# Kooka Crank Question



## lanpope (Jan 6, 2004)

Could you guys give me some details on the crankarms below? I am a fan of nice square taper crankarms such as RaceFace Turpines (my current favorite) and the older Shimano XT M730s, but I am having a hard time finding such cranks for my newer bike projects. I just do not like the current crop of outboard and splined bearings. 

I recently acquired these three sets of "Kooka" crankarms that looked nice and they are all obviously square taper which I was after. The funky ano seems to indicate that they are probably of an older vintage, so I hoped some of you guys would know about their quality. 

I searched this forum and found some discussion about forged vs. CNC but I do not know which these are. All three sets do have what looks like a removable chainring spider. Also, I weighed the silver set and they weighed in at 438 grams for the set. The silver set is 94bcd and the other two sets are 110bcd.

I have attached a pic of the 110bcd RaceFace cranks that I am currently using, and like very much, for your comparison.

Thanks for any help you can provide. 

LP


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## imridingmybike (Jan 16, 2005)

lanpope said:


> Could you guys give me some details on the crankarms below? I am a fan of nice square taper crankarms such as RaceFace Turpines (my current favorite) and the older Shimano XT M730s, but I am having a hard time finding such cranks for my newer bike projects. I just do not like the current crop of outboard and splined bearings.
> 
> I recently acquired these three sets of "Kooka" crankarms that looked nice and they are all obviously square taper which I was after. The funky ano seems to indicate that they are probably of an older vintage, so I hoped some of you guys would know about their quality.
> 
> ...


I'm with you on the square taper! I'm putting a pair of turbines on my new xc bike. The ISIS and even X-Types don't hold a candle, durability wise.

I think your purple Kooka's are their xc crank, the silver and rainbow were the DH crank (i think).

I broke a pair of the XC's just before they went o forging - but if you're an XC type, you should be fine.

Good luck!


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

They're also all US-made vintage which means 7075-T6 Al. The canadian owned kooka were the ones who switched to forging the things and switched to 7129-T6 Al.

The middle pair also looks to have the double inner ring bolt pattern drilled spider, which means a 110mm mid/out, 74mm inner and also a 56mm (Suntour Microdrive) inner.


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## lanpope (Jan 6, 2004)

Thanks for the info guys. I knew you all would have the scoop on the cranks. So how are they durability wise? The first poster said he broke a pair and cranks are NOT a component I want to break while I am riding (scary). I only weight about 155lbs w/ gear but I ride a pretty good bit. Would I be better off just eBaying these, and continuing to search for some RaceFaces? Does the ano coloring give them any kind of novelity in the market, or are they just seen as old and fragile?

Thanks again for your help...

LP


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## imridingmybike (Jan 16, 2005)

lanpope said:


> Thanks for the info guys. I knew you all would have the scoop on the cranks. So how are they durability wise? The first poster said he broke a pair and cranks are NOT a component I want to break while I am riding (scary). I only weight about 155lbs w/ gear but I ride a pretty good bit. Would I be better off just eBaying these, and continuing to search for some RaceFaces? Does the ano coloring give them any kind of novelity in the market, or are they just seen as old and fragile?
> 
> Thanks again for your help...
> 
> LP


Mine cracked down the middle - in a non catastrophic manner.

Put it to you this way - if you ebay them, I'll bid!


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## cmdrpiffle (May 8, 2004)

*Careful there....*

The ones on the right in the picture are the original design. They're milled out on BOTH sides of the arms.

I've had 2 catastrophic failures on bikes. One of them involved those cranks. They sheared at the BB spindle and came off during a standing power stroke. I'd just gotten on the bike, clipped in and was going to ride across a road to the start of the trail. First pedal stroke, they gave. I got hurt pretty badly.

They changed the design to mill out metal only on the inside sometime later. I got mine new from Kooka in 94. Cool looking cranks, and as the ads said at the time...the lightest around.

Cheers


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## oddestfellow (Sep 15, 2004)

cmdrpiffle said:


> The ones on the right in the picture are the original design. They're milled out on BOTH sides of the arms.
> 
> I've had 2 catastrophic failures on bikes. One of them involved those cranks. They sheared at the BB spindle and came off during a standing power stroke. I'd just gotten on the bike, clipped in and was going to ride across a road to the start of the trail. First pedal stroke, they gave. I got hurt pretty badly.
> 
> ...


Wow! I remember wanting a set of those for my ride back in the day! Glad I couldn't afford them! SHEARED AT THE FRICKEN' SPINDLE??????


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## laffeaux (Jan 4, 2004)

cmdrpiffle said:


> The ones on the right in the picture are the original design. They're milled out on BOTH sides of the arms.
> 
> I've had 2 catastrophic failures on bikes. One of them involved those cranks. They sheared at the BB spindle and came off during a standing power stroke.


