The 'Un-Official' Campagnolo Ekar thread

[AngryScientist]

Originally Posted by Bambam85

Hey guys, i just saw white ind have an n3w hub ready, I’ve been chasing chainrings for a month or more, and finally have a machinist in CA who has made various chainrings, and bits for possibly the most famous ti company on the east coast who is willing and ready to build me a custom chainring, anyone else who wants to jump in on this party should shoot me a message or reply here. Personally I’m going to go 30T for my Silk Road Mountain Race build but once he has the narrow wide specs dialed he can do most anything. I think this will really open Ekar up!

first of all, this is a super spammy first post. you're welcome to participate here, but if you joined the forum only to advertise chainring sales, dont do that. second, i highly doubt you're going to get a 30T ring on an ekar crank. this is what the 38T looks like, dont see how you can go much smaller than that with this BCD.

[Bambam85]

Hey sorry if it seems spammy not my intention, I’m doing this and seeing anyone else is interested in being involved. Secondly I won’t be using a campy crank, but will use another crank and use the custom chainring to get the chain line correct.

Happy enough if no one else wants in, trying to make an offer in case anyone else is interested, I’m obviously not selling anything, but hoping to help the community, as I’ll be paying for a fair bit of r’n’d to get it right.

[Bambam85]

Originally Posted by biciklanto

Sounds super interesting, especially as other manufacturers (Wolf Tooth, AbsoluteBlack, etc) haven't gotten there yet.

Is it a machinist who has an internet presence? How did you find them?

I found them through the friends at hifi wheels, you can check his insta to see the quality of his work. https://instagram.com/oglewatchco?igshid=16d7vx1b2hiht

Super glad to have found a solution, hoping it helps others

Steve

[phishrabbi]

Originally Posted by Bambam85

Hey sorry if it seems spammy not my intention, I’m doing this and seeing anyone else is interested in being involved. Secondly I won’t be using a campy crank, but will use another crank and use the custom chainring to get the chain line correct.

Happy enough if no one else wants in, trying to make an offer in case anyone else is interested, I’m obviously not selling anything, but hoping to help the community, as I’ll be paying for a fair bit of r’n’d to get it right.

If he can make a 38,40,& 42t Ekar compatible rings for a DM Praxis crank, I'm *very* interested.

[Bambam85]

I’m sure he can, I have chatted with him as that being an option for me as well!

[sparky33]

White Industries is taking orders for N3W drivers now, shipping 3-4 weeks out.

My Ekar kit is almost complete!

[Malarowski]

Last piece remaining: Does anybody know if / when / where the 86mm T47 BBs are available and how Ekar specific they are? Does any 3rd party make BBs that are compatible? They seem very similar to previous ones, but I don't understand BB specs well enough to make that call specifically.

[bicycletricycle]

Originally Posted by Malarowski

Last piece remaining: Does anybody know if / when / where the 86mm T47 BBs are available and how Ekar specific they are? Does any 3rd party make BBs that are compatible? They seem very similar to previous ones, but I don't understand BB specs well enough to make that call specifically.

argonaut has a note saying that their t47 bb will not work with ekar because it uses a new sealing system. So I assume that all 3rd party t47 to campy cups wont work. I am sure someone will make one but I have not found one yet.

[Velocipede]

Originally Posted by Malarowski

Last piece remaining: Does anybody know if / when / where the 86mm T47 BBs are available and how Ekar specific they are? Does any 3rd party make BBs that are compatible? They seem very similar to previous ones, but I don't understand BB specs well enough to make that call specifically.

All of the bottom brackets are available now. And no, no one else makes an Ekar compatible bottom bracket. It is specific to Ekar.

[mistermo]

Originally Posted by Bambam85

I found them through the friends at hifi wheels, you can check his insta to see the quality of his work. https://instagram.com/oglewatchco?igshid=16d7vx1b2hiht

Super glad to have found a solution, hoping it helps others

Steve

I'm interested, but need LOTS more info.

[Wattvagen]

Originally Posted by mistermo

I'm interested, but need LOTS more info.

hard pass. chainrings, especially thin ones as ekar needs need to be pretty well designed, heat treated, etc. i dont want to be grinding up a hill to have my chainring fold over because some guy with a metal shop didnt fully understand the forces on a chainring. i'll stick to rings by proven players.

IMO, of course.

[Gibran]

Originally Posted by Malarowski

Last piece remaining: Does anybody know if / when / where the 86mm T47 BBs are available and how Ekar specific they are? Does any 3rd party make BBs that are compatible? They seem very similar to previous ones, but I don't understand BB specs well enough to make that call specifically.

@velocipede is correct, here is what I did as a workaround. I removed the Ekar bearings from my cranks and installed “normal” Campy ones for my bottom bracket install. If you do that, any Campy bottom bracket will work with Ekar cranks. Below is a picture of an Ekar bearing and you can see the special seal it has on it that interfaces with the Ekar specific bottom bracket. Disclaimer - I live in California and don’t see a lot of mud so I’m not concerned about needing special seals. Although I’ve run normal Campy bearings for years in the wet and they do very well as long you service them.

[thirdgenbird]

Perfect. I wanted to update my chorus cranks to ekar spec when it comes due for service. I assumed they would interchange and this seems to confirm it.

I still want the cranks protectors too.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by Gibran

@velocipede is correct, here is what I did as a workaround. I removed the Ekar bearings from my cranks and installed “normal” Campy ones for my bottom bracket install. If you do that, any Campy bottom bracket will work with Ekar cranks. Below is a picture of an Ekar bearing and you can see the special seal it has on it that interfaces with the Ekar specific bottom bracket. Disclaimer - I live in California and don’t see a lot of mud so I’m not concerned about needing special seals. Although I’ve run normal Campy bearings for years in the wet and they do very well as long you service them.

Does that seal come off? And then it's a 'normal' 6mm width 6805 bearing?

[Gibran]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

Does that seal come off? And then it's a 'normal' 6mm width 6805 bearing?

There’s two parts of that seal on the bearing. The seal itself, looks like it can be removed for servicing. But the second part is a hard coating applied to half of the bearing’s outer race which is what I was trying to show in the photo. That coating cannot be removed. And it’s that coating that creates the seal with the bottom bracket cup which has a similar seal on the other half of it’s shell. If you go all the way back to the first post of this thread, with the Campy diagrams, there is a cross section of the bottom bracket that shows the interface.