mrblue

I bought a new bike because it was a good deal. It's a 2014 Cinelli Experience 105.

First, I have no idea where they get off calling it 105. The only things 105 on it are the shifters and rear derailleur. They graciously gave me a Tiagra front derailleur, Tektro brakes, a KMC chain, an FSA Omega crankset (50/34) and BB, and a Shimano (Tiagra?) 10-speed cassette.

Second, I think this mish-mash of parts Cinelli calls a "drivetrain" on my bike is mucking up the chainline. I'm getting slight chain rub on the smallest cog and largest chainring. The chain seems to be rubbing at an angle against the next cog, in the cassette (yup, even using the smallest cog/largest chainring combo).

Could this slight chain rub be remedied by switching the crankset and chain to Shimano? Or is this something inherent in 2x10 compact crankset set ups? You'll have to bear with me, I've always had triple cranksets. This is my first double.

Or maybe I should just trash the entire Shimano rig and replace with Campy?

In spite of the Frankenstein drive train, I do love the frameset.

Thanks.

loimpact

Front and rear derailer adjustments should remedy any of this rubbing in small/large and large/small.

Without something like a built-in trim (a la Ultegra/Dura Ace and/or Di2) you'll probably get a little cross chaining rub at any extreme angle but, again, just a good adjustment of the FD & RD should get you to good. 105 & Tiagra are both good stuff.

Chris Chicago

Where does the chain rub the bigger cog, between the cog and crank or between the cog and rd? Or both?

Dave Cutter

I might be misunderstanding what you've posted. But it sounds/reads to me like your posting about cross-chaining.


It is much easier to avoid the drastic cross over when using a triple gear set-up. But often when switching to an old style or compact two gear setup... it can be easy to forget the extreme angle which the chain is being forced into.

I wish I had found a better chart.

mrblue

When the chain is on the smallest cog and large chainring it rubs against the next cog in the cassette.

mrblue

Thanks, but the problem isn't so much "cross chaining." When I have the chain on the smallest cog and large chainring, it rubs against the next cog, in the cassette.

mrblue

It's almost as if the cassette is too wide for the crankset and there is "cross chaining" between the large chainring and smallest cog. The rubbing is against the next cog in the cassette.

Dave Cutter

That makes me wonder if you have the correct chain. The 10 and 11 speed cassettes have chains like a ribbon.

mrblue

I was actually wondering the same thing. The chain is a KMC and it does say "X10" on it. This, I assume, means it's a 10-speed chain, correct? Maybe I should try an 11-speed chain?

mrblue

Upon closer inspection, I think the chain is the correct size.

It's a matter of the chainline being off, which I think may be due to having a mish-mash of components that were not engineered to necessarily go together (Shimano, Campy, and SRAM are made to work in groups--FSA is not). The reason I think this is because the chain between the smallest cog and the large chainring is at a very slight outward angle, as if the cassette were too wide for the crankset. I think if were to replace the FSA crankset (never did like FSA very much) with a Shimano double 105 crankset the problem would be remedied.

Then again, who knows?

cpach

Nice looking bike.

All the components are, frankly, designed to go together. What kind of drivetrains do you think FSA and Tektro are expecting their components to be installed on? This kind of component mix is extremely common. You would do well to look at the full specs of any bike before weighing its value. Component mixes aren't evil--they're an attempt at cost control that I, too, would likely apply to a bike I specced myself. That said, a 105 crankset or brakes would most likely be a noticeable upgrade. Shimano, in particular, makes great brakes. Personally, I wouldn't mess with either unless I found the brake performance unsatisfactory (like I did with the Tektros on my Cannondale, although I think that may have been a mismatch with the new greater cable travel for 5700/6700/etc). Down the road I might also use Shimano chainrings on the FSA crank, but only when the chainrings had worn down.

It is normal for the smallest sprocket to be outboard of the front chainring, otherwise the chainline for most of the cassette would be terrible.

Your problem sounds like either the high limit setting on your rear derailleur is too high or the cable tension on your rear derailleur is too high, either of which would result in the rear derailleur being unable to travel as far out as it needs to to run clearly on the smallest cog.

jimc101

Standard industry practice, everyone else does it, there aren't many bikes out there with a complete groupset, and haven't been for years if ever.

bartel.michiels

It seems to me that the chainline isn't right. Isn't it possible that you need a longer BB: the lenght of the BB isn't always the same for a triple as for a compact.

jimc101

The bike in question has an external (FSA MegaExo) BB, so there isn't any chainline to adjust, road cranks/BB's with external or pressfit BB's have a standard chainline as the spindle is fixed with the BB shell @68mm(in the MegaExo's case).

