Thame Game
Retro Guru
I got this very useful info from a man who knows a thing or two about the TA's:
The standards for BBs for these chainsets are usually cited as 111-114mm for doubles, 118mm for triples and 123mm for tandems. When I set mine up (usually triples) on classic 700c/27" road frames, I start with a boggo Shimano sealed 113mm unit, and see if it'll clear the chainstays.
If it doesn't, then you'll be able to tell the minimum length that will work! If you're going to buy a new BB, then I'd start with a 118mm. Couple of other thoughts:
1. I like to keep the BB length to the absolute minimum. These cranks have a naturally narrow Q-factor, seems a shame not to make the most of that
2. The taper question... If you look online there's a lot of chat about different crank tapers. I did twenty years in the cycle trade and never heard anything about that at the time. I use Shimano sealed items, tighten the crank bolts good and hard, and never had an issue. The cranks you have were fitted to a Shimano BB exactly like that last time out!
The standards for BBs for these chainsets are usually cited as 111-114mm for doubles, 118mm for triples and 123mm for tandems. When I set mine up (usually triples) on classic 700c/27" road frames, I start with a boggo Shimano sealed 113mm unit, and see if it'll clear the chainstays.
If it doesn't, then you'll be able to tell the minimum length that will work! If you're going to buy a new BB, then I'd start with a 118mm. Couple of other thoughts:
1. I like to keep the BB length to the absolute minimum. These cranks have a naturally narrow Q-factor, seems a shame not to make the most of that
2. The taper question... If you look online there's a lot of chat about different crank tapers. I did twenty years in the cycle trade and never heard anything about that at the time. I use Shimano sealed items, tighten the crank bolts good and hard, and never had an issue. The cranks you have were fitted to a Shimano BB exactly like that last time out!