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Submitted by
Kevin Kivenas
a Weekend Warrior
from Reno, Nevada, USA
Date Reviewed: May 28, 2007 | | Favoriate Trail: | Keystone Canyon, Pioneer Trail | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$225.00 | | Purchased At: | Price Point | | Strengths: | Crankset and chainrings are practically bulletproof | | Weaknesses: | Bottom bracket sucks | | Similar Products Used: | Standard, cheap crankset and bottom bracket without external bearings on a cheaper bike | | Bike Setup: | Trek Fuel EX9, RockShox Revelation Fork, King Headset, Avid BB7 Dics Brakes, Thomson Stem and Seatpost, Monkeylight Carbon Bars, etc, etc... | | Bottom Line: | I built this bike up from a bare frame and I wanted a BB and crankset that would be compatible and made to last. The crankset and chainrings are solid and have taken some punishing hits without any compromise. The BB setup was a little tricky to install, and the bearings seemed to have a little too much resistance when installed new, so I removed and re-installed the BB twice, but minor adjustments did not help. I put about 200 miles on the bike and removed the chain to see how freely the pedals would turn. I was disappointed to find a LOT of resistance. I disassembled the BB and found the non-drive side bearing had way more resistance then the drive side bearing. I'll eventually replace the bearing cups with something compatible from a different manufacturer, but for a quick fix the following really helped: 1. On the installed crankset, leave the outer (10mm) bolt cover in place and use an 8mm hex to loosen the inner bolt. The inner bolt will push against the outer 10mm cover, and start to self-extract the drive side crank from the axle (if you were to keep turning the 8mm bolt this is how you would disassemble the crankset, but that's not the plan here). Loosen the 8mm bolt until it just starts to push against the 10mm outer bolt cover and keep loosening another 1 or 2 turns - this will relieve any side-loading the crankset may be putting on the bearings. Then re-tighten the 8mm bolt, but just so it's snug. You can get it pretty tight without recreating the problem, and you'll know by how easily the pedals turn.
It's made a huge difference on mine. Obviously this isn't going to work if you already have a lot of side-to-side play in your crankset.
The bottom line is that this product seems to require a lot of extra work to live up to it's potential. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Walter
a Cross Country Rider
from DC
Date Reviewed: October 29, 2006 | | Favoriate Trail: | Avalon @ Patapsco | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Purchased At: | JensonUSA | | Strengths: | Spins great, easy install, and easily replaced. | | Weaknesses: | died after a year, and creaked like crazy. Can't install the thing without scratching it up. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano XT | | Bike Setup: | SC Blur, Mavic/CK's, Race Face and Azonic for everything else. | | Bottom Line: | I've been a long time user of Race Face products so this BB was a big disapointment. Functionally, it worked great while it lasted, but it creaked and squeaked from day 1. After about 14 months of use, the drive side bearing blew out. I repalced with a Shimano XT, but I'm planning on rebuilding the RF BB with aftermarket bearings.
BTW, the Atlas cranks have been ROCK SOLID!! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Eric
a Cross Country Rider
from Truckee, CA
Date Reviewed: June 18, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | It was good while it lasted. Easy to install/uninstall with proper tools. Outboard bearings are a good thing: stiffer, better power transfer. Crank removal and tightening is super easy without special tools other than big hex wrenches. | | Weaknesses: | Broke much too easily. An all-mountain BB needs to be able to handle hard hits to the pedals and cranks, many of them over a period of years. This one developed internal play and had its bearings die in three and a half months. | | Similar Products Used: | Lots of Shimanos over the years. | | Bike Setup: | 2005 Kona Dawg Primo (5"), Race Face cranks | | Bottom Line: | The outboard bearings are a great idea. I could feel how stiff the power transfer was compared to my previous cranks (square taper and in-the-shell bearings) on earlier bikes. But I ride in loose and rocky conditions a lot, and about 10 or 12 good hard rock hits on pedals and cranks, the kind of hit that knocks your foot out of the pedal, wore this BB out in about three and a half months of riding. First there was some noise and a light resistance in one part of the stroke, maybe due to one of the balls in the non-drive-side cup starting to get mashed. Then about 100 singletrack miles later, things got worse: side to side play (while the cups are still solidly installed in the BB shell and the cranks are tight on the spindle) and finally, after one last ride, loud whining noises and noticeable resistance to turning. I might just replace the bearings, or it might be time for a different model.
The Atlas is made to be lighter than downhill but heavier than x/c, so ideally it's good for all-mountain rough trail use. I didn't do any true "freeriding" on this product, just hard trail use. Looks like the Atlas wasn't up to that challenge.
Lastly, to Race Face's credit, the BB shell wasn't faced by Kona after painting so this BB may have spent some time tightened into a situation that did not allow it to run true. Might have lasted longer if the shell had been faced in the first place. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jeff Kelly
a
from Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Date Reviewed: December 10, 2005 | | Favoriate Trail: | Prarieview/Jewel | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Light, stiff, Canadian | | Weaknesses: | None so far | | Similar Products Used: | RF I-Beam, FSA V-extreme ISIS, Sugino, XTR, White Industries | | Bike Setup: | '05 Turner 6-pack, Marz Z1 FR1 ETA, SRAM X0, WTB dual duty wheelset. | | Bottom Line: | So far these cranks have been great. The drive side cup loostened up slightly after about 5 rides and started to creak. I snugged it up and haven't had a problem with them since. Nice and stiff with smooth bearings. What else can you ask for in a crank? | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Matty
a Weekend Warrior
from UK - Warwickshire
Date Reviewed: August 21, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Weaknesses: | Creaked like crazy when new, it has been back to the shop once and it still creaks. | | Similar Products Used: | Upgrade to Shimano XT square taper on my previous bike that I fitted myself. Absolutely no problems and no creaking for 3 years. Shimanoe Deore square taper - forget it, lasted only 6 months and was not up to the job. | | Bike Setup: | Purchased as part of a custom built Santa Cruz Blur LT | | Bottom Line: | I wonder if this bottom bracket is storing up problems for me. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
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