I own a 2006 Centaur alloy crankset and was wondering how many miles the chainrings will last if the chain is will maintained and not ridden in the rain. Also do crankarms wear out after so many miles? Thanks.

If you keep the chain clean and lubed and NEVER ride in the rain (but what fun is that?), chainrings can last many thousands of miles. It's hard to put a number on it, because things vary even under ideal conditions, but you could get 20,000 miles if you're lucky.

Crank arms have nothing really to "wear out" unless you split them by re-tightening over and over, and that's a pretty rare event. They can last essentially forever.

Road Bike Rider, a weekly newsletter, talks about crankarm life in the current issue. I've always assumed they'd last forever, too, but I may have been wrong. It's at
http://www.roadbikerider.com/284r.htm, then scroll down to UNCLE AL: Parts Life.

FWIW, I know of two broken crankarms, both right-side Campy Chorus. One resulted in a broken back and a year of hard physical therapy before the guy could get around on his own. He's a former bike shop owner and good mechanic who maintains his equipment religiously.

Now you're makin' me think. My toes point out, and my heel often rubs the crankarm. I guess I should inspect.

Carbonsnail, please take all I've said with the appropriate caution.

I own a 2006 Centaur alloy crankset and was wondering how many miles the chainrings will last if the chain is will maintained and not ridden in the rain. Also do crankarms wear out after so many miles?

On my last chainring, I got 65K miles (Campy Record, 53t). Your usage pattern and the quality of the chain ring will define the life. You can't really predict it.

Kerrey: What is meant by "usage pattern"?

By "usage pattern", I assumed he meant time spent in small vs. large ring. I've been putting about 7-8000 miles a year on my bikes recently and none are anywhere near having a wornout chainring...... chains and cassettes are another story altogether.

By "usage pattern", I assumed he meant time spent in small vs. large ring. I've been putting about 7-8000 miles a year on my bikes recently and none are anywhere near having a wornout chainring...... chains and cassettes are another story altogether.

Large or small ring, how much power you put out, how smoothly you shift, how clean the chain, how smoothly you pedal, etc.