Originally Posted by
Smokehouse
for now...yes. The FSA crank seems ok for the time being, the motion is smooth and the crank amrs seems sturdy. Truth be told, I'm afraid of carbon crank arms (and carbon handlebars)...seen too many picks of them exploding where the pedal screws in.
I spent last year on a 105 bike with an actual 105 crank...and the feel/shifting was far smoother than the FSA. the FSA is clunky, loud (has a funky ring to it) and shifts crappy. I don't relate any of this to the crankarms. I upgraded to an Ultegra chain (came with a Tiagra) and while it smoothed things up a bit, front shifting is still clunky no matter how much I fiddle with the derailure.
ill post on here later next week after I get it in and install it. I'm hoping it lives up to its reviews...which routinely compare it to the shifting feel of a Dura Ace chainring.
Lastly...concerning carbon handlebars...they worry me too. I landed up going to Ritchey alloy bars which are silly light...you may want to look into something like that.
Maybe this would be reason enough for me to upgrade my crank in the near future, at least from the FSA to 105 to match the rest of the bike's components. If I shift down from the big ring in just the right spot, the teeth on the big ring are such that it sends the chain over past the small ring and onto the BB shell. It's not the FD that's doing it, it's the big chain ring itself.