E*Thirteen have been in the chain device game for a while now, but their cranks are a much newer addition to the product range. We’ve been running e*thirteen's SRS+ chainguide and LG1+ downhill cranks for six months of racing and riding - ample time to weed out the good and the bad from any DH product - and to produce this double long-term product review.
e*thirteen LG1+ Cranksete*thirteen LG1+ Crank Specifications:
- P3 Connect Polygon BB axle interface (German DIN 32711-P3)
- Forged, CNC-machined aluminium arms
- 14mm pedal-thread engagement
- 165mm/170mm/175mm crank-arm lengths
- Electrolessly nickel plated 30mm steel spindle
- 870g claimed (880g actual)
- MSRP: $274.95 USD (Cranks, hardware, no chainring), BB with tools: $49.95
The Back StoryThings always go wrong at the eleventh hour and of course, it was for this reason that I ended up with this hastily arranged test. Having destroyed yet another chain device and crank just before leaving for the MSA and Windham World Cups, Silverfish, e*thirteen's UK distributor, stepped in for the rescue. After chatting with the guys it appeared that although the LG1+ cranks could be made to work with the dedicated chainguide of my Intense M9, e*thirteen's SRS+ guide would be a better choice, so a 40-tooth SRS+ was duly ordered. Now, 40-tooth rings may be a bit 90’s Tomac-esque, but my legs simply don’t go round fast enough for a smaller chainring. (I'll admit though, that the increased ground clearance of a smaller ring would be welcome on certain tracks.) The crank-axle was of course, 83 millimeters, with the obligatory race-spec, 165mm arms for extra clearance when pedaling on the big bike.
Smooth lines on the reverse of the left crank arm (left) show minimal areas for mud to build up. Pedal threads allow for a full 14 millimeters of engagement. The crankarm's P3 Polygon interface (right) and its retained bolt, which acts as a self-releasing mechanism - a standard 8mm hex key is all you need.
LG1+ Crank DetailsIt is important to note ahead of time that e*thirteen made a few changes on the crankset mid-way through our long-term testing, the most significant being a switch from a steel bottom bracket axle to an
aluminum alloy version. The change of material will alter the stiffness of the BB axle to a degree, but based upon experience with similar diameter aluminium BB axles, it shouldn't be a make-or-break change in the crank's performance.
Polygonal interface: A lot has been said in the past about e*thirteen’s three-sided polygonal interface, used on the oversize 30mm axle of LG1+ cranks. The idea behind it is that it maintains better contact under load than a standard ‘toothed’ spline and therefore, requires less material to produce a stiffer, stronger and lighter connection through which to transmit power. The gold looking coating is in fact a nickel based finish which is electrolessly applied and helps provide wear resistance. The electroless technique is used here as it provides a more even coating density than the alternative electrolysis, a small difference perhaps but they do add up.
Crankarms: Hitting the scales at 870g, the majority of the crank's mass centres around that oversized axle when held in your hands, although the crank still manages to maintain an impression of solidarity throughout. The arms themselves are firstly forged from proprietary EXA+ aluminium blanks before extensive machining of unwanted material. The overall design is neat and integrated, and thanks to its minimal tight corners and smooth lines on the reverse side, excess mud doesn’t get trapped and that makes things easy to clean up after the dirtiest of rides.
(clockwise) The LG1 bottom bracket axle's polygonal shape is also tapered to ensure a secure fit. Stainless races and effective sealing come together for an impressively durable bottom bracket that has yet to succumb to the Scottish (and Canadian) elements. Nothing is left out of the package, with chainring hardware and a full set of tools included.
Bottom Bracket: On first sight, the LG1 bottom bracket may just be yet another irritating standard. The dedicated BB is required, of course, to accept that oversized axle on the cranks. Look closer and e*thirteen has included the tool for that unique oversized cup, negating the need for a separate purchase - and the BB tool even allows the use of a standard X-Type tool as its driver. If for any reason, you don't have the proper tool, e*thirteen BB cups fit a standard 12-point 45mm socket, which you should be able to find relatively easily in even the most backwater of towns. The standard, 6806 bearings in the bottom bracket are a neat touch too and allow for quick and painless replacement when the inevitable time arises. To ensure that the bearings stay their best for as long as possible, there are additional plastic crud shields which create ample space for packing in grease during assembly. This all greatly aids sealing and improves longevity. Six months in, testifying to this, the bearings still spin freely and smooth.
