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absoluteBLACK Super Steel eMTB chainrings go harder…at a price

absoluteblack super steel e-bike chainring
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Compared to cheaper stamped steel chainrings that come stock on many bikes, the new absoluteBLACK Super Steel e-bike chainrings start as a harder premium steel block, then get milled down to separate spiders and chainrings.

From there, they’re heat treated to increase strength, then given multiple “nitriding and carburizing” surface treatments to achieve a 1300HV hardness rating. They say that’s 4x harder than typical stamped steel chainrings.

absoluteblack super steel e-bike chainring on a Specialized Levo eMTB

Side note: absoluteBLACK isn’t the only one offering CNC’d e-bike chainring upgrades. Hope, Rotor, and others offer them, but they’re made from aluminum, not steel.

There’s nothing wrong with aluminum, that’s what aB’s standard chainrings are made from, but they say the added torque from an e-bike motor can wear stamped (and, presumably, alloy) chainrings more quickly. Which then wears the chain, and then the cassette, more quickly, too.

So, despite these chainrings costing €189.95 and the spider ranging from €120 to €140, they say it can give you up to 3x the lifespan on the rest of your drivetrain. And, cassettes and chains are expensive these days, too. Spider and chainring are sold separately, so you can replace just the chainring if/when you do wear it out.

absoluteblack super steel e-bike chainring for specialized motors
absoluteBLACK Super Steel chainring & spider for Specialized e-bikes.

Why so expensive? They say the block of raw material costs them more than the retail price of a typical chainring, and because it’s so much harder, it takes significantly more time to CNC.

The Super Steel e-bike chainrings come in two versions, one optimized for 12spd Shimano HG+ chains, and one for regular 11/12spd regular chains.

absoluteblack super steel e-bike chainring for shimano steps motors
Super Steel chainrings and spiders for Shimano STEPS motors.

Spiders are available for these e-bike motors:

  • Shimano Steps (50 and 53mm)
  • Bosch Gen 3 (50 and 53mm)
  • Bosch Gen 4 (50 and 53mm)
  • Specialized Brose
  • Specialized SL 1.1 MTB motors

Spiders come in 4 colors: black, red, gold, and titanium, and they come with titanium chainring bolts.

The chainrings are only compatible with these spiders, and only come in a “titanium” color with your choice of 32/34/36/38 tooth counts. Just keep in mind, some e-bike systems are optimized for the stock tooth count chainrings, so double check with the manufacturer before changing chainring size.

absoluteBLACK.cc

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Antoine
Antoine
1 year ago

sram direct mount emtb steel ring are about 12 bucks and are very strong. Sadly they are not always easy to find.

George Orwell
George Orwell
1 year ago

There’s another one born every minute…

Walt
Walt
1 year ago

yes, finally a steel ring! if it lasts that long i’m in. It is such a pain to replace my ebike ring, special tools and all that, even if they are cheap, it is always a job for a mechanic so additional cost. I like the looks of those too .

steve
steve
1 year ago
Reply to  Walt

Shimano rings are steel already and are a tiny fraction of the cost.

Roger Pedacter
Roger Pedacter
1 year ago

More AbsoluteSnakeOil

“…they say the block of raw material costs them more than the retail price of a typical chainring…”

I’m sure they do say that because nothing else they claim in the manufacturing process would justify the price increase.

And you’ll notice they don’t say one of their chainrings. Just “a typical chainring.” Which likely means the cheapest one they could find on Alibaba.

They really do tailor their marketing to the double digit IQ crowd…

steve
steve
1 year ago

Absolute black are fast becoming a marketing company with prices that are as ridiculous as the product claims.

Everything is ‘worlds best’ or ‘premium’, ‘super’ etc – words that have no specific meaning what so ever.

TimE
TimE
1 year ago

When will absolute bs stop from this company…?

Steven
Steven
1 year ago

Over priced nonsense. Unnecessarily high priced stuff. There are many other companies who produce alternative products at a fraction of the price.

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