Trying for a poll here, never done one, not sure how it works.

Originally had 3 and have added at least one more.

Campy triple, 48, 42, 36







Sugino Super Maxy




TA rings on Super Maxy crank





Big S Flag





Also have a Red Clover Triple with Campy, no pics yet hasn't been on the bike yet but did get spindles sorted out.

i vote sugino with original rings as 1st place and specialized flag in 2nd

edit: are all cranks the length you like best ? i'd also factor in my preferred crank length into the decision

Duly noted and the Super Maxy's are the longest at 185 while being the least robust having had the last 2 spiders came loose.

The TA setup would probably get the nod as they were used early on. The Flag crank is pretty bad shape, the arms were badly eroded in spots, I spent time filing, sanding and smoothing then found a lot on the rings so not likely they will get the nod either.

Length not too critical as this won't get a ton of use and less of it off road.

The Campy is most likely as I will run the derailleurs to begin with for fun to begin with.

But as always, we'll see.

For looks I like the Super Maxy with TA rings, but on a heavy early mountain bike that is not the most robust crankset ever made, and 185 (?!?) don't those pedals drag on the ground?

Campy is a close second for looks and probably better for function.

It has crazy BB height, I think the 185's were built for these, the TA was from a road set, I will be on the lookout for some smaller rings.

The Campy will probably get the nod for now, appreciate the input but we'll see.

Van, I knew you had long legs--- but 185mm crank arms!!!! WOW!

You know, the trend now is to go with shorter arms for more efficiency.

But before you ride the Campy--- please add more chainring bolts to the granny. And if you need one, I can provide a Suntour Perfect/ProCompe/Winner with a 38T low gear.

the most difficult thing about running a campy triple isn't acquiring the crank. Its getting the right bottom bracket at the right length.

Also, to me the campy triple was a design afterthought. the smallest gear just isn't that small.

The specialized crank. Trying to remember if that is by avocet or sugino. Its gearing is perfect for riding up Mt. Scott. I'd go with that.

Ask yourself: WWJD?? *





* What Would Jim Do?

A century grey Centaur triple!

Just so everyone knows, the advantage of a correct poll thread is that it makes it easy to see what the preferences are for all the voters.

FYI, I never tried a 185 and suspect it would be nice for riding not involving lots of steep turning like the Stumpy riding in the dirt mtn biking trails.

I like the Sugino SM cranksets and have never had issues with inner rings coming loose but I also mostly ride on the big rings.

I gotta ask: Are you actually going to ride this thing or are you just setting it up for show?

But the Flag shows wear consistent with the frame. For looks, T/A.

I think TA factory for these? The super maxy looks right.

I certainly love campy. But I agree with Robvolz on the gearing. If you have the red clover ring I’d use that so you can get a smaller granny.

My vote goes for the Super Maxy with the wider range of gears.
Plus, I can actually read the model. No idea why people use cell phones for detailed photos.

Save the campy for a road bike build, just seems a bit out of place for a MTB build. I had a campy record crank crack and snap an arm (causing me to crash hard), I would be hesitant to ever trust an older campy record crank again.

The Mighty crank does look the part for the bike, the one time I used a TA style all the layers of cranks the chainring bolts were constantly squeaking, always drove me crazy to ride.

Even though it looks a bit more modern, I would prefer using the Specialized flag (sugino manufactured?) crank. There is a good selection of chainrings available for the 110mm bolt pattern that make those easy to customize. The crank is forged and has a nice satin finish.

This is what Jim would do.

Good question Neal, some of both maybe, this is just a mockup for now, off road will not be its main purpose but it will get some miles so we'll see.

Looks like you accomplished "polling" without a "poll". The option to add a poll to a new thread is below the "Submit new thread" button:

The TA is rings only on another Maxy and they are big as it was a road set, I can get down to a 31 on the Campy if I want, won't be a lot of offroad so not critical.

I tried that, still bungled it and it didn't work.

Ha, I seen that a while back. Using 165mm.
Personally, it feels similar to trying to walk with your shoestrings tied together.

I have half a dozen Campy triples, been stocked up for quite awhile, most came without small rings but stockpiled those along the way too.

The Campy would be a bit tongue in cheek, I won't be riding much off road, got nothing for hills, don't really ride that hard and Jim was a fan so I don't think there's much danger.

Did yours break at the sharp edge between the spider and the arm and had it been filed down?

I always use a small round file on them never even seen a cracked one but know there are many due to the sheer volume of them.

Also know many broke at the pedal eye and think that also was partly sheer volume and many a herculean effort put out by many who rode them.

Campy's QC was probably at its limit plenty of times along the way.

The Flag crank had to be worked over a bunch, satin finish mostly gone from filing and sanding deep scratches and bad corrosion, there's a lot more on the outer ring that I won't go after.

I'll keep an eye out for a nicer one but not really a priority for the cost with so many options.

pastorbobnlnh

Especially with long legs, I swapped some crank arms on the big silver Merz one time when I lowered the small triple ring, went to test ride it and thought .

I had swapped in some 170's for the 175 and it felt like peddling through mud, I had shortcut something so had to sort it for Crater Lake the next day.

The frame will get something later, this mockup will be a full build to see how far I want to go and may end up very nice, or not.

I tried and bungled it I guess.

I know the Stumpy's are long and some don't like the handling, I have a smaller one that seems fine but not a big MTB rider/guy so....

This one is my size so I will ride it some and take it off road so will see, probably will try the 185's just to see, had some 180's on the Strawberry and they were magic, 177's now and still good, may put the 180's back on.

The loose Sugino was a Super Maxy like these, it worked the swage loose at the crank/spider interface, I suspect it had been hammered on way too much.

Functionality wise, great call, aesthetically, no bueno on this.