Tiagra (Hollow tech II style) cranks

[thomas_cho]

Hi all,
I am considering using these cranks on my bike, with a 10 spd drive train. Other than weight considerations, and that the crank arms are forged rather than hollowtech, what would be the other "downgrades" to the R600? or R700?

Thanks in advance
Thomas

 

[gclark8]

Thomas,

What are you trying to achieve?
Lowest price or lowest weight?
Regular 39/53 or Lead Free 34/50?

 

[thomas_cho]

Thomas,

What are you trying to achieve?
Lowest price or lowest weight?
Regular 39/53 or Lead Free 34/50?

Hiya George,
I want to go 34/50 ... couldnt care less abt weight. I am more concerned with durability, and good shifting.

I know the Tiagras are described as 9spd ... but I have used a Dura ace 9spd crankset on my 10 spd drivetrain with no issues ... so not particularly concerned there unless you know anything else that I should be worried abt.

Thanks
Thomas

 

[gclark8]

The cheapest 10speed Compact double in my book is the FC-R600 50-34 tooth in 170, 172.5, 175mm arms.

Tiagra is not available here in compact.

 

[thomas_cho]

The cheapest 10speed Compact double in my book is the FC-R600 50-34 tooth in 170, 172.5, 175mm arms.

Tiagra is not available here in compact.

I see them on the Cellbikes website, and FWIW I am not intending to get them locally. But thats not the point of the question anyway.

 

[nerdag]

I see them on the Cellbikes website, and FWIW I am not intending to get them locally. But thats not the point of the question anyway.

To your original question - no difference, other than weight. And if there was a stiffness difference, I doubt it would be noticable unless you were regularly cranking out a mean of >250W, if at all.

The Tiagra (4550) and R600 crankarms/spider are the same (the left arm is a generic R4550/R4500/R600 arm - its stamped on the inner aspect of hte arm).

The only difference is the rings - 4550 has 9s specific rings, while R600 has 10sp (same rings as R700). R700 has 10sp rings with hollowtech arms.

I bought two of the 4550s when they came out (one each for my partner and myself). My bike is a 9sp set up, and hers is a 10sp.

There's absolutely no functional difference in using the chainrings between the bikes. I actually found the setup was easier on the 10sp bike (but YKMV).

In summary - my experience with these cranksets has been that they will work fine with either 9 or 10sp, provided you use the appropriate front derailleur and chain.

Oh, and Cell Bikes do have them - I went in and enquired about them when I was shopping, but they didn't have the 165s and for some reason couldn't order them in. They did have a 175 pair that I had a look at.

n

 

[nerdag]

Hi all,
I am considering using these cranks on my bike, with a 10 spd drive train. Other than weight considerations, and that the crank arms are forged rather than hollowtech, what would be the other "downgrades" to the R600? or R700?

Thanks in advance
Thomas

A minor point, but if you're interested in cosmesis at all, there's no "Tiagra" label anywhere on the crankset. The arms look exactly the same as the R600/R700.

Of course, it is labelled Shimano, and some users may take exception to that!

n

 

[thomas_cho]

Hi Nerdag, thanks for the feedback. To be honest, that was something I was hoping to hear.

As I have seen neither the R600 nor the Tiagra ones personally, I am wondering if there is a difference in the quality of chainring material?

 

[nerdag]

As I have seen neither the R600 nor the Tiagra ones personally, I am wondering if there is a difference in the quality of chainring material?

Haven't compared them side-by-side, but I can't see there being a whole lot of difference.

Not sure what the specs say, but I suspect that the R600 rings are probably some form of light alloy (AFAIK, they are the same as the R700 rings). The 4550 rings look to be of the same quality as those on my mates' tiagra/105 cranksets. Best to check what the specs say.

I decided to go with 4550 on my partner's bike, because the crankset was less expensive, and you would expect a little more durability out of the thicker rings. Don't know if this holds true under real world use, but it was a good A$70 that was saved, which is the cost of a new inner ring if it didn't. No biggie in my book.

n

 

[KellyT]

Hi Nerdag, thanks for the feedback. To be honest, that was something I was hoping to hear.

As I have seen neither the R600 nor the Tiagra ones personally, I am wondering if there is a difference in the quality of chainring material?

I have the Tiagra Hollowtech II compact on my steel bike and it changes very well and certainly looks like a quality component. The Ultegra kit on my Bianchi doesn't actually look, or seem tangibly better. I think the 105 and Ultegra removes more material from the hollow side, and perhaps heat treats the remaining alloy differently to maintain the strength.

I'm not in the least disappointed with the Tiagra kit.

 

[thomas_cho]

This is looking better and better for me. Tiagra cranks the bargain of the year?

 

[nerdag]

This is looking better and better for me. Tiagra cranks the bargain of the year?

I totally agree. Very good value.

n