Good Crankset for Carrera Kraken 2015 (WHITE)

ShxdowRider420

Hi folks! I have my Kraken booked in for a service at the end of the month and looking to get a new headset and a white crankset fitted when its in. I chose the white FSA ORBIT XS headset but can't seem to find a good crankset that goes with my bike that comes in white ... Long term, I plan to upgrade to a 12 speed Eagle system but will probably save my pennies for a while so I can get the gold and black edition .

I'm pretty new to mountain biking (trails ect..) but always had a bike growing up. I was more a BMXer back in the day and always enjoyed having my bike customised (custom stem, handle bars ect..). The obsessiveness lives on.. now i'm 23 I had no option but to buy a big boys bike. Wouldn't be seen dead on a BMX anymore :oops:

The bike I have right now is a Carrera Kraken 2015 edition (white and blue). I got it second hand for £250 to get from A to B but ended up taking it up some local trails and fell in love with it to be honest. Upon reading up the specs you get on this bike (especially the 2015 edition) I was genuinely shocked at how good they are for the price.

So far.. no problems at all with the kraken. I love the performance of this hardtail so far. the only thing I really want to change is the boring black handlebars, boring headset cap and the boring black crank set . .. I feel these things let the bike down in terms of visual.

Right now my bike is running a Suntour CXM - 44/32/22T - 175mm crankset and to be fair, I've not had a single chain slip when being out on this bike wither it be a coastal cycle or up the MTB trails riding it into the ground Having said that.. would anyone say its a good idea to get the same crank set but in white? Maybe that'll do until I decide to upgrade fully to a 12 speed group set next summer??? It would only cost £25 for the parts and should really transform the look of my bike.

if anyone can suggest other cranksets that would work on my bike (2015 Carrera kraken) that come in white, please feel free to let me know...

Chunkers1980

White cranks are pointless.

Spend your money on actual upgrades in performance, not what looks 'good'. It'll always be a Carrera, so you're starting at a low base anyway.

billycool

Most cranks come in silver or black. Changing perfectly good cranks for asthetic puposes might not be a good investment.

Not sure you'll be able to get a 12 speed cassette on your bike, if that's what you mean.

I'm glad that you are enjoying the bike but in 12 months time you might prefer to upgrade the bike as thing might start wearing out anyway. For £250 it's not a bad bike but might be limited in what it can do.

What will cost you £25?

steve_sordy

Assuming that you can get the parts that would allow you to fit the cheapest version (NX) of the Eagle 1x12 speed to your bike, it will cost you an absolute minimum of £300 assuming that you have to buy new. It is your money of course, but I believe that it would be a waste of money on a bike that originally cost less. Next one up is the GX version for another £100. I don't believe that either NX or GX come with gold bits.

The gold and black edition will cost you between £800 (XO1) and £1130 (XX1) depending upon whether you need to buy the XO1 or the XX1 to get the gold and black bits. I am not an expert on Carerra bikes, but I believe that you can buy a whole bike for less that would be a better bike than the Kraken was when it was new.

I am not pissing on your chips here (trying not to anyway), but fitting Eagle 1x12 to a Kraken is not a good move, even if it was possible. You can get much better upgrades and value for money in other ways. But it depends upon what you are trying to achieve of course.

njee20

Agreed, a 12 speed group on that would be a total waste.

Changing cranks for the sake of changing colour is pointless.

Run what you have. If stuff breaks then consider upgrading it, but don't throw money it at for the sake of it, unless you have lots to waste.

02gf74

Ride the bike, replace parts when worn out or broken. I do not think that bike is good enough to throw money at, especially for cosmetic reasons ..

If you want a white crank, a tin of white spray paint from pound land sorts you out.

larkim

£25 for a like for like crankset replacement just because you want white is fine - your choice (though as you can see others disagree!)

Thinking about mis-matching the capabilities of a high end groupset on an otherwise low end frame though does seem an odd way to spend your money.

The Rookie

Just to lighten the mood, have a look at the link in my sig as to what can be done with a Carrera frame, although the frame quality has gone backwards since my 2006. Sorry about the pics but photobucket went money hungry and I wasn't rehosting them all!

In terms of riding a fork upgrade makes a lot more sense.

CitizenLee

As a former BMXer and dirt jumper myself, I can appreciate the need/desire to customise your bike. I do the same with my mtbs now I'm too old and stiff for the little bikes. Function over form obviously makes the most sense, but there's still nothing wrong with making your bike look how you want it to look... so if you've got the cash to spare then go for it. You can always put the old cranks on eBay.

I dunno why I'm replying anyway, because as usual OP probably won't come back now everyone has dog-piled him. Bike Radar, gatekeeping on a daily basis :roll:

ShxdowRider420

Sorry I've not had time to reply before now folks 8) !!!

I've made the decision just to keep the kraken for another 12 months or so and go ahead and buy a £1500-2k max bike next summer. It's £25 for the cranksets (in response to the guy that asked). I'm not going to upgrade it as much as I previously stated.. after a few days of research I think the best bet is to keep it for a year and save up my pennies for a really good spec I probably will change the cranksets though.. I'm really big on how my bike looks old habits do not die. Its the small things :roll: ... ill just ride this thing into the ground with it in my mind that i'll have my new one soon I think I jinxed it as well.. it may very well be that the bearings have slackened after I posted this thread service can't come quick enough..

I have already been looking at what bikes maybe to get when the time is right.. as I said, my budget will be 2k max. I had my eyes on the Giant Trance 2 and the Giant Trance 1.5 GE MTB's... full sussers

Have a look at see what you think.

Giant Trance 2 MTB
https://www.bikester.co.uk/giant-trance ... 96837.html

Giant Trance 1.5 MTB
https://www.bikester.co.uk/giant-trance ... 96834.html

Any other suggestions on what bike to save up for to buy next summer??

ShxdowRider420

CitizenLee wrote:

As a former BMXer and dirt jumper myself, I can appreciate the need/desire to customise your bike. I do the same with my mtbs now I'm too old and stiff for the little bikes. Function over form obviously makes the most sense, but there's still nothing wrong with making your bike look how you want it to look... so if you've got the cash to spare then go for it. You can always put the old cranks on eBay.

I dunno why I'm replying anyway, because as usual OP probably won't come back now everyone has dog-piled him. Bike Radar, gatekeeping on a daily basis :roll:

Much respect mate. and don't worry. I have thick skin I grew up listening to my dad always moaning about me making unnecessary adjustments to my BMX so its nothing new