Yeah, I think "fragile" is a very good description of Kooka cranks. Here's a couple of pics of a set that I own - both sides cracked at different locations. These were attached to a bike that I bought, so luckily it wasn't my wasted money. The bike had relatively few miles on it.

Non-drive side:









Drive side:


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## Shayne (Jan 14, 2004)

*Wow.*

I bet that non-drive arm seats really well on the spindle though


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

My original 1993 Kooka Kranks... still in use on my singlespeed (180mm's).

My original 1993 Raceface Turbine IB's.... bent after six months usage in 1993.

I've got two more sets of Kooka cranks (second generation ver) going still on my Alpinestars
and my Amp. No issues with either. Kinda wish I'd kept the other two sets of those that I'd bought off Nashbar a number of years ago. (this one month, Nashbar had Kooka cranksets, complete with rings, $69.99, I ordered four).


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## imridingmybike (Jan 16, 2005)

laffeaux said:


> Yeah, I think "fragile" is a very good description of Kooka cranks. Here's a couple of pics of a set that I own - both sides cracked at different locations. These were attached to a bike that I bought, so luckily it wasn't my wasted money. The bike had relatively few miles on it.
> 
> Non-drive side:
> 
> ...


To be fair, aren't yours the first generation - while the one's in the orginal post are second generation?


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

All three of the ones in the first pic are second generation, american made ones.

The cracked ones further down the page are first generations. I have the same version in silver also (but mine haven't cracked, though I did replace the spider retaining bolt a couple years ago, the original one sheared). You should be able to see the difference in the CNC miling between these two, first and second generation models of their XC cranks. .


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## Timo (Jan 13, 2004)

*Here's Mine*

I picked my Kooka up directly from Kooka when they were up in Kanada.....around 1999 I think. I'm running them on the Airborne right now and haven't had an issue. I've put some big miles on these, and have raced a few times on this setup too......no concerns or issues in the 6 years I've run them.

Also I agree with the square taper for xc use. I run campy on my road bike and thats taper as well. It seems like when they went to splined they had to reduce bearing size and thus that impacted durability...and the new outboard bearings make for difficult chain lines. Funny thing is they did this when they went to 9-speed. This airborne is running 9 speed with the standard chainrings, square taper, and shifts better than any of my other bikes...and I'm running SRAM Rocket Shortys with Shimano derailleurs.

Doesn't it seem like crank choices just became very limited in the last few years? Can you even get a decent crank arm with standard rings (new) these days?


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## IF52 (Jan 10, 2004)

We sold quite a few of those way back when, and eventually stopped because we got tired of sending back broken ones for warranty. Sent back a few Race Face and and tons of Grafton too.


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## Eastcoaster (Feb 13, 2004)

*In your photo....*



DeeEight said:


> All three of the ones in the first pic are second generation, american made ones.
> 
> The cracked ones further down the page are first generations. I have the same version in silver also (but mine haven't cracked, though I did replace the spider retaining bolt a couple years ago, the original one sheared). You should be able to see the difference in the CNC miling between these two, first and second generation models of their XC cranks. .


What type of bashring is that? I run a Threshold bashring with a similar look. Thanks!


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## Eastcoaster (Feb 13, 2004)

*Sorry...Second Photo.*

The solid one. Thanks


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

Kooka bashring.I own a half dozen of them, in different colors and bolt patterns (94, 110, and 104).


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## Bigwheel (Jan 12, 2004)

A friend here that was a pro racer had them years back and reffered to them as "Kreakas". 

Another vote for square taper in general. I never had any problems with them.


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

A racer around here used and broke a lot of the first generation kooka parts, but he was one of those sandbagger types who did sport class all the time where he'd win when he should have been racing expert instead considering how often he raced and how much he kept greasing companies (like Kooka) for deals and sponsorships. He also lacked in finesse and technical skills (for the time period even) and tended to break stuff in general.

Incidently, and this isn't just about Kooka cranks but all CNC cranks of the period, we're talking about the durability of things that were made LIGHTER than anything shimano, sugino or suntour would have done. Regardless of it being CNC machined from billet or hot or cold forged in a press, it was basically all similar strength aluminium alloys being used. So obviously an M730 Deore XT or M900 XTR crank is going to be more durable than a Kooka or Raceface or Topline or Cook Bros or Grafton crank. The Shimano ones all used a LOT more aluminium in their construction. Shimano built for strength, not for weight weenism. 

The Deore XT cranks? 520 grams for 175mm arms. The Deore DX cranks? 565 grams. XTR with its slimmed down profile? 500 grams. Original Kooka Kranks? 385 grams. Graftons? 375 grams. Cook Bros RSR? 420 grams. RaceFace Turbine IBs ? 440 grams. 