Pinkbike's Take: | In our six months with e*thirteen's LG1+ cranks, they've remained creak free and despite the low weight, the 165mm arms felt as stiff in use as my previous Shimano Saint's. I liked the weight, the simplicity and the reliability, but there is no escaping that they are an expensive and a relatively boutique product. Some riders will not like the lack of steel pedal inserts, but given the crank's target market, this isn't a huge issue. Despite numerous hard hits, the threads are still perfect on our test cranks. Another niggle was the anodizing on the crank arms which to us, was a little on the soft side and easily marked. In a dry environment this may be less of an issue, but in the UK and other parts of the world, the crankarms look tatty very quickly, thanks to heel rub. This is a shame, given how great they look when you pull them out the box. That aside, the whole setup has proven to be reliable, well made and very easy to work on, whilst not weighing as much as the Bismarck - something that downhill cranks of old were very close to doing. On this basis, the LG1+ cranks, with their good balance of strengths, are certainly a product to recommend. - Alasdair MacLennan |
e*thirteen SRS+ ChainguideThe SRS+ device is one which has been around for a few years now in this current guise and is a world apart in many ways from the earlier guides that e*thirteen produced. They may have been strong but they were also pretty hefty but that’s not a criticism that could be levelled at their current offerings. Not only are they now one of the lightest guides available, they are also still one of the strongest and most reliable. This all comes through better material knowledge, more experience on the World Cup circuit and of course the challenge from riders looking for a better trade between weight and strength than in the past.
SRS+ Guide Specifications
- EXA+ Aluminium Back plate
- 32-36T or 36-40T (tested)
- IFD (Impact Flexure Design)Turbocharger polycarbonate bashguard
- Replaceable and adjustable wear plate design and Tech 3 Stealth Idler
- Captured gold EXA+ aluminum hardware
- Adjustable-angle lower back plate arm accommodates nearly all chainstay designs
- Mounting standard: ISCG-05 (bb w/adp) or ISCG-03
- Colors: black and white
- 195g claimed for 36t (224g actual for 40t)
- MSRP: $149.95 USD
New bash ring: The bash guard is not only thinner, but also pocketed and thankfully, significantly lighter than virtually any other currently on the market. In effect, there is now a thick outer band which provides the protection, supported by ribs which allow a certain degree of flex and thus resiliency (in e*Thirteen’s words: 'IFD - Impact Flexure Design.') when being hammered against solid obstacles in the trail. The chainring bolt recesses are reinforced using aluminium inserts and from our experience using other guides, this is definitely a good thing. All too often the guard is able to take the impact but it is the flanges that the bolts sit against which fail.
The boomerang: The rest of the guide is attached to the boomerang, which is a two piece affair: the lower portion providing three mounting positions to allow optimal setup on even the most problematic of bikes. Plastic wear plates then attach to this boomerang, the lower including a jockey wheel to keep the chain in check. We found that it went together easily, with minimal fuss, and was about as simple as you could hope for to adjust.
Performance Report It was difficult to find fault with the complete SRS+ package. We did encounter a few issues in our time, but they were either minor or self inflicted, rather than the fault of the parts. Firstly, were the two aluminium bolts which were used to hold the lower portion of the boomerang in place. Designed as a fuse to prevent excessive force being transmitted, one sheared on us and so we elected to replace all bolts on the device with some steel and titanium items (the lower guide actually comes with a steel option in the box so you can make your own choice between strength and weight). Issue number two in one way actually showed the energy dissipation and resilience of the bash guard after we went through a couple of them at both Mont Saint Anne and Windham. Both situations involved big rocks, speed, missing a line and a hefty dose of brute force (in other words, a fair bit of rider error). What was great to see, was the way that the bash guard absorbed the impact, reducing the forces transferred to the chain ring tabs on the cranks, and helping things to stay straight, enabling the runs to be completed on both occasions.
Matching collars and cuffs - everything goes together smoothly and with full colour co-ordination. Even the most troublesome swingarms and pivots can to be accommodated by e*thirteen's comprehensive chainguide system.
Pinkbike's Take: | Although the assembly of several linked components from the same manufacturer should be a straightforward process, experience doesn't always agree. However, in the case of the e*thirteen LG1+ crankset and the SRS+ chainguide, it was about as simple as you could hope for - all aided by the inclusion of the specific tools needed, both T25 and T30 Torx keys, as well as the specific tool for the oversized bottom bracket cups. Throwing in a little grease, some trial and error on the spacers required for the chain device, and the setting of the boomerang to the middle bolt hole saw it all lined up, clearing the lower VPP pivot and working smoothly. - Alasdair MacLennan |
Updates for 2012:With the LG1+ cranks being in effect, the 2011 model year, there have been a couple of updates to the cranks for 2012 (some of which are mentioned in our 2011 Eurobike coverage
here):
• The crankset design now splits into three models: the LG1, the LG1+ and the LG1r. All now utilise an aluminium axle over the steel item featured on our test pair to save 60g. The LG1r (race) features further machining to relieve another 60g and so bring about a product 120g lighter yet with equal strength and stiffness.
