Mountain Bike Crankset Length Calculator

Take your old chain and lay it out next to the new one.

Mountain bike crankset length calculator. Road bike cranks are available in a lot more lengths than they were in 1985 so why aren t there shorter cranks on mountain bikes. Old school 3 9 or more and more popular 2 10 or perhaps the newest addition by sram xx1 1 11 or any other options. You can use either of these two methods. The most common crank length is 170 mm.

More than ever people ask nowadays. Personally i get problems if i ride a bike with 175mm cranks for any time over a couple. Some bike manufacturers are wise to this though and fit different length cranks on different size bikes. All you need are a chain rivet or a chain lock and you will need to know the amount of chain links needed for a correct chain length.

Go into any mountain bike shop and chances are every bike in there will come with 175mm or 170mm crank arms with 175mm usually found on m xl sizes and 170mm found on xs s. The crankset from the us or chain set from the uk is the part of a bike drivetrain that converts the reciprocating movement of the rider s legs to rotational movement used to push the string or belt which then drives the trunk. This is what comes stock on most tandems. The first mountain bikes were built from pirated road bike parts.

Mountain bike crank length was simply transferred from whatever road bikes were using in the 80 s and haven t changed much since. The correct chain length chain rivet. What combination is best for hilly courses technical courses or flat ones. Femur length in inches should be the same as crank length in cm alternately femur length in cm divided by 2 54 equals crank length yields the same result this is based around the idea that the upper leg is the major lever when applying force to the pedals and that the lower leg is the connecting rod and plays little part.

A lot of times you hear of road bikers getting fitted and if you do any research about crank arm length for mountain use there isn t much out there other than road bike fitting sites charts. If this helps but not enough get 165 mm cranks for the rider who has trouble pedaling fast. When it comes to mountain bikes bike crank arm size isn t nearly as crucial. If you find that you have serious cadence incompatibility start by installing 175 mm cranks for the rider who wants a faster cadence.