gears and hills

fred_dillon
fred_dillon Posts: 27
edited December 2008 in Road beginners
Hi, just after some thoughts from you wise people out there
I have a 10 year old Claud Butler 52/40 chain rings, and a 7 speed 13 - 23 cassette, as where I live is a bit hilly and I struggle on the steepest, if I change the cassette to 13 - 26 or 13 - 28, will I actually notice? :?
thanks

Comments

  • cpeachey
    cpeachey Posts: 1,057
    Your current bottom gear is 48.7" (On our tandems we use a bottom of 16-18"!!!)
    a 26tooth cog gives 43.1 and 28 gives 40"
    Yes you would notice the difference. However a smaller chainring would be a better option with a 34T ring giving you 41.4" with your current block and 34" with a 28t cog. 52/34is quite a jump though.
    Look at your chainset and see what BCD the rings are and what the smallest could be.
    Chris 8)
  • marusches
    marusches Posts: 129
    without a doubt you will notice i struggle through the north yorks moors on a 42x23 and a freind from dr cranks bike shack said its to low and with more teeth on wheel you will notice a big difference. and boy he is right
  • fred_dillon
    fred_dillon Posts: 27
    thanks guys, keep the responses coming!
  • John.T
    John.T Posts: 3,698
    If you have Shimano cranks the smallest chain ring you could fit is 38 teeth. If you change the rear to a 28 you would drop your bottom gear by 10". You would certainly notice this. Have a play with Sheldon Brown's gear calculator. Set it to gear inches and the tyre size you are using. I would bookmark his site home page as it is a mine of usefull info.
    http://sheldonbrown.com/gears/
    My Fleet.
  • peanut
    peanut Posts: 1,373
    as John says your best option is to replace your 40t chainring with a 38t from SJS cycles
    anything smaller would result in a huge drop when you change from your big ring to the smaller chainring.
    it would be worth changing your 7 speed freewheel from 7 speed to 8 speed to get an extra gear like a 25t or 26t sprocket but alternatively you could change the 23t for a 25t or 26t sprocket if you have any spares.
    7 speed and 8 speed freewheels are difficult to source and expensive these days . Unless you wish to keep the bike as original as possible it might be an idea to consider upgrading to 8 speed by replacing the rear wheel with a freehub and cassette

    7 speed freewheel
    http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/product-Shimano-Shimano-MF-TZ21-7-Spd-Screw-On-Freewheel-14-28-18964.htm

    chainrings
    http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/product-Shimano-Shimano-Sora-3300-8spd-130mm-PCD-Inner-Double-Chainring-39T-15859.htm
  • John.T
    John.T Posts: 3,698
    The OP may have 7sp STIs so changing to 8sp would entail more expence. May as well go to 9 or 10. He refers to a cassette so I assume that is what he has. When I was running 7sp I had a couple of cassettes and split them up so I could use the cogs I needed. It was a bit of a bind swapping them around for races or touring but it was all I could afford at the time.
    There is no option to fit a smaller chainring than a 38. It would require fitting a compact chainset.
    My Fleet.
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    marusches wrote:
    without a doubt you will notice i struggle through the north yorks moors on a 42x23 and a freind from dr cranks bike shack said its to low and with more teeth on wheel you will notice a big difference. and boy he is right

    You 'Struggle' on a 42x23 in the NY Moors!...to me your a total star mate....anyone who manages to negotiate that part of the world with gears of that magnitude needs a real firm hand shake....I've got a triple with a lowest gear of 30x27 and Im still near spewing on my ventures down there...Blakey Bank,Boltby Bank,That git out of Grosmont over Black Brow...the Rosedale Chimney Bank!.....33% galore.....I reckon the NY Moors(or the Lakes) may have the steepest climbs pound for pound in the UK (if not the world)...and anyone who even mentions this area and a 42 upfront deserves major respect....

