THM Clavicula SE Crankset

According to its creator, the Clavicula SE is the oldest carbon crank design in the world… and still the best

- Sam Challis

 I produced the first Clavicula crankset way back in 1993 for the bike brand Storck, when I was pretty much a one-man band,’ says Thomas Mertin, co-founder of the German carbon fibre brand THM. ‘At that time there were no other carbon crank designs so we had nothing for reference. Needless to say, the design has been refined somewhat over the years. For example, initially we designed the cranksets to suit a square taper axle, but quickly found out that didn’t work so well in carbon.’

The Clavicula’s current form is the result of nearly 25 years of research and development. It now features a 30mm carbon axle ‘for stiffness and bottom bracket versatility’ and a compact crankset weighs just 293g, which is less than half the weight of Shimano or Campagnolo’s top-end offerings.