FSA K-Force Light Carbon

Price Paid:  $440.00 at BeyondBikes.com

Bike Setup:
'94 Lemond Ti, Campy Chorus shifters and derailleurs

Summary:
These are my initial impressions of the FSA K-Force Light Compact Crank. I recently bought two of these and installed one this past weekend.

- It's light - They claim 660 grams with the BB. My two weighed 668 and 675. It knocked exactly half a pound off the bike I installed it on.

- Installation was easy - However, if you don't own a torque wrench, buy or borrow one before installing the crank as the specified 36 ft/lbs is a lot more torque than you think. I was starting to get nervous about over-tightening it when the torque wrench finally clicked.

- The Q-factor is pretty narrow - I noticed the difference, but it wasn't uncomfortable. I'm sure it's not the narrowest crank on the market, but it's narrower than what I had before.

- It's very stiff - I'm really surprised how different the bike feels with the new crank. Apparently, the frame is stiffer than I thought and much of the flex I felt was in the old crank/bb combination.

- I like the compact gearing (34/50). The lower gear I gained will be quite useful. I did spin out on one downhill, but I was doing over 35 mph at the time. My other bike will have a 12-23 ten speed cassette instead of the 13-13 nine speed on this one, so I won't lose anything top end compared to what I had before (53/39 with a 13-23 cassette).

The ceramic bearings in the bb make a HUGE difference and I can ride at least two gears higher! ... Just kidding - ceramic bearings on bikes are a joke - but the bright red cups sure do look fast! ;-)

So far, I like it a lot. Time will tell as to how well it holds up.

Strengths:
Light weight
Easy intallation (if you have a torque wrench)
Very stiff
I like the compact gearing

Weaknesses:
None so far

Price Paid:  $5.00 at LBS

Favorite Ride:
too many

Bike Setup:
Trek 03 5900

Summary:
Like the crankset very much, and thought the crank was perfect, then this week on an easy ride I thought my pedal was getting loose, turned out the metal pedal insert in the crank arm was loose. Checked the other and it was a little loose also. Have not switched or removed the DA 7800 pedals since the crank was installed, so no clue why the inserts came loose. Contacted FSA so we will see if they replace the crank under warrantee. I do like the crank very much

Strengths:
Light, strong, ceramic bearing BB

Weaknesses:
Non except crank arm pedal inserts, and maybe this was an early model that fsa has corrected????

Similar Products Used:
shimano, fsa

Price Paid:  $550.00

Favorite Ride:
Lasal Loop

Bike Setup:
Moots Phychlo-X with a mix of Campy Chorus and Record and some sweet old XTR canti brakes.

Summary:
Awesome crankset! I have been riding for 25 years now and I have used and worked on just about everything out there and this setup is the best yet. Follow the installation instructions and do your regular maintenance, (i.e. check your non drive side crank bolt every few rides) and you will not be disappointed. I have this crank on my MOOTS Psychlo-X and I have been riding a lot of dirt, singletrack and pavement and it has worked flawlessly. The ceramic bearings are smooth as silk and the rings shift great not to mention it is great looking.

Enough Said.

Strengths:
See Summary.

Weaknesses:
It doesn't morph into a beautiful woman after every ride.

Similar Products Used:
pretty much everything

Price Paid:  $599.00 at QBP

Bike Setup:
Scott Addict R4, Dura-Ace, XXX lite Clinchers, Zero Gravity, CARBON

Summary:
After installing on a new Scott Addict frame there is no possible way to get the bottom 4 cogs to work in the small ring. I can understand the bottom cog but not 4. Contacted FSA and they were no help at all. Now I have a very expensive crankset that is pretty much useless.

Strengths:
lightweight, shiny, pretty, doorstop

Weaknesses:
doesn't work correctly, expensive, doorstop

Similar Products Used:
Bontrager carbon, old FSA Carbon, Dura-Ace