Hello,
Last year (September) I purchased the following bike (YT Capra Core 2 – 29″): [https://www.vitalmtb.com/product/guide/Bikes,3/YT/Capra-MX-Core-2,36965](https://www.vitalmtb.com/product/guide/Bikes,3/YT/Capra-MX-Core-2,36965)
…and rode my bike for about 1 year, 5 days a week for around 1.5 hours per day on some moderate fire roads (nothing crazy).
I weigh around 170 lbs, and with all my gear, am around 185 lbs.
A few weeks ago, I went in to get my fork and shock fully serviced/rebuilt (cost me $350.00) then purchased a new chain (X01 Eagle chain (on special for around $50.00) to replace my NX chain – as my chain was past the 0.75% wear mark), as well as new tires (Maxxis Assegai (front) and Maxxis Minion (rear) – also on special for around $100.00 for both tires) and new brake pads (went to MTX Golds for around $70.00).
The bike shop putting everything together, also recommended that I do a full tune-up (which I did) and all told, I’m down $720.00 (which is a little steep for maintenance every year, but acceptable).
I was then told by the shop that my bottom bracket was damaged, as was another component near the crankset (I think he mentioned some sort of pin). The shop ordered the parts, and charged me an additional $150.00 (which seemed a little steep, but I wanted my bike back to go riding and thought, what the hell – raising the total to around $870.00).
About 4-5 days later, I now get a call that (according to the bike shop) stating that when he pulled the crank out, that the diameter of shaft tapers down, and that the bearing was possibly damaged. He also mentioned that if he put everything back, that everything might work, but that surface area of the shaft lost some surface area and that putting everything back to together could be a problem.”
From what I can understand, this now means that I might need to purchase a new crankset.
Assuming that’s correct, I have a few questions I was hoping I could get some answers on (as buying a new crankset after less than a year, seems a little nuts, as does spending more than $1,000.00 in maintenance on what seemed like a good bike).
1. Should I go ahead and purchase a new cransket or have him put the old one back on and just keep riding? I will say that the play I felt when peddling was extremely bothersome (but I thought all that play I was feeling was due to the worn chain).
2. Is this level of wear and tear/maintenance normal? Keep in mind, there was a part that got bent and was coming off my bike (about 2-3 months ago). But I thought it wasn’t a big deal, and just removed it (on only one side of the bike). The part was a small clip near the crankset. I believe it’s called the Bottom Bracket Retaining C-Clip. I mean, it’s possible all of this damage (nearing $400.00 at this point) was due to my screw up of removing the bent/rusting clip. But it’s crazy that a $5.00 – $10.00 missing part could do so much damage.
3. If I should get a new crankset, I was wondering if it’s possible to switch the old crankset out with a Shimano XT Deore? I only ask, as I could’ve sworn that upgrading from an NX drivetrain to an XT was possible (as both the NX and XT shared some similar components). If so, would you be able to tell me which crankset to purchase (as there are different sizes of the XT Deore crankset and I’m not sure which one is the correct one to purchase). Keep in mind that the XT Deore is a 11 speed, and my NX is a 12 speed (though I was told that should be okay – though I’m not 100% certain).
4. If it’s not possible to move up to the Shimano XT Deore, and it’s still recommended that I switch out my crankset. At the very least, can I assume that it’s okay to move up to the GX crankset? I only ask as I’m a bit leary about the NX drivetrain (and at this point, would strongly prefer to move to something else over time – either a Shimano XT or SRAM GX). If so, could you provide me a link to the correct GX crankset for my bike?
5. Assuming all of this damage was due to the Bottom Bracket Retaining C-Clip, can I assume I should also purchase a high-end/heavier duty c-clip? If so, are there any recommendations? Lastly, do I need to do anything special to ensure the c-clip is properly maintained (or maybe just change it out every 3 – 6 months)? Keep in mind, if all of this damage is due my screw up, then I suppose that’s life and I’ll just move on. But I’d prefer this not happen again, or at the very least, not so often. And even if I have to purchase new c-clips every 3 – 6 months prevents that from being a problem, then so be it.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you and take care,Nelson
by LikesToDance123
2 Comments
To answer your questions on cost, this is a less than a normal level of wear and costs yearly for me. Mountain biking is an expensive sport for me unfortunately.
Suspension servicing is the biggest cost, which is recommended to be done every 50-100 hours depending on the brand. If just riding pavement or very gentle trails, you can absolutely extend things past that. You can save a lot of cost by learning how to bleed brakes, replace basic parts such as chains, bottom brackets, tubeless solution, tires, brake pads, etc. The only service I pay for is suspension and bearing service.
I’m 220lbs, (240 with kit) and really like to pedal uphill, and charge downhill. I typically calculate that I ride on average 10km an hour. I typically get about 1000km between suspension service, which is approx 100hrs of riding. I typically need a new chain, tires, and brake pads in a similar timeframe. Plus other wear items need to be replaced from time to time like grips, rotors, and wheels.
Based on you riding 1.5 hours 5 days a week, you’ve rode approx 390 hours since you got the bike. That seems like a ton of riding for that little service required, and it seems like you’ve got your money’s worth if you only need to service annually with that riding volume.
1. A new crankset wouldn’t hurt but it’s kind of a financial decision you gotta make at some point. At the rate you’re riding you’ll probably have more repairs piling up.
2. The wear and tear seems normal, you beat me five fold since I only ride weekends. Your recommended shock repair frequency would’ve been 2 small ones and one big already within the time I do mine. (100hrs for small maintenance, 200hrs for the big one). You could maybe stretch the lifetime of your chain and crank set if you clean it twice a week or more, but it’s kind of the nature of riding.
3-5 Sorry I don’t know much about mixing sram and shimano parts.