haydon_peter Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 I will shortly be running new cranks on my bike and am considering the move from square taper to isis. I am however a bit confused about whether it is actaully worth making the move to isis cranks or sticking with square tapers. Personally I have never had a problem with square tapered cranks, but I am also under the impression that isis is stiffer, stronger and the way to go. What are other peoples opinions on this matter? Should I stick with the tried and tested square taper system that I have never had any problems with or make the move to isis? Thanks in advance A confused Tic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly C Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 Im in the same boat dude (Y) Its wierd desion, Sqaure Taper is cheaper all round cranks and BB-wise so is there really that bigger difference with moving to ISIS? Also if you havent tried ISIS then what you dont know wont hurt you (Y) Its a toughie.. not sure which way I'll go.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali C Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 I have been using isis for the past3 years or so, I cant ever imagian using square taper again. I could straight away feel the extra stiffness isis gives. I have also been lucky to have never brocken any bb axle, but with isis I feel more confident. I also havnt had any roundage problems while using isis unlike when I used square taper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie456_the2nd Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 Ive used both and ISIS did seem to feel a little stiffer. How ever, everynow and then they did come loose. (husslefelt cranks) At the moment ive got some DDG orbita cranks, theyve been 'the nuts' for me, no problems, strong as anything. Only had them off once to change my chainring. Still as square as the day i got my bike (about a year ago), im and not the lightest of riders... As long as you do them up properly, they dont round off, come loose or well anything really. For most people i suppose its a personal preference but i say square taper all the way! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhythm_101 Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 depends what cranks you want, i.e if you've got middleburns, and want new middleburns, i would just go whith normal square taper cranks, eaisier and cheaper. but if you're thinking of swithichng cranks i.e midlleburn to other the i would go for isis mainly 'cos the only contender IMO are tensiles, which only come in isis anyway (Y) so.. i personaly would buy the tensiles and move from square taper to isis, so..the choice is up to you tarar (Y) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nb88 Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 I say if you need new cranks and a BB anyway, make the move to ISIS. If not i'd stay with square tapered. It does feel a bit stiffer but not that much to me.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haydon_peter Posted March 16, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 Sorry, I should have said in my first post: I will be replacing my square taper X-Lite cranks with 165 Middleburns. I expect I will need a shorter BB to get a nice chain line even if I did stick with square tapered cranks so I am considering all my options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyroo Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 My first bike (diamondback t2) had isis cranks, and when i got an onza t pro with square taper, the difference was immense! The bb felt so flexy compared, and it felt like so much power was being lost in the flexing compared to the isis bb. ISIS all the way!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pauly Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 hey man well ive gone through around 4 sets of square taper cranks and then i tryed isis tensiles and to be fair they are amazing, i have took them off now about 7 times for various things and they do not creek or move (touch wood) and i have these for hmmn about 10 months now (Y) all in all i think they do give alot more stiff ness in cranks from all of the cranks i have tryed Cheers Pauly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zordon Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 I have Hussefelts 175mm with Gigapipe Team DH 128mm for few months and I would never come back to square taper (it was Monty CPI and cheap Shimano BB). I've noticed no disadvantages of moving from square to isis by far. And the advantages are: - BB not come loose - I always worried during removing or installing sqr taper crank on bb, because every time the crank interface got rounded more and more until it was unusable. With isis I can remove and install cranks even billion times and they have always the same shape as brand new. - Crank interface don't round off and by far didn't come loose. - I feel more secure with isis (maybe because of more stiffness) oh, I've just found one disadvantage: hussefelts with team dh bb are VERY heavy - some day I gonna move to middleburns, of course isis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will Posted March 16, 2005 Report Share Posted March 16, 2005 (edited) Running Isis 'burns for 2years this month (Y) Taken them off more times than ive had hot dinners :P Ive never had any issues with the interface becoming worn and wobbly as some people have apprently had. Im running a Truvativ gigapipe bb with no quarrals as of yet. Ive had it about 1 year. :) Its gone through some heavy landings aswell (Y) Will. Edited March 16, 2005 by will Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Endohopper Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 There's also the difference between ISIS and Shimano's Octalink to consider . In my opinion , both offer increased rigidity and ease of arm removal / fitting over conventional square tapered BBs . I was certainly impressed when I replaced a square BB with a Shimano Octalink , definately noticing a certain "tightness." Also it's quite visually appealing , a hollow tube , allowing you to see through the Bracket area . