Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Origin8 track cranks - any reports?

Does anyone know anything about those Origin8 track cranks that are on eBay? They actually look pretty cool, and at $40 could be a steal (or could be rebranded RPMs with a little aftermarket dremeling).
See 'em here (http://cgi.ebay.com/ORIGIN-8-PROPULSION-TRACK-CRANKSET-SINGLE-SPEED-NEW_W0QQitemZ220063698573QQihZ012QQcategoryZ56195QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting). Anyone have any knowledge?

My LBS is selling them for $60, and they seem to think they're ok. They look nice in person.

Yeah, these are at my LBS, too. I was wondering if $65 was too high; it's between those and the Sugino RD, which is $90, also high, but 1) this is New York, 2) I like to give business to this LBS, and 3) I was given a $100 gift certificate at the store, so....

interesting. i am in the middle of building a bike up for a friend and am now going to have to weigh these against buying a used road crank ($30ish probably) and then chainring bolts from the lbs ($8 ish) with only a 39 or 42 rather than a 46 ring (will be using a 16 cog). decisions.

I sold a set a few months ago and found that the BB length listed for track use was too long. We had to move the chain ring to the inside position. Which brings up another point. They're not track cranks. They have platforms for rings on both sides. Doesn't affect the functionality, but make sure to note that if you're into the aesthetic.

They also have a 110 BCD.

Any reports as to stiffness, threading quality, any of the other things that are important in a crankset?
110BCD = take your pick of super cheap bmx chainrings when time comes to replace. After paying the standard $40 for a 144 one, I'm all about it.

Not that I don't run a converted 110 double about 75 miles a week, but all things being equal a craptacular 130 is better than a craptacular 110, especially if you want to run cheap chainrings. Stiffer spider and whatnot, and rocket rings can use either size. Also, there are some hot deals going on at Harris for NOS shimano stuff, they'll sell you 165 sora with a ring size of your choice for like $70. Also old ultegra 165 with chainrings for $100, old 105 with chainrings for $80. Sora is made better than any cheap track/SS shizz, and I pity the fool that thinks spending more money is going to get you better stuff than early 90's ultegra.

Landgo: For the layman, could you explain the difference between 110 and 130 BCD? I searched the forums and found nothing, and Sheldon's definition is pretty benign. How crucial is a 20mm difference in bolt circle diameter? (I'm just mouthing words; don't know what I'm talking about....)

The physical difference amounts to how far apart the bolts are on the ring/crank. This is measured as the diameter of the circle that would pass through the center of all 5 holes, which I'm pretty sure was chosen specifically because it's damn near impossible to actually measure. But you can cheat; for a 110 the adjoining holes are 65mm apart center-to-center, and for 130 they're 77mm apart.

As for the performance advantage, the spider arms are stiffer than any chainring is ever going to be, so all things being fairly equal you want to have more spider and less chainring. Chainrings do get a lot of off-axis forces, think about how they get pulled when the frame flexes even a little. Or skip the thinking and check out the pic below, it happened at the no-nos sprints in Chicago. From a performance standpoint this is why 144 is worth f***ing with on the track, though chainring sizes have as much to do with marketing as anything else. 144 is an old campy size that's still used for track, and back when dinosaurs roamed the velodrome there was even a 151 setup; some old campy track cranks can use 144 or 151. Now campy mostly uses 135, which miche has picked up as well. This makes less of a difference if you use really sexy chainrings; I use cheap BMX crap, like the rocket rings, which are drilled for 110 and 130.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/54/143776124_ee9f6e9427.jpg

This bike was a peugeot conversion where the original crank that had a one-piece chainring and right crank assembly was used. After seeing this I won't do conversions this way any more, I believe that the inner ring bolted to these things provides necessary support to the outer ring. Really a pity, I was all set to use a stronglight 49D crankset on an upcoming project. The 49D's I have look like this right nyah:

http://images.andale.com/f2/115/106/3561856/1100290761259_cranks_stronglight_49d_10_20.jpg

and the bike would have looked something like that right nyah:

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/49/110725851_dd7d0948df.jpg

PS: If anyone in chicago has a stronglight crank puller (22.35mm), I have beer for you.

They require 118mm BB spindles..? These cranks are old mtb triple conversions?? I'd hate to see what the chainline is.

Wow! Thank you. I actually understand now!
I doubt I'll ever generate enough torque to bend a chainring like that on my commute. Also, I'm looking for cranks for a converted road singlespeed; right now I'm using the inner chainring on a double that can't be separated. (Or at least the 42 inner ring can come off; the spider is inseparable from the 52t ring. What can I say? It's an 1982 Fuji.) I'm liking the singlespeed (and maybe thinking of going fixed when the days get long again), and I figured that if I wanted to put money into this bike, decent cranks wouldn't hurt.

I recently bought one of these cranks. They're super light, and cool looking, but the threads, where the pedal meets the crank arm, are chinsy. It de-threaded the first day.

They're junk. Came stock on my Origin8. I talked to the salesman who came down to the LBS a while back about them and he apologized and recently sent me a replacement. It still sucks.

Otherwise, Origin8 isn't the worst stuff I've been riding.

I got mine for $65 from my lbs and after my first day they stripped. I can't find any warranty information on the origin8 site. Did I just blow $65?

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/54/143776124_ee9f6e9427.jpg

whoa, nice necropost
i've been looking for that pic, remembering/wondering where i first saw it

a guy i sometimes rides w/ has the origin-8 cranks and has had numerous problems between the chainring bolts slipping up and the left crankarm coming loose

try taking it back to the lbs

1) Try searching the forum before asking. I posted about these cranks, and I know others have.

2) Why are you all saying it is 110mm bcd? They are 130mm bcd.

Personally I'd rather grab some old Shimano 105 or Ultegra cranks, which can be had for less than the Origin8 track crank, but you'd probably be fine with the Origin8.

I think people are getting the two sets of O-8 cranks confused. They make a set that is 130bcd and an set that is 110.
The set w/ 110 are RPMs (like Bulletproofs) with different branding. I had a set that required a 103mm BB in order to keep my chainline with my chainring on the outside! Never had a problem with them, though.

We have sold hundreds of these- probably 1 in a 100 come back with stripped pedal threads (not sure whose fault most of the time) The company covers them 100% every time for us- great guys to work with. The old ones (with no chainring) came as 110. The new ones use 130bcd. We have been pairing the new ones up with a 103mm Token BB and it comes out real nice

1) Try searching the forum before asking. I posted about these cranks, and I know others have.



this thread was necro'd as the result of a search. broken record?

origin 8 track cranks are fine if installed properly, they arent so expensive so the failure rate is obv going to be higher, but i've ridden worse.