bgnukem wrote:To add my experiences here, I tried to use the Spa Cycles triple, Sugino XD-derived which I believe was originally designed for use with 7- or 8-speed, with a 9-speed chain and had issues with the chain getting stuck between 'rings and slipping - loss of drive.
I guess this was due to the gaps between 'rings being too wide for the narrower chain. It was one of the cheaper versions of the chainset with the two outer 'rings in steel, so perhaps slightly thinner than the alloy 'rings. The chain didn't jam on the teeth of the 'rings though. Not sure how compatible Shimano 8- and 9-speed chainsets are though.
I always wonder why I can't call all this stuff to mind as easily as I think I should be able to....then I remember I've been retired 7 years.
So, yeah, Sugino XD2 originally (thanks for the memory jog!) Subsequently branded "Stronglight Impact" and much later sold as "Spa".
The original tooling was not accurate, so every XD2 triple chainset had thin washers between the middle ring and the spider....omit these at your peril, because the middle ring will be too close to the big ring and too far away from the small ring. (Memory letting me down again here....it might not be all of them, it might vary depending on whether you can see all 5 chainring bolts, or there is one hidden behind the crank.)
I have no personal experience of the cheaper chainsets with steel/alloy rings, but we sold a lot! Isn't it the 2 inner rings in steel, and alloy big ring?
Mine are all Stronglight rings apart from a single Spa ring bought because I changed the ring size.