Gear Ratios: 11-34T vs 11-32T.

qgwp
qgwp Posts: 53
edited December 2015 in MTB general
MTB Gear Ratios: 11-34T vs 11-32T.

What are opinions on difference between 11-32T & 11-34T?

Do I need to change chain, etc, to swap, or just a straight cassette swap?

Soon replacing Sram PG950 11-32T 9spd on FS MTB. Maybe for my beginning to toil 45 years age I may appreciate 11-34T ratio?

Sram PG990 11-34T 9 Speed MTB Cassette for £43 inc. P&P on eBay, enticingly caught my eye, mainly due to its gold spoke bling design… I wonder if its any good, it seems reasonable 305g weight, & Sram is generally respected as on par with Shimano?
Or recommendations within a relatively sensible budget would be appreciated too?
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Comments

  • Northwind
    Northwind Posts: 14,675
    Well, you want to change the chain when you change cassettes anyway. 11-34 with a 22T front gives you an incredibly low crawler gear, which in all honesty isn't often all that useful... You barely move in that gear, and with a lot of bikes it's very difficult to get any power down. But, the big advantage is in the middle ring, as it means you get a better range there so can do less front shifts. Or that's how it is for me anyway.

    The SRAM cassette is fine, I'd recommend SLX or XT myself but they're all good really.
    Uncompromising extremist
  • biff55
    biff55 Posts: 1,404
    or if you run a single front ring , like me , it can make alot of difference.
    resize new chain to fit bigger ratio cassette , prob a touch longer.
  • Northwind
    Northwind Posts: 14,675
    Oh, I did use that 34-22 crawler gear occasionally while on holiday but it was either that or collapse into a ditch and die. Don't think I've ever used it in the UK :lol:
    Uncompromising extremist
  • biff55
    biff55 Posts: 1,404
    Northwind wrote:
    Oh, I did use that 34-22 crawler gear occasionally while on holiday but it was either that or collapse into a ditch and die. Don't think I've ever used it in the UK :lol:

    i'd have got off and pushed long before using that gear combo :D
    invariably just as quick as pedalling at 2000rpm just to crawl at 2mph :lol:
  • Northwind
    Northwind Posts: 14,675
    Yeah, but once you start walking you've lost the war :lol: But I could spin the practically stationary gear for a while then restart
    Uncompromising extremist
  • biff55
    biff55 Posts: 1,404
    so long as you reach the top one way or another its a result for me. :wink:
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    Meh, gears are just for getting up the rubbish stuff (hills!) to get to the good stuff going down. Then I don't really care much about the gears :D
  • floosy
    floosy Posts: 270
    deadkenny wrote:
    Meh, gears are just for getting up the rubbish stuff (hills!) to get to the good stuff going down. Then I don't really care much about the gears :D

    Agreed but thats why I now only have 1 gear... 34/18 :)

    Dave
  • stubs
    stubs Posts: 5,001
    Dont diss the 34T cog on our regular sneaky if we get caught we will have our legs slapped ride in the woods there is a short sharp climb were you cant get any speed up because its a 6 foot climb out of a stream bed then a 90 degree turn over roots and moss then a 12 foot grunt up what looks like a wall. You cant get out of the saddle and stomp it, its too slippy you just have to sit and suffer the pain . Younger fitter riders than me who dont have knackered knees can do it in a 32 but I never could I always came up short at the turn. I got my first 34 cog and YES I cleared it for the first time. Might be pychological but it works.
    Fig rolls: proof that god loves cyclists and that she wants us to do another lap
  • qgwp
    qgwp Posts: 53
    Thanks Stubs,
    sounds like you may live in the frustrating real world of ageing.
    So, do you actually notice a pronounced difference between 11-34T & 11-32T?
  • altern_8
    altern_8 Posts: 1,562
    after looking at what i was running on back a few weeks ago,im sure im the 34t,seeing as im 40 next year im starting to forget things a lot more :lol: ,and i find even tho im turning at slow speed,i can get a breather on tough climbs for obvious reasons......my brother couldnt work out how i could spin so slow on climbs,and that was one of the reasons we looked at rear cog,so for me(if im right with the 34t 8) )it benefits me as i have week knees and ankles from all the sport i use to play,as long as i get to top,thats all that matters to me.
    Biking pics
  • njee20
    njee20 Posts: 9,613
    Personally I see very little reason not to have a 34, you're unlikely to notice any real world difference in the gaps, but the 34 just gives you a slightly wider range so you may not have to shift on the front as much.
  • rainerhq
    rainerhq Posts: 70
    Elite cyclists use also road cassettes on their XC hardtails. It depens on trails and your legs.
    "Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride"
  • njee20
    njee20 Posts: 9,613
    Not really, most use a single or double up front with a wide ratio cassette, I can't think of a single Elite rider using a road cassette in the UK or at World Cup level.
  • stubs
    stubs Posts: 5,001
    qgwp wrote:
    Thanks Stubs,
    sounds like you may live in the frustrating real world of ageing.
    So, do you actually notice a pronounced difference between 11-34T & 11-32T?

