bonsai171

Hello,

I am currently running Sugino VP130 road cranks (circa early 80's) on my Kilo tt. Been thinking about swapping it out for some SRAM Omniums. Would it be worth the upgrade?

Thanks,

Dave

Surly2698

SRAM Omniums are a lot stiffer than the road cranks you are using.
They are 144 bcd and 1/8 so you will need to change the crank set , the bottom bracket, chain, and the rear cog.
Thats a lot of money in my book.
Keep an eye on Ebay or Craigs list for a used set.
Good luck.

mihlbach

Do you know that for sure, or is that an inference you are making because the Omnium is billed as a track component? It might be stiffer, but what is "a lot" stiffer?

Personally, I wouldn't upgrade cranks for a moderate (and possibly imperceptible) change in stiffness. Possibly more tangible reasons to upgrade are: (1) the 144BCD of track cranks is compatible with highly refined 1/8" track chainrings which maintain a more even chain tension than most 130BCD road chainrings, (2) and possibly narrower Q which may feel more ergonomic and more comfortable (for certain people).

ThermionicScott 

Please show your work on why the cog would need to be changed.

Drynald

A lot people on my place use that crankset, they said its stiff but liked it.

The only trouble with it r the hollowtech bb, they said the threaded thing will worn out in short time (i dont know the exact word in english to explain, but i hope u get what i mean!)
So some people keep the original one and buy other ht bottom bracket

Scrodzilla

It's comforting to see that people on this forum are still 100% insane.

bonsai171

I already run a 1/8 cog and 1/8 chain. Only thing I could see changing would be if a longer chain is needed after swapping out the bb and crankset.

Dave

ThermionicScott 

That's legit. I was curious if our guy knew that you can run a 1/8" chain on a 3/32" cog.

bonsai171

Is that Elvis I see in the woods? LOL

bonsai171

Kinda makes me wonder. A 1/8 cog and 3/32 cog are only 1/32nd of an inch difference in width if you do the math. Is a 1/8 chain really that much stronger??

Dave

bonsai171

A well machined 1/8 chainring should be more round. Sounds like that's what you're alluding to. Never really had an perceptible issue with chain tension, but I might just go to the omniumns bc I'm building up a single speed for my dad and need a crankset for it.

The 1/8 chainring could be quieter too since I'm running a 3/32 chainring and 1/8 cog.

ThermionicScott 

It may remain academic for me. I've never snapped a chain of any width.

seau grateau

Stronger riders use narrower chains all the time. Aside from the entire road, MTB, and CX worlds, top level track racers have won Olympic races on 11 speed width chains and sprockets: https://bikerumor.com/2017/03/09/bfs...xed-gear-bike/
Strength doesn't seem to be an issue. As for whether these parts have the durability and longevity of 1/8 track equipment, my gut says probably not.

bonsai171

Hope you get lucky! I snapped my first one last year after over 20 years of riding. Must be my massive quads :-p lol

Zdawg

What's a good alternative to the SRAM Omniums in terms of stiffness - since they've been discontinued?

I have a slight bias towards two-piece, external bottom bracket cranksets but really stiff square-taper cranksets are welcome too.

Personally, I only know of the Alpina Track crankset which reminds me of the omniums but have never ridden them so can't say how stiff they are

geomiko

SRAM replaced the Omniums with the S300 Courier Crankset, and I've heard good reviews. The main difference is that the S300 uses a 130 BCD chainring, rather than the 144 BCD that Omniums (and most track cranksets) use. Seems worth the savings, some people are selling Omniums on eBay for $400 since they don't make them any more. Supply and demand is weird sometimes.

I've also had good luck with All City track cranks. They're about $100, 144 BCD and available at lots of LBS. Decently stiff and durable.

Cheers

veganbikes

This is an older thread but to prevent misinformation, they didn't replace with the S300 they had both in the line up and just dropped the Omnomnomns. If I were looking for an external B.B. Crank it would be Sugino DD75 all the way. If I was more budgety I would go Andel Deluxe or the newer Suzue Pro Max cranks. I would not go SRAM for cranks the GXP is not for me. Give me a spindle that is the same on both sides and can be spaced as needed or I would rather just go square taper which is easy to find. 130 or 144 BCD doesn't matter so much though most track stuff is 144 so you have higher quality options for the average person 130 will do the trick.