Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Crank length

Aside from peddle strike, what are the considerations of longer cranks vs shorter cranks?

It will also affect the rpm's that you can ultimately sprin. Shorter=faster, longer=not so fast. Gross generalization here but definately a big factor to consider.

Dave

in addition, shorter cranks make pushing larger gears harder as there is less leverage; once your momentum is up, larger gears 'get' easier. I ran 180s on my now-gone MTB SS for hills. For a true street fix/track, I'd run 165s with a more approachable gear ratio.

in addition, shorter cranks make pushing larger gears harder as there is less leverage; once your momentum is up, larger gears 'get' easier. I ran 180s on my now-gone MTB SS for hills. For a true street fix/track, I'd run 165s with a more approachable gear ratio.

By default I'm running a 170's on 44:16.

Seems nice.... I've got no reason to change.. but I'm just wondering if there's a better way to go.

i have 170s on a traditional track bike (700c front and rear) and 165 of my pursuit bike. i used to have the 170s on there, but i could really feel the length on them. it felt like i was high-stepping and it seemed to take forever to get the pedals around. it ws a really weird feeling and i actually started to wonder if i was really feeling it, or if i created the feeling as an excuse to buy new cranks. i bought the 165s and everything felt tons better on that bike. plus since they are actual track cranks and super stiff, the bike feels extra snappy, compared to when i had old school dura ace road cranks on it and the 170s feel just right on the other one.

Agree on 165's. I used a set of 170's on my track bike before I went to the shorter cranks because of the same feeling of "high stepping' when the cranks rotated. With the switch to 165's, that feeling went away. I do know some people advocate using the same length as you would use for your other road multi bikes so as not to confuse muscle memory but I don't know if that is a valid reason as I don't ride multi so it is a non issue for me. My spin is smoother with the shorter cranks.


fixedgearhead

i have 170s on every other bike that i own (except my BMX which has 175s) and i haven't noticed a difference. the only time i noticed a difference was when i initially switched to 165s on that one bike. it just felt so much smoother. now, everything feels just right on all of my bikes.

isn't it funny how 5mm on each crank arm can make so much difference?

Also the use of steep angle 100mm+reach stems on track bikes places your chest closer to the top tube which makes it more likely that you will feel the proximity of your knees with every pedal stroke. At least that was my feeling and the primary reason I went with 165's, cornering pedal strike being the other issue.

fixedgearhead

Aside from peddle strike, what are the considerations of longer cranks vs shorter cranks?
One other thing might be pedal overlap on the front wheel in a turning situation. This can limit tighter turns also...should have seen this in my original post.

One other thing might be pedal overlap on the front wheel in a turning situation. This can limit tighter turns also...should have seen this in my original post.

I don't have strait track forks, so it's not an problem with mine on the 170's.