Change crank rather than bike

daveh66

Hi, first post...

My commute is a 32 mile round trip from South London to Kensington. I have a specialised hardrock with front suspension. It's comfy, bombproof, good riding position BUT it's slow on the road. I know slicks are an option but current tyres roll well enough. My question:

Is changing the crankset an option ? Would a 48t/38t (or similar) improve my speed ?

MrChuck

If you find you're spinning out in top gear, then yes, a higher gear would give you a bit more speed.
Slicks would be better for cornering as well as being quicker- knobblies have less rubber on the road.

cookdn

MrChuck wrote:

If you find you're spinning out in top gear, then yes, a higher gear would give you a bit more speed.
Slicks would be better for cornering as well as being quicker- knobblies have less rubber on the road.

+ 1 slicks, you'll be surprised what a difference they make. When I was commuting on an MTB I actually went to the lengths of having second set of wheels with the same rim width so I could swap from knobblies to slicks without swapping tyres (I was poor and only had one bike). However I would question the suspension forks up front for an on-road commute of that distance. Not only are they adding weight, in my experience they also soak-up a fair amount pedalling effort without contributing much benefit back.

If you like the flat-bar upright position have you considered a hybrid with 700c wheels and a fixed fork? My wife's Trek 7.5 is effectively an alloy road frame with carbon fork and wheels combined with a flat bar and MTB groupset.

Best regards
David

daveh66

thanx.

Slicks it is. Also, toying with the idea of either a hybrid (specialised sirrus) or cyclcross bike. I'll see how I go with new rubber

mountaincookie

Don't bother commuting on an MTB, the only thing I miss about that is play urban idiot. Now I commute on 700cc 23 mm tyres, I'm not looking back

fnegroni

I have a similar commute to yours (32 mile roundtrip from South-East London to the City).
My hybrid is an MTB that I tweaked: slick tyres (now large volume ones), full size mudguards, a pannier rack, and last but not least, a rigid fork (suspension corrected).
I kept the crankset the same, and in its current form, I can average respectable speeds (18mph on the outbound leg) and I am by no means slow not even compared to some roadies: you can spot me occasionally charging up to London Bridge at a respectable 25 mph, and cruising speeds of around 19-20 mph on most flattish roads.
Sure, a road oriented bike would offer some speed and agility advantage on the road, but whether that is compatible with the intended use only you can tell. I do have a very light and performing road race bike, but I wouldn't commute on it to central London.
In my experience, I have saved a considerable amount of money by substituting only the parts that would give a real advantage; I have also given myself the most flexibility: I can fit studded tyres for the winter, and two fully loaded panniers plus an 11Kg child + seat poses no issue at all. A similarly sturdy but more road oriented bike would have not given me much advantage and only increased the costs.