How many of us can claim to have broken a DX, XT or XTR crank, or known anyone to do it, versus how many of us can claim the same for any of the above brands of CNC cranks.


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## IF52 (Jan 10, 2004)

You make a very good point DeeEight, though I do have to say we sent back out fair share of Deore cranks of various flavors, as well as XC Comp cranks. They would either snap in the middle or at the pedal hole. Rarely they would split the BB spindle hole, mostly the lower end products in those cases.

The Grafton cranks were just way too light for most riders. I had a set and even though I was about 185 pounds at the time, I stayed on the ground and didn't tend to bash the things. I sold them to a guy that weighed at least 20 lbs less than me and he promptly snapped them landing a big jump. I also recall Grafton telling Earl Bob something about a bad run being produced out of the wrong billet stock. And then there was a recall for some other design issue IIRC.


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## -Anomie- (Jan 16, 2005)

I broke the only set of Kooka's I've owned while powering uphill out of the saddle on the road. The drive-side arm broke in half right in the middle, like breaking a stick over your knee, and I went over the bars and landed on my head in the middle of a busy intersection.

Needless to say, I don't recommend riding them  .


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## Eastcoaster (Feb 13, 2004)

*Sorry to keep venturing from the orig. subj. matter but...*



DeeEight said:


> Kooka bashring.I own a half dozen of them, in different colors and bolt patterns (94, 110, and 104).


I'm switching my EWR over to 1 X 9. As I mentioned, I run a Threshold Bashring on the outside and just ordered an N-Gear Jumpstop for the inside. 
Wondered about your "sandwich" setup from the Kooka bashring photo. Could you elaborate? If not here, maybe on a PM or an email. Very interested. 
Thanks!


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## Emax (Dec 4, 2005)

Kooka was known for failing cranks - the machined ones anyway. They also had forged ones towards the end of their existence, I have a set - no problems since 1999. They came with a 10 warranty I think - but that does not matter anymore.


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

the inner guide is a chainring with the teeth cut off.


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## patineto (Oct 28, 2005)

if anybody is intersted i just found a set of Kooka on San francisco craigslist i have nothing to do with this exept of the fact i like to help...

they for sure look nice, black with a Gold spider


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## OregonMTB (Sep 1, 2004)

Umm--I'll buy any of those Kooka Kranks from you. I have been riding and racing a set of 1995 vintage Kooka on my main ride--and I'm 175 lbs. I have never had an issue with them.

I own 5 sets of Kooka Kranks and one the sets (the red one) does have a crack in it--so if anyone has one extra crank arm--let me know. These red ones were the really early ones--1993 or so--they an have extra, extra milled out area near the pedal spindle.

I believe that all Kooka Kranks were either good or bad--if they broke they broke--if you rode them past the 2 year mark--they were good.

Here are a few pics I could dig up.


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## cmdrpiffle (May 8, 2004)

OregonMTB said:


> Umm--I'll buy any of those Kooka Kranks from you. I have been riding and racing a set of 1995 vintage Kooka on my main ride--and I'm 175 lbs. I have never had an issue with them.
> 
> I own 5 sets of Kooka Kranks and one the sets (the red one) does have a crack in it--so if anyone has one extra crank arm--let me know. These red ones were the really early ones--1993 or so--they an have extra, extra milled out area near the pedal spindle.
> 
> ...


Mine were from 94. They broke at the 8 year mark, and broke really hard.


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## hellocook (Nov 5, 2006)

*rasta kooka parts*

my kooka parts, got a fitting i9 wheelset and still looking for a fitting frame ...

anybody knows if these are the downhill stem and cranks? any information on the 3rd generation cranks?

the crank weight incl. TNT bottom bracket.


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## Timmy (Jan 12, 2004)

I've been running a set of the forged cranks for the past few years. Great cranks, no problems... Loving seeing the example of the other varieties here.








Just ignore the rock ring.


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## upNdown (Jan 12, 2004)

Did somebody just resurrect a 4 year old thread?
D8, I bought my kooka's from Nashbar the same time you did. (And probably on your recomendation, thanks.) How come the anno hasn't rubbed off of yours?


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## conrad (Jan 27, 2004)

*hve no issues with my kookas apart from the creaking*

Got mine in 1995 for $100nz new the solid on the outside set...58/94 pattern. A steal, still going strong with the only issues being the crank to spider interface creak.......never an issue when wet...lol and the fading gold colour........
Now running a 27/40 combo. 
Biggest issue now getting quality BB's.:madman:


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

Because I don't rub mine with my feet. And the rasta parts above that resurrected the thread are the second generation (still american) Kooka DH crankarms and its just the standard stem (they never had a DH specific stem) and post of that era.


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