double or triple ring?
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It depends on your level of fitness and what type of riding you intend to do (flat, rolling, hills, mountains).
A compact is a good in between option.Rich0 -
Hi, the Allez is a great bike and is always recommended in test reports. As it will be your first road bike i say get the triple, it gives you a much wider spread of gears and you can change to a double or compact easily at a later date.He is not the messiah, he is a very naughty boy !!0
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Depends what your aims are as a rider. if you want to learn to climb quickly get a double and develop a powerful climbing technique, you will never do that spinning a granny gear at 120rpm at 5mph.
if you are happy just to pootle consider the triple.0 -
i ride a double but if there were more hills round here i would go for a triple its a personal choice0
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If you'd like more luxury when climbing (with significant miles in the legs) then get a Triple - if you think you'll be happy enough grinding up a 10-15 % gradient (with significant miles in the legs) then get a Double.
On fresh legs, you'll likely be fine on either a Double or Triple - the problem comes when you've got 60-70 undulating/hilly miles in the legs, you've got a 750 - 1000 ft climb with 15 % sections in it (for example). If you're well-trained and well-condtioned to hilly riding, you might be fine on a Double - however, if you're not so well conditioned, you'll probably be thankful for a Triple.
Not sure what type of riding you'll be doing though??0 -
Depends how much time you have to commit i'd say.You'll find all over the forum people will tell you ,miles on the bike not gear will get you to where you want to be.If you have the time to get out there and progress from flat to rolling to more challenging hillier rides and longer distances you will be amazed at what you once thought of as"i'll never get up that"you soon will.So i'd go for the double.Less expensive in the long run as you won't have to change groups.Have a word with your lbs about changing the cassette if you want a more forgiving ride,cheaper, easier to change.Good luck
If your out the back,can anyone hear you scream?0 -
really a triple is the same as a double except that youve got an extra ring to go down to if you get in the s**t up a very steep hill, ive got a Scott CR1 with a triple but only used it 3 or 4 times in 5000 miles and those times were when faced with 20% hills with bugger all left in the tank without the granny ring it would have meant getting off and walking , i,d rate a triple over a compact because i think the 34 or 36 ring on a compact is less useful than the 39 ring on a triple even though there is a small weight penalty to pay with a triple0
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I recommend a triple. a 52/39/30 setup gives you the same as a double but with a bail-out option for when things get really tough. I hardly ever the use the granny ring, but nice to know it's there.0
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triple gets my vote.
yes it can spoil you , and you might not develop strong legs as much (thats another debate)
If you get a double, and find you need more gears all you can do is get a wider rear cassete that means you get bigger jumps, and that anoys me.
So i opt for a triple and a nice close 11-21 cassette or like.
I have a compact with a 28 on the back and when trying to push hard and keep a good cadence i find it difficult0 -
Are you a super athlete? If not get a triple - you don't have to get off and push when you encounter a 20%+ hill at the end of a long ride.We are born with the dead:
See, they return, and bring us with them.0 -
It's good to see that old line coming out again. Every time I see that one I can rejoice in one more person who will have wrecked knees when mine are still working just fine.Smokin Joe wrote:Depends what your aims are as a rider. if you want to learn to climb quickly get a double and develop a powerful climbing technique, you will never do that spinning a granny gear at 120rpm at 5mph.
if you are happy just to pootle consider the triple.0 -
aracer wrote:
It's good to see that old line coming out again. Every time I see that one I can rejoice in one more person who will have wrecked knees when mine are still working just fine.Smokin Joe wrote:Depends what your aims are as a rider. if you want to learn to climb quickly get a double and develop a powerful climbing technique, you will never do that spinning a granny gear at 120rpm at 5mph.
if you are happy just to pootle consider the triple.
I haven't heard much about all the old boys who've wrecked their knees climbing with 42*21 smallest gears .....0 -
Name three.aracer wrote:
It's good to see that old line coming out again. Every time I see that one I can rejoice in one more person who will have wrecked knees when mine are still working just fine.Smokin Joe wrote:Depends what your aims are as a rider. if you want to learn to climb quickly get a double and develop a powerful climbing technique, you will never do that spinning a granny gear at 120rpm at 5mph.
if you are happy just to pootle consider the triple.