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairy elephants Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 I use isis, and i really couldn't care less. I ride other peoples bikes which have square taper, and i don't notice any difference atall. The only advantage i have found is that i hav't bent my isis bb, which is somthing i used to have problems with on square taper bb's. At the end of the day, if you have never had a problem with square bb's, stick to what you no (Y) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Bleech Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 I use ISIS I have a gigapipe DH bb and tensile cranks, and I find this setup very stiff! But mainly I have never seen (or heard) a ISIS bb snap and I have seen too many square taper cranks snap and a few go in peoples legs and I don't want that, so ISIS for me mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tod Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 Ive used raceface turbine cranks for coming up to two years now, and whenever I ride other peoples square taper cranks then go back onto mine, the turbines always feels that bit stiffer. The only problem I can find with Isis is the way the bottom brackets are a fair bit more expensive than square taper, meaning that If you are on a budget you have to go for the bottom of the range stuff. When I first got the cranks I used a raceface SRX bb, and although it works fine for a while, I dont think it was sealed, so after 4-5months of use it started creaking and feeling 'crunchy' with dirt. I replaced that with another SRX and just recently I cracked just next to where cranks bolt on (Y) So my advise is, if your opting for ISIS, its worth saving a little extra cash and going for a better bb in the long run (Im running some FSA one now, not sure which but it seems fine) other than that, ISIS rules in my eyes. Hope this helps, Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zordon Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 But mainly I have never seen (or heard) a ISIS bb snap ← One of my mates broke isis bb. I don't know what model it was - it was standard bb that comes with complete "trials" Author A-Gang A.M - probably FSA. But that was the only broken one I saw - I saw much more broken square tapers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie456_the2nd Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 Taken them off more times than ive had hot dinners :P how many hot dinners then? :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee_Buchanan Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 ISIS all day long............purely cos there stiffer........ square taper is ok but lacks stiffness, altho the ISIS b/b's are pretty crap (bearing wise) its not as if us trials lads are doing 100miles on our trials bikes in like 3-4rides, unless ur riding quite alot too and from places. iv had an ISIS FSA Platinum b/b in my bike for well over 14months its loose but its not worth changing cos it aint doing any damage and it isnt as loose as iv seen b/b. but since iv run tensiles iv never looked back at using square taper................. Waynio..................... would love a set of ISIS raceface cranks though!cos they are the shex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JT! Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 The only problem i have had with my ISIS sytem is getting the cranks off the bb. When you have ISIS the cranks seem to become part of the bb, they dont move and inch, mine dont even creek, soild as a rock. When i had the old square taperd, i was always rounding them off, and they were constantly creeking. Never go back now. :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Vox Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 Isis all the way. :D Stronger by miles and some how i managed to break a xt square taper in 10minutes on my jump bike! lol, did try a 8stair set though i suppose. (Y)" the only problem is the creaking you get when the bb is starting to wear, isis run out way faster than square taper i have found. i can only notcie the tinyest difference in stiffness but at least u can be sure that they aint guna round. just get a expensive bb otherwise u will regret it in the long run, oh and dont get a truvativ one, one of my mates has gone through three or four of them!!! :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the666ers Posted March 17, 2005 Report Share Posted March 17, 2005 The problem with Isis bearings is they have far lower load tolerances as much more pressure is applied through the smaller surface area of the bearings. It's possible to seal a Isis unit just as well as a square taper, so it wouldn't make any difference if we did 100miles or 10 a week, the fact is they can't take the stress due to the smaller bearings, which are needed due to the increased axle size. People also mention the isis bb's being a bit loose. It's not loose, the bearings are f**ked, and when you can run a square taper longer (much cheaper too) and the bearings are still fine, I think I'd go for the hardly noticeable loss in stiffness over changing my bb every two months, which costs more than normal tapered ones, in turn forcing me to run more expensive cranks, and in turn come loose more often. There's a better range of good quality tapered bb's out there, and if tic's not had a problem with taper so far, why change to isis and spend the extra money? They may be marginally stiffer but I think the cons out weigh the pro's in the bearing department. James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tank_rider Posted March 18, 2005 Report Share Posted March 18, 2005 ive never had anything isis, and to be honest i dont really see the need for me. I have never snapped a bb axel or rounded off any cranks (that includes powerpoos, dewhores and burns). They may be a tiny bit stiffer, but i havent had any problems with my ol' square tapers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brisa Posted March 18, 2005 Report Share Posted March 18, 2005 Never used ISIS for trials, but have on a street bike once upon a time. They seem margainelly stiffer but not loads. I suppose it depends on the cranks. My square taper 'burns must be coming on 4 year old and tapers are still in good conditions so strength issues of tapers can't really be a problem. Snapped a bb or two but always been lucky enough to miss it with my leg. I used a set of 3 piece cranks on my trials bike for a while. I really didn't notice any difference until I put my 'burns back on... Dear me it felt like my frame/rear axle/spokes were all made of rubber. Felt like all my power was getting ate up by the cranks. If you want new cranks I would say go 3 piece. People think they weight a tonne but not all of them do. Also worrys about the bearings but in experience they last as long as ISIS. Bearings are easy replaced. When I get my Curtis I think I will be going for some again. They just didn't fit in with the spec on my levelboss or I would still be using them. Point of all that blabber is... both square and ISIS have their pro's and con's but I prefer 3 piece cranks to both... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
011001000110010101110010 Posted March 18, 2005 Report Share Posted March 18, 2005 You know my oppinion Tic, ISIS are so many times better. Your bike is solid as it is, it will be insane with ISIS Middleburns on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janson Posted March 18, 2005 Report Share Posted March 18, 2005 ISIS rules. No creaking, flexing and wobbling. I've heard loads of bad stuff about the ISIS interface on the Middleburn cranks. I'm running Tensiles and FSA Plat. Pro BB, no problems. Non-driveside crank came loose for a bit, but now it's firmy stuck there. Works brilliantly! Can't you get Tensiles in 165 mm nowadays? (Yes, you can, here.) I'd get Tensiles over Middies to be honest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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