    There is a difference whereas in a 32 gear I find I can ride down to about 2.5 mph without falling off, in a 34 gear you can keep things turning over down to about 2 mph or so. I dont use it often but there are situations that need a crawler gear occasionally especially when its slippy. If your gears are set up for it you can use the 34 gear in the middle ring (or big ring if you only have 2) and that gives a great gear range you will find you dont use the granny ring as much.

    ps. I know some people say just get off and walk but as far as I am concerned its called MountainBiking not mountain pushing. If I want to go for a walk I will wear walking boots.
    Fig rolls: proof that god loves cyclists and that she wants us to do another lap
  • neninja
    neninja Posts: 424
    When I asked my LBS about this he said 34's are generally for ladies and kids bikes

    I've got a 32 on my Anthem and it feels spot on. The Teocali came with a 34 and i find it useful on the middle ring but far too spinny on the granny. I'll probably change it to a 32 in the future when it needs replacing.
  • njee20
    njee20 Posts: 9,613
    When I asked my LBS about this he said 34's are generally for ladies and kids bikes

    What a daft thing to say! He ought to go and tell all the professionals running 34s and 36s!

    I use 11-36 with 28/42 and it's spot on. When I used 9 speed I used 11-34s with 28/40, and that was good too, use the big ring for the majority of riding and just drop down for the steep stuff.
  • neninja
    neninja Posts: 424
    He said it was for people with weak legs :lol:
  • njee20
    njee20 Posts: 9,613
    He sounds like a moron!
  • stubs
    stubs Posts: 5,001
    njee20 wrote:
    He sounds like a moron!

    Come on njee you should know by now that everyone who works in a bike shop is a riding god who could have been a world champ if only they had all the breaks like that Steve Peat fella.

    I am sorry but anyone who listens to what some spotty tw@t (who could only get a job in a bike shop because he failed the entrance exam for macdonalds) says is listening to someone talk out of their arris.
    Fig rolls: proof that god loves cyclists and that she wants us to do another lap
  • njee20
    njee20 Posts: 9,613
    I agree with all of that on principal, there are some amazing LBS employees though, me for one :-)
  • fletch8928
    fletch8928 Posts: 794
    My lbs is happier to sell a 34t. They say if it makes it easier then the bikes should get used more and then they get more trade from other things.

    I do notice when I have a 32t on (spare wheel), not often but I do. Then again i have only really just started to use the granny and not just as a bail out option.

    Must be an age thing too.
    fly like a mouse, run like a cushion be the small bookcase!
  • Northwind
    Northwind Posts: 14,675
    neninja wrote:
    When I asked my LBS about this he said 34's are generally for ladies and kids bikes

    Does he not have a middle ring :lol:
    Uncompromising extremist
  • Almightydutch
    Almightydutch Posts: 264
    njee20 wrote:
    I agree with all of that on principal, there are some amazing LBS employees though, me for one :-)

    Dont blow ya trumpet too much.........you got a man wearing lycra as your avatar :lol:
    4 wheels bad
    2 wheels good
    1 wheel for fun
  • Steve_b77
    Steve_b77 Posts: 1,680
    I've got an 11-34 on my FS and to be honest I do use the 34 in the middle ring, a lot more than I do in the granny.

    But then again I've been pushing myself all year and trying not to use the granny unless it's mental steep
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    I've got the benefit that my gears are shafted and won't drop into the granny, so I have no choice but to slog it in the middle. I like to make it hard for myself. Heavy bike and no granny ring.

    Might say "hell with it" and just go singlespeed :D
  • qgwp
    qgwp Posts: 53
    Thanks for dichotomy of opinions.

    I was convinced enough to accept my ageing, so purchased Sram PG990 11-34T for apparently decent £40.
    PG990 weighs 70g lighter than my old PG950 11-32T. It also looks sublime to me with gold spider, & minimal construction.

    I think I notice a positive difference (but am old enough to know the mind can be easily bamboozled!).
    I’m 45y/o, & recently started to notice very slight declines in stamina, fitness, eyesight, etc, so any technological assistance is well received, even permanent mind trickery is fine by me!

    The majority of riders are probably relatively fit under 40 yrs, I suspect? So, standard 11-32T should be ideal for general biking fraternity.
    … 11-32T was fine for me up till recently.
  • Dick Scruttock
    Dick Scruttock Posts: 2,533
    I run a 34 on my bike with a triple up front. Have done for a while now. Where is ride there are loads of long shleps up hill and i like the ratios it gives me.

    When i change to a 36 on the back i will probably use a 26/39 double up front.
  • Tom BB
    Tom BB Posts: 1,001
    I've just gone to a 9 speed tiagra 25t cassette on my mtb-using a triple up front.....weighs about the same as a Sram 990 11-34 (which I used to use)

    OP: I wore my sram cassette out relatively quickly, and I mean really worn!

    If I went to a double up front, then I'd pobably go back to a 11-32/34
  • ride_whenever
    ride_whenever Posts: 13,279
    stubs wrote:
    I am sorry but anyone who listens to what some spotty tw@t (who could only get a job in a bike shop because he failed the entrance exam for macdonalds) says is listening to someone talk out of their arris.

    Do you assume everyone who works in a bike shop is automatically a moron?

    As for the original question, personally I don't have any particular local climbs that require the 34t and i prefer the closer ratios of the 32...
    Neeermad
    Carbon 456
    456 lefty
    Pompino
    White Inbred

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