More on the FSA SL-K Chain set Question

Question: Thanks for responding to my question about the FSA SLK crank set a few questions back, if you go to the 2007 Cannondale website it shows a picture of the bike with the crankset spec’d, anyhow, what does this loose crank set feel like (slipping gears?) I checked the shifting on a bike stand and it seemed fine but when I’m riding the bike under some load to the crank set it’s like I’m mashing gears and it cannot find the correct sprocket, if it’s this bad maybe I’ll switch to an Ultegra SL instead. Help!

Hi Larry,

No problem about giving the advice, the more the better, we say!

To tell if the cranks are loose you need to see if they will move from side to side, take the chain off the chain wheel and holding the cranks see if they move from side to side, basically any unwanted movement of the cranks, obviously apart from them going round, if they rock from side to side or when holding one of the pedals there shouldn’t be any loose feeling.

FSA

If your chain set is loose it won’t normally affect the gear change at the back, but it will affect the change between the chain wheels as they will be in the wrong position for the front mechanism to work properly. If you are having problems with rear change then I suggest that there is something wrong back there.

First check for any unwanted movement with the chain set, if this is OK, then secondly, start to check and adjust you rear gear, the change from the smallest sprocket to the second, if it doesn’t then you need to adjust the cable in the normal way.

If you feel more secure and safe with the Shimano Ultegra SL then I would suggest you change them, there is nothing worse for your head if you are always thinking that the chain set is going to come loose when you are on a ride then change it and sell the FSA SL-K crank set. If you need more help don’t hesitate to drop us a line.