All the part the OP has will play together just fine if correctly adjusted, which it sounds like they aren't.

bartel.michiels

Some external BB (shimano,..) comes with spacers (mostly 2.5 mm) to adjust the chainline. The type of FD (clamp on, E-type) require a different amount of spacers. For an E-type derailleur bracket it is one spacer, for clamp on it is 2 spacers (this is mentionned in the instructions for the shimano external BB).

cny-bikeman

Need to back up a bit. First, if the bike was purchased locally have you taken it back for evaluation? Secondly, you have concluded the chainline is off but have offered no indication that you have verified that assumption. A visual inspection from the rear should give some indication, or ideally actual measurement.

IF the chainline is off such that the cog is too far out, one reason would be an out of alignment rear triangle, which is not unheard of and very easy to determine with a string test. Do not go by Sheldon's pic - poor example. Run the string from the outside of one dropout around the head tube ending at the outside of the other dropout and pull taut, then measure the distance at the seat tube. If the string test is OK the only variables left are crank and cassette position.

jimc101

yes and no, your correct that some do, but these are all MTB specific ones, to take the BB shell to the MTB standard of 73mm, no road BB's do (@68mm shell), and the bike the OP has is a road bike.

Slash5

Is there really a problem? Does it make noise or is it trying to shift to the next cog?
I assume you have checked the rear wheel is in the dropouts straight and the quick release is tight? I don't know how many times I've played trying to get adjustments right and then loosened the quick release and heard the clunk as the wheel drops down into the dropouts.
Is the rear wheel centered between the chainstays and seat stays. Compare the setup with other bikes in a bike store. Could the spacers in the rear hub/axle be setup wrong from the factory?
I doubt the crank is going to make any difference.
Then try adjusting the rear derailleur limit screw and cable adjustment.

Bianchigirll 

Have you addressed this issue to the shop where you bought the bike?

Bike companies have been mixing matching components (much to the dismay of shimanos best attempts to prevent it) since bikes became mass produced. That bike in all 105 may have been $300 or more.

bartel.michiels

Thx, I didn't know that.

qclabrat

I've never seen a new Cinelli for sale at an LBS, is it still an Italian company or been sold to a Chinese company? I'm guessing the bike was bought online, otherwise the OP would have already been back to the LBS, which I would have done

mrblue

Actually the Cinelli was purchased from an "LBS." The shop isn't necessarily "local" per se. If you're familiar with SF Bay Area, you'll know what I mean. I live in SF and the shop is at the other end of the world, in the far reaches of the East Bay.

I happened to see the bike on ebay. The auction was nearing its end and it hadn't been bid on (it was a short auction, not even 24 hours), so I contacted the seller to see if they'd sell it in person, since the item location was local. He agreed to do so, quoted a sweet price and offered to assemble the bike for an extra fee. I opted to pay the assembly fee since the total price of the bike would still be quite reasonable.

I have not returned to the LBS. For a couple of reasons, I am DIY'er and really want to figure this out on my own. Second, I intend to upgrade the drive train eventually (either all 105 or replace with Campy). Third, the manager/mechanic whom I dealt with was either not too savvy when it comes to road bikes (the shop mostly deals with track and fixed gear bikes), or just didn't care (this person is not the owner, who sold me the bike).

When I picked up the bike the mechanic/manager did a lousy job assemlbing the bike. He merely threw it together and left it as is. The bar tape was wrapped like s**t. The cables looked like a rat nest. The front derailleur didn't shift despite me pointing out it didn't shift, after a test ride. Oh, he fiddled with it but I'm not sure what he did, because as soon as I got home I had to tighten the cable so the derailleur would move. And almost every bolt on the bike was at least one or two turns too loose.

So having said that, even though the shop is an authorized Cinelli dealer (not the only one in the Bay Area, mind you) I'll not be returning to them for anything based on the incompetence of the manager/mechanic. That's one thing I love about SF and the Bay Area, bikes shops are everywhere. I've established a repoire with a few shops in the city who often help out me, either free or for a nominal fee.

I'll fiddle with the bike. Make some adjustments. Then replace everything (as I am prone to do)

However all that fun must wait...I have to catch a flight to Japan.

mrblue

I would have gladly paid the extra $300 for a full 105 groupset. Especially since the price I paid for the complete bike was barely more than the price of the frameset alone. And, yes, it was new, from an authorized Cinelli dealer.

mrblue

It's not "problem" per se. It makes an annoying clicking sound. I will try adjusting the limit screw on the rear derailleur. I messed with the barrel adjuster but that didn't seem to remedy the issue.

Thanks.

demoncyclist

Proper chainline would be measured between the 2 front rings to the center of the cassette. There should be nothing wrong with an FSA crank/bb and otherwise Shimano components. If the bike was bought online, who assembled and adjusted it? If you expected it to be right as rain out of the box, you were expecting too much. If it was a brick and mortar purchase, have you brought it in to be checked out? Did it shift properly at purchase, and is now having issues? If so, it is probably just the cables bedding, and now requiring adjustment.