That is a myth that has grown with the interweb as it is repeated unchallenged. As red Dragon says 42*21 was the lowest the vast majority of riders used till we suddenly started to get loads of extra sprockets from the eighties onwards. If high gears wrecked your knees on a bike then runners and footballers would be f*cked after one season as those sports put far more loading on the joints.0 -
I started riding on a standard double and had absolutly no problems - and I live in Huddersfield (extremely hilly if you've never been). I'm no spring chicken either. I have since specced one of my bikes with a 50/36 for sportive / Alpine use, but normally run an 11/23 cassette with it (unless I'm doing a sportif or on holiday when I switch to 12/25). This roughly equates to standard gearing. I'm convinced I'm a stronger rider through this. You will find a road bike much easier than whatever you've ridden before so don't be afraid of running standard gearing, you'll get used to that and it will not be a problem. The choice is yours and neither a std / compact or triple will be "wrong". Just depends a bit on where you want to be in six months...0
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Personally I ride a compact in the UK (most of my riding is in the Chilterns, so plenty of 15% climbs to tackle). I have a triple, which I use when I visit the Alps/Pyrennees, when I'm more likely to want the extra gear going down hill.
I find that a triple in the UK finds me scrabbling around trying to find the right gear on the front and rear, whereas on the double (compact) the fewer options makes my life easier. A triple only gives you a marginally lower gear than a compact.We are all full of weakness and errors; let us mutually pardon each other our follies - it is the first law of nature.
Voltaire0 -
Smokin Joe wrote:if you want to learn to climb quickly ... you will never do that spinning a granny gear at 120rpm .
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actually that would be pretty impressive and would equate to about 12mph
a lot faster than me on steep hills :oops:We are born with the dead:
See, they return, and bring us with them.0 -
What about a double with a 12-27 cassette?0
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Like 'mossrider' , I live where it's a big hill every whichway : Saddleworth ( nr.Huddersfield in fact ). For what it's worth I enjoy the climbing around here and , in concert with my age - and girth - the rear sprockets I use have got bigger . I currently use an 11 x 27 rear and a compact 50 x 34 . What's that ? - I haven't any tables handy - about 120 inches to around 32 or so , isn't it ? My partner chucked her triple this year and has maintained what she had before with a 13 x 29 compact double setup . If I remember right she still bottoms out at 30" as before with the triple .
I'm grateful that Campag' reduced the bcd to allow the 'compact' format as I was not looking forward to putting on a triple , as everyone that I know that uses them seem to have a hard time of it keeping them in tune . Or , it seems to me , they seem to accept the frequent abrasive noises that so often seem to accompany the triples that I've followed over the years .
It's the overall ' spread ' of the gears that's important to me , not the single tooth difference ' snicking ' of one sprocket to another to maintain a perfect cadence ."Lick My Decals Off, Baby"0 -
I think flasher is right. A double with a 12 - 27 cassette. If that doesn't work sometimes, you can always walk. Cycling is for pleasure. It's not meant to be a punishment. Enjoy the views!0
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+1 for compacts, my reco for the first bike unless you really want to throw yourself into the mountains!"And the Lord said unto Cain, 'where is Abel thy brother?' And he said, 'I know not: I dropped him on the climb up to the motorway bridge'."
- eccolafilosofiadelpedale0 -
Just found this thread - interesting cos I am considering the same choices for upgrading my chainset / cassette. It's currently on 52/39 and 12/23 9 speed, fine for the UK and blasting around Richmond Park. But not so good for taking it away with me on work trips to California...
I notice no-one here mentioned body weight... I am 6ft 2" and at 81kgs, I am no mountain goat! Despite losing 8kgs in body weight I have put more on in my legs in the last year. Well anyway, I am regularly tackling 70 mile rides around the Marin Headlands and Mount Tamalpais in California, on a rented Trek alloy triple. The altitude gain there is 2500ft, I guess about 5% average over 12 miles, but with sections over 10%. A 70 mile ride will see about 5000ft total ascending. I can quite happily sit there chugging away in the granny gear at 8mph - but it's bl**dy hard work. Of course I want to take my own bike there, but I am wondering if I will be able to raise my game and do it on a compact with a 12/27 cassette, or if I will need a triple. If I will really feel a huge difference in difficulty between a 34/27 and the 30/27 I am using at the moment. My current setup would be out of the question for me...