• The bottom bracket, as with the LG1r crank, is now more heavily machined and houses angular contact bearings. The LG1+ and LG1r both feature Ti-Nitride coated BB axles for greater durability, aided further by lip seals in the cups. By how much these improve things, we obviously can’t say without testing, but given that our existing bearings are still running smoothly, we are optimistic that they'll not disappoint.
• And finally, given the proliferation of new bottom bracket fitments (PF30, BSA, BB92 and BB30), e*thirteen have taken the decision to sell the LG1 BB system separate to the cranks. This ensures that those running anything other than a standard setup aren't left with a BB they have no use for.
Check out
e13components.com for the rest of the range.
This interface could be useful in constant load applications, but in a crankset it's on/off/on/off as you pedal. Splines are vastly superior in this application.
All that's happening here is advertising and placebo affect.
Haven't you heard of the morse taper? The principle here is the same, and the polygon interface removes the need for a drive tang.
The axle and cranks are both Aluminium. If they're machined closely and the fit is as described then of course it's going to work. Any surface irregularity will be compressed and any slight difference in taper will more than be accommodated by the elasticity of the material. Aid this with a correctly tightened fastener and you've got a problem free zone.
Splines are not superior where cyclic loads are concerned because inevitably they'll introduce stress concentrations at the roots or crests of their profiles which could lead to cracks. The lobes win again with their smoothness.
The biggest difference is that the stress concentrations in splines aren't on the the interface surfaces.
Of course an undersized spline could crack, but what would an undersized polygon do? Think about where the highest stress is here, and you'll see that it will changes the interface shape as you add stress, and cause wear as the stress is applied and removed. Also think about the material elasticity that allow your taper to fit, then apply uneven surface pressure (both because of the cantelevered drive and the taper). Arguing that undersized splines can fail is like arguing that an XC bike isn't strong enough for DH. Of course that can be true. A properly sized spline is the answer.
Also-for the last few years these cranks have been steel splindle, aluminum arms and they have creaked like mofos.
All parts wear out. might as well buy the cheapest gears, chain guides, and bash guards and ride your hardest till it breaks. I have the cheapest e13 bash guard and banged it around a good bit and not one problem yet. who cares what parts are made of. if it breaks its broke. same goes for a rear derailleur. People that spend $200 for a derailleur are idiots. one loose twig or crash and BAM its broke. get the cheap crap so when it breaks it wont break your wallet either.
It is also stiffer due to the above attributes which would mean a far greater force would be required to create any play compared to that of both square taper and splined design.
Some other people have mentioned about hearing allot of issues with the cranks and how they have creaked from day one. There are a few things that this could easily be due to rather than the crank set alone. If they are replacing the current BB system and have not properly cleaned out the threads from the old cups and installed the new ones this could cause the creaking. They maybe did not put grease between the cup and BB interface in the frame. They have not tightened the crank arm interface to the correct torque.
not stating that there may have been an issue with one of the production runs either. The tolerance may be off slightly or the crank/axle interface may have been compromised but from seeing the cranks installed on a few dozen bikes I would go for user error personally and would happily use the cranks myself if they sort out the finish so that they don't look abused within a week of riding.
Cranks I've not had that experience as others, I've hated them, not as stiff s everyone makes out, mine were noisy and actually had movement on the non drive side from day one, I always thought it was a sloppy bushing in my Straitline flats it drove me crazy, over a couple of months the noise creaking became so unbearable after a 2 week road trip where I swapped pedals out and anything else I thought might be creaking as I was sure the cranks could not be the problem, well they were, I went back to my LBS said take these off put back on my 3 year old RF Atlas FRs and Diablous BB and man so good still light and silent no weird left side issues and totally silent ad smooth too not a new BB by any means either. I have had XO cranks on order for some time I've been so impressed by my old FRs I may even cancel that order. If it works and ant broke why fix something that performs worse for sake of new, RF top end cranks have never disappointed me, I wanted to try something else just to see the other side of the fence, sometimes works sometimes doesn't. Still good luck to them they make sick products but I won't be buying the cranks again.
Cheers..
matter to most and theres obviously a lot of sifference to the prices frlm country to country. But here gamuttis products are waaaaay better comparing prices also..
All brands have had they're fair share execution issues and sometimes the right fit for someone is not the right fit for others, I've heard of horror stories with RF but yet I've ridden RaceFace from Turbines to Deus/Atlas std/Diablous/Atlas FRs hard for well over 15 years and never once had an issue, products rec's are hard sometimes you have to find out the hard way, I stick with what works for me these days rather than going over the fence, everything time I've gone to see if the grass is greener it backfires on me haha.
hence why I only use e13 chain ring on all my bikes, trail to DH single ring only. Wish they only still made the Ali stem regret selling mine!
I have this guide on my bike and it has worked well so far, except for the pulley keeps seizing up. I had no issues with the pulley on other e-Thirteen guides, though.