    Knees of steel!
  • peanut
    peanut Posts: 1,373
    John.T wrote:
    The OP may have 7sp STIs so changing to 8sp would entail more expence. May as well go to 9 or 10. He refers to a cassette so I assume that is what he has. When I was running 7sp I had a couple of cassettes and split them up so I could use the cogs I needed. It was a bit of a bind swapping them around for races or touring but it was all I could afford at the time.
    There is no option to fit a smaller chainring than a 38. It would require fitting a compact chainset.

    STI on a 10 year old Claude Butler I very much doubt it. It certainly isn't likely to be worth upgrading a 10 yr old bike of this quality with 10 speed components :roll:
    The OP was just asking about changing sprockets not major expense of £100's :wink:

    I am not aware of any manufacturer producing a 7 speed cassette but I'm sure you can prove me wrong. No I think its fairly safe to presume on a 10 year old 7 speed bike its a freewheel with friction gears

    If the gears are friction I would still recommend changing to 8 speed 12t-28t freewheel which would cost less than £10.00.and not require any other component to be upgraded.

    Changing the small chainring to 38t as you suggest would cost about a further £10.00 so a cheap and significant improvement.
    For a further £60 or so the addition of Sora 8 speed STI would be a vast improvement and still excellent value
  • schlepcycling
    schlepcycling Posts: 1,614
    Shimano introduced STI in 1990, so it's entirely feasible that a 10 year old 7 speed bike could have STI.
    'Hello to Jason Isaacs'
  • peanut
    peanut Posts: 1,373
    schlepcycling wrote:
    Shimano introduced STI in 1990, so it's entirely feasible that a 10 year old 7 speed bike could have STI.

    of course it is no one is saying it isn't are they ???

    it could easily have Sora 7 speed STI but I'm willing to lay odds it wasn't supplioed with STI because of the pricing level of these bikes.

    Anyway what do you have of use to contribute to this thread to assist the OP ? :roll: mmmmmmmm thats what I thought :lol:
  • alfablue
    alfablue Posts: 8,497
    I have an 11 year old Dawes with RSX STI's and 7 speed. 2 years ago I got a new 12-28 Shimano HG 7 speed cassette, Wiggle have them for £22, should be able to find them in quite a few places, (Cyclesports UK seem to be the cheapest at about £19).

    I think in its day RSX would equate with Tiagra.

    I am running an Ultegra HTII triple on the front (its an audax bike).

    I have toyed with going 9 or 10 speed but it would need a new rear wheel and shifters as well as cassette and chain so would cost around £200 or so, so I am waiting till the rim wears out, and to be honest it is all working very well right now.
  • schlepcycling
    schlepcycling Posts: 1,614
    peanut wrote:
    STI on a 10 year old Claude Butler I very much doubt it.
    peanut wrote:
    I am not aware of any manufacturer producing a 7 speed cassette but I'm sure you can prove me wrong. No I think its fairly safe to presume on a 10 year old 7 speed bike its a freewheel with friction gears

    You seemed to be suggesting it and presuming that his gears are friction gears without knowing. 10 Years ago was 1998 most even very low end bikes at least had index gears it wasn't the dark ages FFS.

