Cranks

G arbaruk has been around since the mid 2000s, when brothers Valerii and Yurii Garbaruk officially went into carbon manufacturing, making frames, handlebars, and seatposts out of a small garage in Ukraine. Valerii and Yurii were involved in all kinds of two-wheeled racing, whether MTB XC or in the Ukrainian motorcycle Superbike league, and they had a habit of making their own parts already, so that next step seemed logical. The company acquired its first CNC machine in 2014, and then moved all its facilities to Poland in 2019. Garbaruk is now mainly focused on making aluminum MTB drivetrain...

A crank is a crank is a crank…these days that can be both true and not true. Yes, you can find a perfectly functional crank that is not too heavy and doesn’t cost too much. However, as bland as this particular component may seem, it’s an area where you can also find exotic options to spice up your ride and make it your own. Anything from carbon to titanium goes, with all kinds of designs and colors on offer. North Shore Billet, more commonly known as NSB, threw their hat in the ring earlier this year with a three-piece crank machined from a single billet of aluminum. We’ve been testing one for...

If you've ever ridden a full-suspension bike without a chain, you likely noticed an improvement in its suspension performance. After watching some incredible chainless downhill runs on the UCI World Cup circuit, this Italian brand dreamt up a way to provide the benefits of riding without a chain, with a chain. On many bikes, chainstay growth during suspension compression causes the crankset to rotate counter-clockwise. This is also known as pedal kickback. By allowing some spring-loaded rotational movement within a reimagined chainring spider, the Ochain device is claimed to automatically...