Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Compact Double, Toil and Trouble.

I've been considering upgrading the ol' crankset and upon doing some research (searching the forums and Sheldon Brown) it's come to my attention that a compact double crankset might be a more flexible option in terms of upgrade. I mean, no knocking track cranks, but from what I've found, certain compact double road cranks utilize 130 BCD chainrings instead of the more common 110.

Any recommendations of such cranks? I think the Shimano 600 comes in a 130 BCD setup, but my memory fails to verify the validity of the fact. Are there really any other options in this variety of crankset?

My logic is buy a multi-purpose crank that can someday work its way onto my geared bike (10s retro Peuget--currently out of commission) if I can ever necessitate the sheer luxury of a track dedicated crank.

Any info appreciated.

compact road cranks are by definition 110BCD - pretty much for the fact that you can't get a ring smaller that 38T on a 130BCD crank
130's are "regular" shimano road cranks.

dude get sugino rds and be one with it they are single speed and 130bcd which by the way is very very common and very very inexpensive\


or if you want 110bcd get the fmf bmx cranks the sqaure taper arms are 18bucks right now fmfbmx.com

Hmmm. Again, I think I had my **** all mix'd up. I was probably thinking of the Sugino XDs which are just converted compact doubles right? In terms of stress exerted on the crank when setup for fixed, is there any noticeable difference between 110 and 130? I've seen pictures and heard horror stories of chewing up chainrings with smaller BCD getups.

depends on the ring size big rings and small bcd = trouble

I ride 600s and find them very good. They're easy on the eyes too, with a nice muscley "boxy" look. I don't see the point in getting a track crankset for my bike. For clearance + 42mm chainline on the outer ring I had to file the horizontal tabs that hold the inner ring in place back 1mm. YMWV with your frame of course.

130 BCD 1/8" chainrings are somewhat rare but easy enough to locate on the internets. There are at least three manufacturers out there that make rings in that spec.

Shimano 600 = good stuff. Definitely not compact cranks as already stated, but you could do a whole lot worse. They can also be found for pretty cheap.