    Granted my post doesn't do anything to further the OP's cause and for that I apologise.
    'Hello to Jason Isaacs'
  • John.T
    John.T Posts: 3,698
    peanut. You were the one who suggested 8sp. Read my post. I said that if he had STIs it would be as well to go to 9 or 10sp rather than get 8sp ones. The rest of my post suggested canabalising 2 cassettes to get the gears he wanted. You can use cogs from 8sp cassettes for this with no problem. I have used two 7sp cogs in a 9sp cassette. It worked fine.
    I had a 1998 Lemond Reno with 7sp cassette and STIs so it is a fair chance he has a simmilar set-up. You must be older than you think.
    My Fleet.
  • peanut
    peanut Posts: 1,373
    give it a rest John you are becoming boring mate :lol:
  • fred_dillon
    fred_dillon Posts: 27
    sorry for the confusion, it has down tube shifters, Shimano Exage, and yes it is indexed. it has a Biopace double chain ring
    Its a Claud Butler Criterium with a Reynolds 531 frame,.
    thanks for all the useful info, I just knew this was the best place to ask
    cheers :)
  • peanut
    peanut Posts: 1,373
    sorry for the pedantic bickering from some members Fred
    hope you manage to find something useful in amongst it.
    If you like your bike and are keen to keep it without spending too much then a 13-28t or 12-28t 8 speed freewheel or cassette (whichever is approriate ) is probably the way to go . at a cost of about £10.00 It will make an appreciable difference. It will effectively give you 2x more gear changes.
    You will need to upgrade your levers to 8 speed also. I have some new index levers somewhere you are welcome to for free otherwise you might consider upgrading to Sora STI which would be a revelation believe me
  • fred_dillon
    fred_dillon Posts: 27
    thanks Peanut, I have had the bike for 6 months, and enjoy riding it, its light compared to my Raleigh Pioneer, and fast enough for my 11 mile each way commute, plus week end rides, I don't want to spend a large amount on it as it only cost me £45, although with new tyres, seat and odds and ends it soon mounts up!
    and in time I will get something new, probibly through cycle to work.
    I just wanted to make those steep hills a bit easier.
    So yes I will go for an 8 speed as you suggest, how much do you want for the shifters if you can find them :)
  • peanut
    peanut Posts: 1,373
    I'll have a rummage tomorrow . Haven't seen them for a while . You are welcome to them for free but I'd appreciate something towards postage. Lets see if I can find them first then talk about posting.
    Is there any chance you could let me have a picture of your freewheel or cassete with the wheel off the frame ? I should be able to tell what you have fitted so you can order the correct part.
    I gave away my 8 speed freewheel and spare sprockets last month unfortunately but I can help track down the right part for you at least.
    ps 531 is a nice lightweight steel frame . I still prefer my 70's and 80's steel frames to aluminium or carbon
  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    peanut wrote:
    I am not aware of any manufacturer producing a 7 speed cassette but I'm sure you can prove me wrong.

    Shimano?

    http://www.google.co.uk/products?hl=en& ... a=N&tab=wf
    I like bikes...

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  • peanut
    peanut Posts: 1,373
    do you know it never ceases to amaze me how many pedantic smart arses there are that are happy to take the time and trouble to put people right about some non important fact or other and yet contribute nothing constructive to the thread ,just hinder those posters that are taking the time and trouble trying to help some new member out with some advice and parts.
    :roll:

    any more knockers??? :lol:
  • fred_dillon
    fred_dillon Posts: 27
    Thanks Peanut, but tomorrow's Christmas day, leave until the festivities are over, thanks for your help, of course i will pay postage.
    happy Christmas :D
  • fred_dillon
    fred_dillon Posts: 27
    Peanut, I have a Shimano Hyperglide 7 speed, will an 8 speed just fit on?
    DSCF0566.jpg
    DSCF0574.jpg
    DSCF0579.jpg
    cheers
  • whyamihere
    whyamihere Posts: 7,712
    Assuming the 7 speed cassette goes on with no spacers, an 8 speed will not fit on at all. They're a cog wider than 7 speed cassettes.
  • John.T
    John.T Posts: 3,698
    If you can not find a 7sp cassette get an 8sp and split it. You can use the cogs you want with the spacers from your 7sp one. There will be more choice as well. The difference in cog thickness is so small to not matter.
    Wish you had said a bit more about what kit you had on the bike. It would have saved me from a b*llocking from peanut.
    My Fleet.
  • fred_dillon
    fred_dillon Posts: 27
    sorry, I'm the newbe, just asking for help, did not intend to wreak a friendship :(
  • John.T
    John.T Posts: 3,698
    Don't worry about it. The most common problem on here is not having enough information to give precise options. I hope you get sorted.
    My Fleet.

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