I have a 26" torker and was wondering what kind of speed some of you are getting. I only go about 6.5 mph and am riding with standard cranks. Would shortening them speed me up much? How about some of you, what are you riding and how fast and how far are you going? Hope to hear from you guys.
Uh wouldn’t longer cranks make it easier to go fast. i.e. less revolutions and less work for you.
No, you’re pedals don’t have to travel as far with shorter cranks. You go slower with longer cranks.
definetly get shorter cranks. my friend got some on his 20 inch and we raced and he was riding his usual speed and i was pedaling as fast as i could. but shorter cranks do mean u can’t make quick movments because there’s more tork.
I rode with 89 mm cranks on my 26" for a while and just flew (fast for a 26" anyway). I probably topped it out at about 10 or 11 mph. But then I got my Nimbus 36er and I don’t ride the 26 much anymore.
its less torque I think
Less indeed
I put 90mm cranks on my 29er and did some speed runs with a bike alongside measuring my speed. I got up to about 16mph top, but it did feel very scary. There’s not much leverage against the big wheel, and also the cranks required annoyingly small movements of your foot in order to control, which didn’t really suit my riding style.
Right now I’m back to 127mm cranks, with which I can get a decent speed on the flat whilst still having enough leverage for some lumpier terrain. I’m probably cruising at a similar speed to the 90mm crank setup, since I feel more in control.
What is the default crank length on the Torker 26? 127mm cranks should feel comfortable and give a reasonable cruising speed. Shorter cranks will boost this up a bit more once you get the feel for them but you’ll lose some control. I’d say you don’t want to step straight to 90mm cranks on a 26", try some of the “in between” lengths first to see what feels right.
Yeah, default is 125 mm or 127 mm; I don’t remember if it’s metric or standard, but it doesn’t really matter, I guess. I’d say short cranks are good if you’re going somewhere close by and you just want to speed there; but I’ve done a lot of distance riding lately, and I’ve developed a new appreciation for (comparatively) longer cranks–they just don’t tear up your muscles as fast.
Ah OK. Well I guess for the original poster, trying 114mm cranks and then maybe 100mm would be a good way to try to increase his speed a bit.
That said, with practise I’d expect he could learn to spin faster on his current crank length. That would imply getting more used to the uni and spinning the pedals smoothly. It can require more aerobic fitness, but that’s good for you, right 
I find it helps to put as much weight as possible on the saddle so that your feet can spin round smoothly, rather than putting lots of weight on the pedals and “stamping” on each downstroke.
I find it feels almost like floating when you get spinning working well (albeit with your legs working frantically!). Just be careful to maintain contact with the pedals - sometimes I rest my feet so lightly on the pedals that they come off, which doesn’t always end well for me!
Yeah definitely; when you really get going, your feet will barely put any pressure on the pedals, they will only serve to overcome the wheel being slowed due to friction; of course, your balance has to be pretty spot on to maintain that for a long period of time. Very worth-while to get to doing that, though.
Great info guys. I am going to try some shorter cranks. as for the spinning, I find my feet slipping off the pedals too from time to time. It is not hard to pedal like that it is just that you fall into a rythm and the brain forgets to concentrate on what you are doing! Ha! Had a UPD 6 miles into a ride saturday and found my legs were a bit wobbly. thankful no battle scars.