04 Campy crankset question

[Erik.Lazdins]

A week ago while accelerating hard I heard a "snap"

After the ride I discovered that I sheared a chainring bolt high in the threaded portion of the fastener. This particular bolt is the one that is directly opposite the right crankarm. I bought this new and it has 20,000 miles on it.

I have 2 questions:

1. Any tips on getting the broken portion out?

2. Is there a reasonable service life to an aluminum crank assembly?

If it matters - I'm 6ft 4 and weigh 180.

Ideally I can extricate the broken bolt, get a new one and not worry about it.

Thanks for any suggestions

[dgauthier]

Others on this board has advised that AL cranks have a service life of 20,000 - 30,000 miles. IMHO, the broken bolt is a sign you're reaching the end of their service life, especially for a big strong crank snappin' rider like yourself. ;)

It would be a shame to go to all the trouble of extracting the broken fastener shaft, just to have the crankarm break a few thousand miles down the road, pitching you over the bars in the process. The square taper aluminum crankarms are going for a song these days, so I wouldn't think twice: replace them.