First Look: Updated Crankbrothers Bars, Stems and More for 2014 5

bturman

11/24/2013 11:56pm

Just one week after the release of their completely revamped 2014 wheelsets, Crankbrothers is proud to launch several updated cockpit components. While they're part of the upgrades, the changes include much more than just bold new graphics.

The new Cobalt 11 carbon bar has gotten even lighter for the new year, weighing in as low as 155 grams for the 680mm wide, 8mm rise version. The Cobalt 11 bar is also offered in a generous 780m width and 15mm rise options as well, all at $165.

A rough mid-section, similar to knurling on aluminum bars, helps stems bite on. Anyone who has had a carbon fiber bar slip in their stem after being properly torqued can appreciate this. It doesn't budge.

The subtle graphics are a nice bonus when lining up grips, stems, shifters and dropper post bits on the bar. As always, clean graphics integrate nicely between all cockpit parts and the new wheels. Crankbrothers were keen on having a svelte aesthetic that meshed well across multiple platforms.

Crankbrothers also wanted to improve their Iodine stems by reducing weight, increasing stiffness, and updating the design. The old wedge style clamping system has been done away with, but this new wedge adds to the stem's structural integrity without adding much weight, plus it gives the stem/steerer tube a clean look. The stack height has been reduced as well.

Just like before, Crankbrothers uses Torx hardware all the way around on cockpit parts. It's harder for meat-fisted riders to strip them out and most multi tools come with a T25 these days anyway.

An updated faceplate on the Iodine 2 and 3 stems with a 4-bolt interface provides a claimed 30% increase in stiffness over the previous models. A new carbon fiber faceplate graces the front of the Iodine 3 stem, bringing the weight down to 147 grams. It's available in 50, 65, and 80mm lengths with a 6-degree rise at $110 a pop.

Crankbrothers offers a 2-year warranty on all carbon and composite parts, and a longer 5-year warranty on aluminum bits.

The Iodine lock-on grip has undergone some changes as well. At 95 grams for a pair they feature a new grip texture for increased durability of the krayton rubber. They're $25 per pair and measure 130mm wide.

Once again, Crankbrothers used torx hardware throughout. Torque specs are conveniently listed in all critical areas.

The Iodine grip uses a pretty unique clamp. It's an integrated design where the aluminum clamps wrap around the hard plastic molded flanges. This helps ensure that you don't over tighten the grips and ruin carbon bars.

Also new for 2014 are updated Cobalt XC stems (right). At just 109g (100mm length), the Cobalt 11 stem is claimed to be the lightest XC stem on the market. It sees a new 4-bolt design that makes it twice as stiff as the previous generation.