What cranks can I put in my Pressfit BB86 Canyon?

I'm not sure "Oh well, it was only a 1-in-1,000 failure" is going to be much consolation if a broken Shimano crank puts you under a bus.

To the OP, though: you're going to need a new bottom bracket for almost anything but Shimano cranks — BB86 just specifies the shell dimensions. 105 would slot straight in, and they're only 39g heavier (and probably less if you put your Ultegra chainrings on them).

I can only think of two crank makers that use 24mm axles interchangeable with Shimano: Sugino and BETD/Middleburn.

You (one) take risks every time you sit on a bike or even step out the door and I'd hazard a guess that no single bike component is immune from potential failure. Cranks probably a worse one to fail I agree but I wouldn't mind betting most other brands of crank have failed before now too regardless of whether it made the press.

Are 105 crank arms any different in construction to Ultegra? I know the Tiagra ones are solid but 105 are a lot lighter so are they hollow and liable to the same mode of failure too?

mtbtomo wrote:

You (one) take risks every time you sit on a bike or even step out the door and I'd hazard a guess that no single bike component is immune from potential failure. Cranks probably a worse one to fail I agree but I wouldn't mind betting most other brands of crank have failed before now too regardless of whether it made the press. Are 105 crank arms any different in construction to Ultegra? I know the Tiagra ones are solid but 105 are a lot lighter so are they hollow and liable to the same mode of failure too?

105 is hollow forged which means that it is made from one piece. Ultegra and Dura-Ace are hollow-bonded which involves "gluing" 2 pieces together.

mtbtomo wrote:

You (one) take risks every time you sit on a bike or even step out the door and I'd hazard a guess that no single bike component is immune from potential failure.

Jared Diamond in (I think) Guns Germs and Steel tells the story of being puzzled that locals in Papua New Guinea didn't take advantage of the shelter they afforded by camping under trees. It was explained to him that even if there was only a 1-in-10,000 chance of a branch falling on you, that meant you could expect to get branch on the head with accompanying serious or fatal injuries every 30 years. A risk therefore worth avoiding.

Quote:

Are 105 crank arms any different in construction to Ultegra?

Yes. And more importantly, given 105 is the world's most popular groupset, if 105 cranks had anywhere near the failure rate of Ultegra and Dura-Ace there would be thousands of reports of failure. 

mtbtomo wrote:

I'd suggest for most cranks you will need a matching brand (or after market) BB. Not sure if Token do a bb called the Ninja (?) that is compatible across multiple cranksets, but can't remember if that suits BB86 and clearly you'd have to buy the new bb to start with. Personally I wouldn't worry about tales of Shimano cranks snapping. Cos who goes online and posts *sensational* pictures of Shimano cranks still in one piece?? Thousands if not millions of happy users on Shimano cranks still I would suggest, their cranks aren't vaporising as we speak

However, there does seem to be a large number of people who have suffered 2 or even 3 Shimano crank failures, so the failure rate is probably something like 1 in 30. If you're concerned about it, then go for 105 instead of Ultegra or Dura-Ace.

Here's the FSA chart for BB86 compatible cranksets:  https://www.qbp.com/diagrams/TechInfo/FSA/externalbbfitchart.pdf

I don't think the FSA document tells you much other than what FSA crank to pair with which FSA BB? Even though the spindle might be the same 24mm, some cranks use spacers to remove side to side play

Well, I know what my bike has been through and having been a happy 105-ish sort of a rider, I upgraded to Ultegra for Di2 specifically and have been rewarded with a £250+ bill just for the replacement crank (hen's teeth supply issues, RRP pricing I think).

I'd say if my crank failed under my weedy legs, and I've had no other failures on other bikes, I'm inclined to believe there is a problem. Having been a happy Shimano camper for many years, and worked on all three main brands in my cycle repair days, I was happy that Shimano was boringly reliable and easy to work with, and while all three had some mis-steps, Shimano was the safe haven. Therefore it says something that I was quite pleased with my new bike coming with a Praxis crank, when I normally dislike manufacturers slapping on a cheaper spec crank to trim costs - especially as it ends up down the path of "how do I upgrade this weird stuff from FSA etc."