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Old 11-24-22, 07:46 AM
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jolly_codger
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Early Klein Crankset Question

On a lark I bought a very nice condition + reasonably priced + awesomely purple 1990 Klein Quantum online thinking I would make a few updates to it and would have a kick-arse ride come springtime. Unbeknownst to me, these early Kleins have an oddball bottom bracket design, i.e. a 119mm spindle running in press fit bearings in a 76mm wide shell . I remember lusting after a Klein back in the day and do not recall ever hearing about this quirk in any of the groups I rode with or shops I frequented. (Frankly, I find it hard to believe that someone as smart as Gary Klein thought this was a good idea.) I have done a lot of online searching about my options and know that I am stuck with what it is but I am wondering if the strange dimensions of the BB were taken into account in establishing the chainline of these bikes. The bike has a full 8-speed era Shimano 105 group and looking at the crank it looks like a normal crank and not some one-off freak to match the Klein's BB.I want to swap the 105 out for something with a 110mm BCD to run chainrings much less than 52/39 (age and locale make this a must-have for me and I do not want to go with some pizza sized cassette) but most of the affordable options call for spindle lengths of 110 - 113mm (or some proprietary taper design; I am looking at you Sugino). I worry that installing something like these is going to result in shifting and/or chain rub issues. A compact double is my first choice but if is not an option, I will go with the option of running 50/34 chainrings only on a suitable triple crankset that usually use 118mm spindles. Thank you for taking the time to read this and I am confident someone in C&V land will offer some sage insights about Kleins and their chainlines.
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