Hey all,
Just got a 2004 Surly Steamroller frame and am looking for some advice on a good BB and Crankset to get. I'm not fantastically rich or anything but not dirt-cheap either (or maybe I am), so maybe below the $100 mark (?).

Someone recommended the Shimano LX BB and some a 105 Crankset - is that any good? I'm riding in Portland, OR - so, lots of rain.

I looked in the other posts for something similar to this question, so I apologize if it has been posted before.

Thanks for the help,
Jonathan

I'd get a cartridge style BB for Portland commuting, etc. Caged BBs might take the water too "personally"...plus cartridge BBs are pretty cheap to replace.

Sora Cranks 165mm - Harris Cyclery. A good friend has a set and they seem to fit the bill and then some. Not sure what BB he has lined up with them though...SKITBRAVIKING: Where be ya?

Those two combined should be reasonably priced for your wallet!

Im running a un52 bb and old 105 cranks on mine. anything squaretaper's good in my book. for rain riding Id absolutely avoid ISIS, I've never tried octalink. if I were shopping for them today, I'd look at a raceface taperlock BB and some old 105 or similair cranks.

I was just looking into cranks myself. But my question is a bit more of fashion over function (this is for my pretty bike as opposed to the utility bike

So I am looking for attractive crank arms (rest of the group is good enough for now) and I dont want to spend too much money. But since I started my search, I cant help but find that every crankset is really ugly. The only one i like is the campy record, but as I said I dont want to spend too much money. I have these ugly bulletproof ones I want to replace. 110 or 130 bcd preferred. i got a XTR 68X110 tapered BB.

Anyone have ideas? Pics of cranks they really like?

The Sora cranks with a 110 Shimano cartridge bearing BB gives a nice chainline, ~42mm, and don't cost a whole lot. If you can find Shimano 600, 105, RX100, or RSX cranks in 165mm, they'd probably work pretty well too.

sillygirl

I know what you mean about bike vanity, the Bulletproof cranks are pretty hideous, especially if you compare them to the Campy Record Pista (https://www.bikeophile.com/store/index.php?cat_id=10&catname='Cranks%20&%20BB's').

I think that the Sugino RDs are pretty minimalist as are the Sora's. I saw a Ritchey Comp crank that was pretty sweet - maybe you could explore that option.

Another question, now that I'm thinking about it - if I'm on a 59cm Steamroller, is 170mm for the crank length too long? Is there a recommended length?

Thanks,
Jonathan

Oh and thanks for the replies guys, this is really helpful.

get the sugino rd crankset (80 bucks from sheldon, 65 on ebay) pretty rad looking, and I"m sure you can get a cartridge bb for under 20 bucks, definetely under 35...that's the way to go..

-jason