Race Face Turbine Crankset Review

The Race Face Turbine Cranks have been in the Race Face range for a fair old time and are designed as a no nonsense, do everything crank.

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By singletrackross

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Race Face Turbine Crankset Review

Do they weight anything?

Weight is mentioned 3 times but we don’t know the weight.

Come on STW, you can do better!

https://www.bikeradar.com/news/race-face-turbine-crankset/

weight, Q factor, upgraded from 2mm to 3mm pinch bolt…..

 

 

Whenever I see a review of a crank that isn’t Shimano I have to wonder why anyone would buy them. Shimano’s hollow tech construction seems to means their cranks are lighter AND stronger. They’re also cheaper. And Shimano’s pre-load and cinch bolts are quick, easy and reliable.

Although the RF stuff now has a preload adjuster rather than relying on you using the right number of easily lost rubber washers, the main 8mm bolt still has to be torqued up to 50Nm with a big Allen key you probably don’t have out with you on the trail if it has managed to come loose.

 the main 8mm bolt still has to be torqued up to 50Nm with a big Allen key

And still uses a proprietary 30mm BB, I’m using a SRAM press fit BB, and a set of Truativ cranks from a old bike, but as soon as the bearings wear on the BB the whole lot is going to be replaced with Shimano and a 24mm BB. Anything else is just not as reliable IMO.

The 24mm axle RaceFace chainsets (Ride, Aeffect) I have used have been bombproof. Never saw the point of 30 mm axles and tiny bearings.

Still running my square-taper, 5-bolt, polished silver Turbines, with a Wolf-Tooth narrow-wide ring. Cranks must be 25 years old now… indestructible.

Apologies, no idea how the weight was missed out! Updated now and FYI weight is 588g on my scales for cranks, chain ring and preload collar. Ta.

In fairness, if you’ve absolutely got to have a non-24mm stupid bloody BB size, it should definitely be a raceface one. And obviously not a raceface carbon one. So that puts the Turbine in a pretty select group

And obviously not a raceface carbon one

I have Era cranks, they are awesomes. Im please to say the no quibbles lifetime warranty hasn’t been tested.

For balance, GF has these Turbines on her 2015 Yeti SB5c – took some abuse but still running fine on the same BB and bearings from when built (Hope PF46 30mm).

I ended up with the turbine as a warranty replacement for the sixc. I’d be wary of raceface carbon cranks in the future so I can see why the era has a no quibble warranty. Aren’t they 485 grams or something close? So there are alu cranks coming close to that without the risk.

Older turbines were about 570g for the arms and axle. assuming the 20g saving on the new ones is on the arms, brings them to 550g, still a way off the carbon ones. ERA are 415g for the arms and axle similar to next R, while next SL are around 360g with the axle.

Aeffect are about 590g ish apparently. though the difference seems noticable holding both in the hand, it may just feel that way due to how the weight is distributed between a steel 24mm axle vs alu 30mm axle.

I have aeffect on my hardtail, turbines on my FS and next SL waiting to swap out the turbines once a replacement 143.5mm  axle arrives as the Q factor of the 134.5 next is a lot less than the turbines and they hit of the chainstays of my Tallboy 3.

I’ve always liked the aesthetic of the alu cranks.The SL will be my first carbon cranks. we’ll see how long they last before something comes loose.