FSA Tempo crankset is not compatible with FSA Vero

Question

I just purchased a new FSA Tempo Adventure JIS crankset - 46/30 to replace the FSA Vero Compact 50/34 JIS crankset on my 2018 Cannondale Synapse Sora 9 speed as I need lower gearing.
Both are shown as FSA "Road" and should be compatible.
But they are not...
On the Vero, the interface to the BB sits slightly above the plane of the inner chain ring.
On the Tempo, the interface to the BB sits a few mm below the plane of the inner chain ring.
Net result is that the chain rings of the Tempo are closer in to the frame, and actually touch the chain stay so cannot be fitted.
Does anyone know if there is a way to to overcome this problem?
Maybe there is there a replacement BB that would compensate for the movement of the Tempo cranks closer in to the frame?

ojs · Answer

First, just that both say "FSA Road" doesn't mean that they are compatible.
The answer is to look up the documentation for the crankset. It's the first Google hit if you search with the name and then look for bottom bracket. It says 118mm (which is unusually long) and JIS. You need a bottom bracket with axle like this.
Edit: Looking at the bottom photo, it looks like the crank has originally been designed to be used to be used with triple chainrings and has been converted to supercompact double by just leaving out the largest ring. 118mm spindle is in the normal range for triples.

frespy · Answer

Many thanks for the advice everybody, especially @ojs
I'll need to get a BB with a longer axle.
According to FSA tech support, the Vero uses a 110.5 axle length for a 44mm  chainline, and the Tempo requires a 118 axle length for a 44mm chainline.

FSA Tempo crankset is not compatible with FSA Vero

2 Answers

Add your own answers!

Ask a Question