Here is a Question that started in the Tech section with "What's The Best BB for one Pcs. Cranks" But What are the Best all around Cranks! This can fall into 1 of 2 Selection 1 Pcs. or Multiple pcs.
My Two Would Be 1 pcs Multiple pcs.
Thun Profile
Let see What other members think?

One Piece: I have a fondness for a set of Ultramax I have!
Two PIece: Bullseye
Three Piece: Redline 401's seems to gather all the love...

But I Prefer my 2nd Gen Profile Box Cranks and even old school Maxy Cross! (Is it Wrong!!!)

for good ole jumping which this ol man don't do much of anymore.
i thought takagi's were really strong. i still have a soft spot for them.

i've only ever owned flights, but i've worked with some profiles recently and i was impressed with the spindle design. i'd probably buy a set if they were closer in price to flight IIs, but they aren't....

3 piece: I tend to like the Avocet's or Shimano Tourney's...

1 piece: the Ultramax's were kinda cool, but they weren't very strong. I have a pair here that are a little bent and I plan to fix them. There even 180's

If they're goin' on a classic build - like say a DG Super Pro - I'm gonna' have to go with Dura Ace cranks. There was always something very butch about that Dura Ace spider.

JP

I ran campagnolo strada bmx 180mm 3 piece italian beauties on my last ride. I should say I was a real old schooler, stopped in '81,just after flights came to be. Before them shimano or campy were it for lightness, and as I recall,campy was the only choice in 180mm then. I did snap one arm, but true to their excellent product support, a new one came at $0 cost! You did pay up front for them,though. Btw I still have that steed ,complete and ready to rock!

I have had only one set of one piece cranks, had those baby's from 1980 till 1983, don't remember the brand, so I have no clue in that category

I have owned some Profile's and some Redline 401's

Loved the fact that profiles came with a sealed BB, But their Spindle seemed to wear out over time and it made the arms loose. loved the look and the spider,

But I really don't think you can beat the design of the Redline 401's they were easy to work on, easy to change arms and gears, I believe they were the best cranks overall, after you added a sealed BB,,

One piece Takagi w/Hadley or Tange BB with some philwood grease par excellance'

OMAS cranks are even more moto-exotic than Campagnolo like AMG to Mercedes...or RUF to Porsche...or

But overall nothing says high end bmx to like a set of Sugino Maxy Cross in any candy color or chromed... That was when BMX is huge for me 1981-82' and that's what came on many high end bikes.

I also had a set of Hollowed out SR 1 piece cranks I liked. For me it was mostly about getting lighter, and they were definately lighter than the Tagaki beasts. Being a little ripper I was not as concerned with breaking / bending like many of you on this board.

I had a set that I still can not remember what they were. I had them on my first Redline MX-II. They may have been tagaki's one piece but I remember them having a blue "film" over them. As I recall they started peeling and I thought they looked dumb all chipped up so I peeled it all off.

Anybody know what they may have been? I was like 8 yrs old at the time

takagi for one piece

definately boss cranks. ive got the same set from 85 and they have never come loose or anything.

not sure but did Tange make a crank like mentioned above. I know the Tange TRX fork came in gold, blue or red translucent powder over chrome, or just chrome. These forks are the same era the cranks you are mentioning

Gotta go with Redline Flights. They were so good that even Hutch Factory riders ran them.

sr turbox ........ 401's

It all comes down to strength for me..it not a part of my bike I want to gamble with.
I've seen several people snap 1pc. cranks in half. a few needing several stiches 'inside and out' to sew the huge GASH left by the broken crank(mid bend on the left) quite horrorific
I would'nt advise anyone that rides the least bit hard too use them.

seen lots of broken 401 flights too.

my vote: for a crank that is strong.

PROFILE

what about ashtabula?

For me it was Takagi MX....indestructible. I remember friends bending Ashtabula. I never ran 3 pc so I can't say about them.

Durace - bent or striped plenty

Profiles 1st gen - creaked every time

Redline - no problems

Campy pista & record - no problems

Takagi - no problems

for me it was Takagi's in the early days. after bending or breaking them I got my first pair of Redline 401's. snapped a spindle on that pair, went back to one piece. bought another pair of flight's and broke a crank arm. I think after that it was back to one piece and sold the bike a little later down the road.

I would ahve to say boss then clem twins and redline 400's which i'm in search for.

One thing I'm sure everyone can agree on,,,HUTCH Areospeeds were a piece of SH$$

I have a vote for the Flights. Never had a problem at all with them.

redline 400s? you must be tricked by the show builds.
those are not top end strong cranks regardless of the current vintage hype.

last set of clemtwins i saw for sale was by that yahoo ripoff artist in wisconsin. and a member on these sites bought em.

Flights sucked. They never stayed tight and I knew nothing about lock tite at the time. I never had a problem with Profiles. Nuke proof.

You mean spending 2500.00 on Aerospeeds and they are Junk? NO!!!!!!! This is part of my reason for asking this Question.

paying $2500 for Hutch cranks is just insane.

Profile over Hutch(the spindles cracked)

Uhem, try 6 grand in perfect shape. Polish up some DXRs, put a Profile adapter kit on and call it a day.

Will DXRs fit on a Profile adapter B.B. housing?

Am I stupid?- Don't answer that last one.

bitd 3 piece alloy were a constant hassle. A 1 piece cro-mo would last me about 3 months before they would bend. Tubular 1 piece cro-mo bent in less than 3 months. 401 flights worked over all better than anything with less problems than anything else. I did break one arm but they replaced it under warranty. I raced and jumped all the time.

Now days even many of the 401 copys are excellent. No doubt the pinch bolt flights are not only the best crank ever, but also the most imitated.

mx mug

I had some hutch bitd and didn't like them(the spindle sucked)And never really had trouble with the redline 400's coming loose and i liked being able to change chain rings with out having to take the crank arm off.

I just recently got a set of dura ace cranks. Wow, the finish detail is very nice. the quality looks superior to supermaxy's and TS when held up side by side.

I ran Dura Ace till I got heavier and started bending them, I think they were much better than Sugino or Suntour. Had some one pice that had holes in the arms. Anyone know what they were? When those broke I went to solid one piece. Then Flights, then Profiles. They were about equal to me, flights were a little lighter so I favored them. At the time no good BB's for them, which gave the Profiles a leg up. Once a good sealed BB was available for Flights it was Flights all the way.

Changstar