Rotor Q-Rings

Price Paid:  $200.00 at singapore

Favorite Ride:
any smooth roads

Bike Setup:
mix shimano form 105 hubs to ultegra fd and rd, to dura-ace cranks and sti. bontrager x lite wheelset and handle bar, zipp 808, hed trispoke.

Summary:
When i first saw the q-rings on Carlos Sastre when he won the tour de france 2008. i was amazed. Then i researched on osysmetric rings the bio pace of shimano. too make things short. i bought mine then put them on. On my cervelo Team soloist. I didn't even feel the difference but noticed i could last longer on the big chainring even on big climbs and long flats. even my teammates were surprised that i could keep up with them in the ttt.

Strengths:
awesome chainrings great on climbs and time trailing. bit expensive but worth it.

Weaknesses:
none

Similar Products Used:
dura ace

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
I've had these rings on for two months now,they seem to give less stress to the knees , however they seem to cause more stress to leg muscles and i have been much more prone to cramp when sprinting or climbing ,i'd say i don't climb as well with these or sprint as fast with these, but they do feel smoother if your on flat road or turbo trainer where your sitting down ,i'm going back to round rings , most of the teams in the tdf use round rings , Contador climbs and won on round rings and Cavendish sprints superfast on round rings ,i have gave them a good go though , but not for me as a road racer .

Strengths:
better on flats when you get use to them, less stress on knee joints.

Weaknesses:
I didn't find i would climb as good and definateley did not sprint as fast,made my leg muscles crap up nearly all the time .Far too expensive £148 , not worth the money .

Price Paid:  $260.00 at rotor

Bike Setup:
Use them on 4 mtbikes and 2 road bikes.

Summary:
I doubt that they yield any improvement in power output, otherwise the rotor - cervelo test team would have dominated the current tdf, which clearly they did not. Independent research doesn't show any advantage.

Having said that much, I love the smooth feel and when I ride on the rollers, they definitely feel better than round rings. Less pressure on the knees.

Shifting on the road bike is OK, but not great either - however, I once snapped a new top quality Wippermann chain when shifting the front under load - never happened to me with round rings.
They are great on a ss but useless on a mtb in muddy conditions.

The real problem is their price -way to expensive, unless a $100 extra mean nothing to you, they are just not worth it. They recently increased the price even more - are they crazy? I'm going back to round rings on my Mtb.

Strengths:
They feel smoother and might sometimes give a very small increase in power. Definitely good for the knees. Good quality.

Weaknesses:
Much too expensive and decrease in shifting performance.

Price Paid:  $200.00 at Competitive Cyclist

Favorite Ride:
road

Bike Setup:
Lemond Buenos Aires, FSA SLK Compact Crank, 9 Speed.

Summary:
I did extensive research on the Q-Rings before buying and I could not find anything wrong with them from creditable sources.
I now have 4,600 miles on these and I will not take them off. I am asked often if I am aware that I never shift off my big ring. My response is that when on flat land or rollers, I don't have to shift to my small ring. The Q-Rings give me extra power for the rollers. I also find that my pedaling is smoother and there is less stress on my knees.

Strengths:
Power (approximately 5%), smoother pedaling, less stress on the knees. Quick adjustment from round rings.

Weaknesses:
None

Similar Products Used:
None

Price Paid:  $185.00 at ebay

Favorite Ride:
hwy 1

Bike Setup:
Ti Crown Jewel, Campy, 404's, Rotors.

Summary:
These things are great. As the instructions say, you need to ride them for 400 miles, then play with positioning. I was starting to feel a bit of pressure in my knees, so I backed them off 1 position, and I've now put on 5,000 miles and never notice them at all - except when the cadence is over 170 then they get slightly more bumpy than round rings, but I don't spend much time up there. But listen to me - they really do work! They give you a virtual 55/36 - even though they index like a 52/39, you get more power on the downstroke and less resistance on the upstroke. That translates into more power and less heartrate - not huge, but at least 5%. You can really go faster, especially on the flats, where your quads are making the pedalstroke seem easier. These things are worth the price because they actually make you faster, unlike 90% of the components you can spend your cash on - I mean, you could easily spend $300 on a carbon stem that isn't going to do anything more for you than a standard Deda Newton, ect. If you have the cash, try them out. But wait at least 400 miles before you get write a review.

Strengths:
complete adjustability to fit any pedaling style. A huge jump in pedaling technology that really gives you more power. It really does.

Weaknesses:
Shifting on the front is less smooth, as you have to readjust the derailleur (move it up the seat tube just about as high as it will go) to accomodate the virtual 55 tooth sprocket, so you need to push the shift lever and hold it a bit longer on the upshift than with a regular chainring. The price is also a bit steep. There is no color choice except silver. I actually bent the first pair I had, but they were replaced without question and I've had no problems since (I'm a hard sprinter as well)

Similar Products Used:
FSA. Shimano, etc, round chainrings like everyone else.