Red, DA or Force....
I rather stick with a Shimano chainset , as they shift much better than the aftermarket stuff, especially if going for a Shimano groupset. I cant see any issues with using wheels adaptors. Extremely straight forward and the weight saving is there, as they only weigh a few grams, although the lack of grinding now , I am not missing. This is with my Cannondale going back to the dealer and UK importer to sort out the creaking, which, although the BB bearings were changed, still the noise came from there. That repair lasted a couple of hundred miles before it started again. With the wheels and XT chainset fitted ,it has cured the issue. Anyone in an engineering knowledge will know that fitting an alloy/ steel axle direct to steel bearing race is going to cause issues. When in my LBS at the weekend, they seemed inundated with BB30 issues and said that Cannondale wont admit an issue, but the 2016 bikes have been modded to prevent noises and modify an issue with them, so sort of giving in to complaints, I suppose. Even the guy in the shop has converted to wheels to stop the noises and issues. I suppose it depends on how much you will be using the bike to know how often you want to strip and grease and fettle and are happy with flexy chainrings taking the brunt of a Di2 servo shift or not.
[quote=jamiebae]
Thanks for that, very interesting. I'd kind of assumed that the Gossamer wasn't great and I'd save a chunk of weight but that's based on prejudices about OEM FSA kit but that's more the budget square taper stuff I think.
So maybe the most sensible/best option is to swap mechs and shifters but keep the cranks I have for now. So, Di2, Red, DA or Force....[/
Just for info, Fabian Cancellara was running the standard aluminium Gossamer crankset in 2008, and he had some pretty good results on it.
Tom Boonen won Paris-Roubaix using a square-taper crankset and BB as recently as 2005, and he puts out a reasonable amount of power in a sprint.
Budget square-taper FSA cranks are fine, I have one both on my commuter and my TT trainer bike, and have put about 5,000km on it (fsa vero I think), you just need a decent Shimano cartridge BB as the OEM are often cheap junk.
Thanks for that, very interesting. I'd kind of assumed that the Gossamer wasn't great and I'd save a chunk of weight but that's based on prejudices about OEM FSA kit but that's more the budget square taper stuff I think.
So maybe the most sensible/best option is to swap mechs and shifters but keep the cranks I have for now. So, Di2, Red, DA or Force....[/
Just for info, Fabian Cancellara was running the standard aluminium Gossamer crankset in 2008, and he had some pretty good results on it.
Tom Boonen won Paris-Roubaix using a square-taper crankset and BB as recently as 2005, and he puts out a reasonable amount of power in a sprint.
Budget square-taper FSA cranks are fine, I have one both on my commuter and my TT trainer bike, and have put about 5,000km on it (fsa vero I think), you just need a decent Shimano cartridge BB as the OEM are often cheap junk.
Fitting a UN57 into a BB30 shell would be an excellent way of trolling Cannondales engineering team.
FSA cranks are, largely, total crap. They generally appear on OEM bikes, as they are much, much cheaper than groupset cranks (to the manufacturer), but FSA then puts a massive RRP on them to make the buyer feel they got a better deal than if they'd had the (much better) Shimano or Campag cranks.
There is one (1) option for a BB30 Cannondale, and that's the Cannondale SiSl crank, with or without Spider Ring depending on your taste, if you want power etc.
Ultegra cranks are great, I have a couple of pairs of 6800's on bikes with BSA bottom brackets, but I'd not use them in a BB30 or PF30 shell.
FSA cranks are, largely, total crap. They generally appear on OEM bikes, as they are much, much cheaper than groupset cranks (to the manufacturer), but FSA then puts a massive RRP on them to make the buyer feel they got a better deal than if they'd had the (much better) Shimano or Campag cranks.
There is one (1) option for a BB30 Cannondale, and that's the Cannondale SiSl crank, with or without Spider Ring depending on your taste, if you want power etc.
Ultegra cranks are great, I have a couple of pairs of 6800's on bikes with BSA bottom brackets, but I'd not use them in a BB30 or PF30 shell.
Justin S said:
I rather stick with a Shimano chainset , as they shift much better than the aftermarket stuff, especially if going for a Shimano groupset. I cant see any issues with using wheels adaptors. Extremely straight forward and the weight saving is there, as they only weigh a few grams, although the lack of grinding now , I am not missing. This is with my Cannondale going back to the dealer and UK importer to sort out the creaking, which, although the BB bearings were changed, still the noise came from there. That repair lasted a couple of hundred miles before it started again. With the wheels and XT chainset fitted ,it has cured the issue. Anyone in an engineering knowledge will know that fitting an alloy/ steel axle direct to steel bearing race is going to cause issues. When in my LBS at the weekend, they seemed inundated with BB30 issues and said that Cannondale wont admit an issue, but the 2016 bikes have been modded to prevent noises and modify an issue with them, so sort of giving in to complaints, I suppose. Even the guy in the shop has converted to wheels to stop the noises and issues. I suppose it depends on how much you will be using the bike to know how often you want to strip and grease and fettle and are happy with flexy chainrings taking the brunt of a Di2 servo shift or not.