I am getting the miles in, between 100-220 per week, and breezing up hills that a year ago would have me wheezing, bent over by the side of the road. But I don't want to spend £150 on a compact and find it's still too much for me. Of course I've had several 65kg riders telling me not to be a wimp and get a compact! Maybe I'll lend them a 16kg rucksack next time...Anyone else been through this process, bought a compact and found it's still too much? Do real cyclists only ride doubles?
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After riding 4 Etape de Tours with a 13-26 and a triple I changed this year to a 13-29 and a 34 x 50 compact.
Bottom gear virtually the same but the whole set up is much lighter and smoother / easier to use and the loss of the higher gears has not been an issue at all.
I for one won't be changing back but will ride over the winter on my Audax bike still with 13-26 and a Campag Record Triple.
I too am 6' 2" and 81 kg and am in my late 50's I need low gears to protect my knees.
What you tend to lose with a compact is not low gears but high gears and the one tooth difference between sprockets.0 -
Thanks for the info - I hadn't seen any Shimano 9 speed cassettes with more than 27 teeth - a 12 / 27 was the lowest I saw in Ultegra or Dura Ace. Who makes the 13/29, and did you need a longer cage rear mech? Maybe I will try a 12/27 first.0
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The 29 is on Campag and does need a different mech. You can get larger than 27 on Shimano 9sp MTB cassettes but they need a change to a MTB mech.
I think if you have to ask this question you should go for the triple. It is far cheaper to change to a compact or standard double later than to change to a triple. And you can always remove the granny if it annoys you.
Personaly I am quite happy with 50/34 and 12/27 with a change to 12/23 for racing. I am well over 60 and 75kg but it was fine in the Pyrenees and I have not yet needed a higher gear. As for one tooth jumps 10sp is straight through from 12 to 17 on the 12/27 and from 12 to 19 on the 12/23. Now a 12/27 11sp would be nice but ---.
Derek. As you already have a double and quite a bit of experience you should be fine with a compact. I don't often get beaten on Yorkshire Dales hills and some of them are a bit steep. I do struggle above 25% but I don't think the drop to a 30 ring would make much difference there. I need better legs.0 -
John.T wrote:I do struggle above 25% but I don't think the drop to a 30 ring would make much difference there. I need better legs.
25%??!? Jesus! I would like to get a Garmin and see for real what the gradient is on my regular jaunt up Mount Tamalpais. Thanks again for the comprehensive info. I think I will go for a compact, considering the improvement over the last year, I am sure a few more kilos shed and a few more miles in my legs will be ok. And if not, well I'll just have to raise my game a bit! I've noticed that my recovery is infinitely faster than when I started riding properly a year ago, and I know there is more to come.
I think I remembered seeing a link somewhere to an article regarding increase in power required / work done in relation to weight you are trying to drag up a hill. It would be interesting to know how much of a drop in kilos is required to offset a higher gear, in purely mechanical 'work done' terms.0 -
The answer is simple.
If you have to ask the question, go for the triple.0 -
Well maybe, maybe not. One thing I've learned from other sports in the past is that if you make it easy for yourself then you will probably stay at that level. Isn't that the point of training? My plan is to try and tackle the same mountain in a couple of weeks but try not to use the bottom ring, try and stick to the 34/27. If I can hack it on that without stopping more than a few times then I will go for a compact.
Thanks for all the advice though chaps!0 -
That would be the "no pain, no gain" training plan. Fortunately largely discredited.derekwatts wrote:Well maybe, maybe not. One thing I've learned from other sports in the past is that if you make it easy for yourself then you will probably stay at that level. Isn't that the point of training?0 -
I would say whilst the traditional nopainnogain has been discredited, some pain is good.0
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Pain and train, yes go for it, But........ failure can put people off. So go for the one with the most bailout options, you don't have to use them but that 30% hill which you can ride when fresh will be another matter on the 100 mile mark. Just ask all those who have done the Fred Whitton or the Rydale Rumble.0