Quite a strong whiff of BS in this post so the urge to correct it is uncontrollable. First point about shifting better is absolute tosh. I have mechanical ultegra 6800 on both my bikes which I have installed and setup myself. One has a FSA chainset and the other a Shimano and guess what they shift exactly the same. Problems with front mech shifting are usually down to poor setup as this is the trickiest and most time consuming part to get absolutely spot on. As for the story of bike shops overflowing with Cannondale customers what about all the other brands that use BB30? I have done nearly 10,000 miles on BB30 in some shape or form and during that time have replaced the bearings 3 times. This is on three different bikes (2 CAAD 10s and a Tarmac). Admittedly I had a problem with my first CAAD 10 which was down to the bearings that came with the bike not having enough grease in them. I guess they are greased for dry US roads and not crappy wet, salty UK roads from the factory. After that I serviced mine myself and do so maybe twice a year and never have a problem. If you invest in the tools to service them yourself you shouldn't have any issues (unless you have a faulty frame).
You seem to be the god for all this rather than knowledge of others actual experience. My Sram chainset was s
t compared to the XT that replaced it, but you know all of that, so I bow down to your massive ego superior knowledge and information. As for BB30 being good, its not, its st, but I am wrong .
t compared to the XT that replaced it, but you know all of that, so I bow down to your massive ego superior knowledge and information. As for BB30 being good, its not, its st, but I am wrong .paulmon said:
Quite a strong whiff of BS in this post so the urge to correct it is uncontrollable. First point about shifting better is absolute tosh. I have mechanical ultegra 6800 on both my bikes which I have installed and setup myself. One has a FSA chainset and the other a Shimano and guess what they shift exactly the same. Problems with front mech shifting are usually down to poor setup as this is the trickiest and most time consuming part to get absolutely spot on.
As for the story of bike shops overflowing with Cannondale customers what about all the other brands that use BB30? I have done nearly 10,000 miles on BB30 in some shape or form and during that time have replaced the bearings 3 times. This is on three different bikes (2 CAAD 10s and a Tarmac). Admittedly I had a problem with my first CAAD 10 which was down to the bearings that came with the bike not having enough grease in them. I guess they are greased for dry US roads and not crappy wet, salty UK roads from the factory. After that I serviced mine myself and do so maybe twice a year and never have a problem. If you invest in the tools to service them yourself you shouldn't have any issues (unless you have a faulty frame).
As for the story of bike shops overflowing with Cannondale customers what about all the other brands that use BB30? I have done nearly 10,000 miles on BB30 in some shape or form and during that time have replaced the bearings 3 times. This is on three different bikes (2 CAAD 10s and a Tarmac). Admittedly I had a problem with my first CAAD 10 which was down to the bearings that came with the bike not having enough grease in them. I guess they are greased for dry US roads and not crappy wet, salty UK roads from the factory. After that I serviced mine myself and do so maybe twice a year and never have a problem. If you invest in the tools to service them yourself you shouldn't have any issues (unless you have a faulty frame).
Justin S said:
Spat his dummy out..
XT is MTB not road. Two very different applications and uses of the same system. You may have had a very bad experience of its application on a mud bike but its not a fair comparison. The OP asked a question about a road bike application on a bike that I know very well so I gave my experience of it which is a much better experience than someone who had a nightmare with a SRAM chainset on mountain bike 
Justin S said:
I do have a Caad 10 road bike with an FSA chainset and also a Dolan Carbon with a BB30 BB, which I have converted to a press fit FSA adaptor , to avoid issues of BB30 now running a Dura Ace BB and Ultegra chainset, in total silence with Di2. So, do have experience of both versions.
Have run two different Cervelo's with Pressfit BB30 for in excess of 6k miles, one with mechanical Ultegra, one with Di2. No issues. Wow, it seems BB30 is as divisive as not wearing a helmet or buying Rapha kit!
I like the look of SRAM Red E-Tap but I expect the price will be eye watering, I think I'll keep the FSA chainset for now and upgrade the mechs and shifters once I've decided if I go mechanical (DA, Red or Force) or Di2 and do the chainset later, probably once I can find a K Force Light for a sensible price in black. Unfortunately it has to be new and I can't buy from eBay which is a bit of a shame.
I'm still not totally sold on Shimano chainsets and adaptors, but if I go SRAM I can just buy a BB30 specific chainset and be done with it. If only they sold them in 52/36 on the main online sites...
I like the look of SRAM Red E-Tap but I expect the price will be eye watering, I think I'll keep the FSA chainset for now and upgrade the mechs and shifters once I've decided if I go mechanical (DA, Red or Force) or Di2 and do the chainset later, probably once I can find a K Force Light for a sensible price in black. Unfortunately it has to be new and I can't buy from eBay which is a bit of a shame.
I'm still not totally sold on Shimano chainsets and adaptors, but if I go SRAM I can just buy a BB30 specific chainset and be done with it. If only they sold them in 52/36 on the main online sites...
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