compact or standard?

jwright123456

I've had a trek with a 105 compact (50/34), but its time to upgrade.

The Boardman Pro Carbon has caught my eye, but as with so many others it has an Ultegra with a standard (53-39) groupset.
I'm doing LEJoG next year so there's 15,000m+ climbing in 9 days and I suspect a compact may be better, but the thing I cant understand is why so many "standard" groupsets are sold when from what I'm hearing most non-pro riders really need a compact?

seems daft spending a fortune on a new bike and then needing one of the key bits changing straightaway?

thoughts?!

Grill

When in doubt, compact.

Bobbinogs

Grill wrote:

When in doubt, compact.

I agree with Grill, if you have to ask the question then the answer is a compact.

slowbike

It doesn't matter if you have compact or standard - it's the overall gearing that makes the difference.

If you're riding around on a compact with a small cassette (eg 23-11) then there is no reason why you can't go for a standard with a larger cassette (28-12?).
If you're already running around on a compact with a 28-?? cassette and using the 28/25 cog a lot on the small ring at the front then probably best not to go for a standard.

TBH - my first road bike was (is) a standard 39/52 with a 26-13 cassette - for the first year to 18 months I spent all my time in the small ring, then flipped over to spend most of my time in the big ring ...

My next bike was (is) a CX - with a triple at the front but I mostly use the 39/50 rings - as it was a triple I was happy enough to get a 23-11 cassette knowing I've got a bailout 30-23 if I needed it ... most of the time I don't bailout and just use the 39/23 combo on steep hills ... the rest of the time I try and stay in the big ring - but as it's a commuter bike with mudguards and rack I'm easy on this ...

My current road bike has a compact - with a 28-11 cassette - I still spend most of my time in the big ring at the front - only bailing out to the 34 ring when the hill ramps up ... and even then I'm not using the 28 ...
I now need the compact rings for my wifes bike and I have spare standard - so I'm swapping them over - and giving her the 28-11 cassette too ...

Bobbinogs

Yepp, that's cleared things up slowbike

jwright123456

current is an 11-28, proposed new one is an 11-25

all a bit confusing (only ever had one bike) - i think i'm right in saying i'll get more top end gears and less to get over the hills with the new setup?
but then it'll be lighter i suppose?

southdownswolf

The first few days in Cornwall and Devon you will be thankful of a compact, some short but steep hills. If you are doing LEJOG in 9 days, the you will be averaging 100+ miles per day, so at the end of each day you will probably be tired. Any hills of significance towards the end of the day are going to be hard due to the tiredness.

I did a solo JOGLE earlier this year in 9 days (JOG to Wick then another 8 days) I found the first few days riding not too bad, but I was tired at the end of each day. By the time I had got down to Devon and Cornwall I had "ridden" into the JOGLE, so the legs were much more willing to get up the hills! Even so a few mutterings came out of my mouth with the constant hills in Devon.
Do you have a route panned?

Regarding the bike coming with a standard chainset, you may well be able to recover most of the cost of a compact by selling on this forum. I'm sure that someone would be willing to pay a decent price for it.

jwright123456

cheers - doing the deloitte RAB one....

southdownswolf

jwright123456 wrote:

cheers - doing the deloitte RAB one....

Not so bad then, as you will not have to carry everything on the bike.
I might be tempted to do it on the standard, but change the cassette to a 28. This would give you almost the same gearing as changing to a compact with the existing 25 cassette. Other people will have their own views, but personally, putting in the training should give you the stamina to cope with the standard without having any bags on the bike.

Looking briefly at your route, it is definitely the first two days that look the hardest on paper. Not too bad after that until day 6 and crossing the border.

Bobbinogs

I found this site to be excellent: Gear Calculator

Just get the page set up for Compact and your cog setup, then do the 'compare' feature. It helps you look at cassette effects too, very useful.

slowbike

Bobbinogs wrote:

I found this site to be excellent: Gear Calculator

Just get the page set up for Compact and your cog setup, then do the 'compare' feature. It helps you look at cassette effects too, very useful.

Excellent - thanks - I'd seen that before but lost the link ... now saved in bookmarks !

mroli

I did the first Deloitte RAB. I understand that they no longer take you up the Long Mynd which caught everyone riding a standard out (I think only one of them got up it!) - it was JOGLE and after the first couple of days, I swapped out from a 11-23 (compact) to a 12-25 (compact) and was fine. Depending on how you choose to ride it, its probably more of the sort of a ride where you are saving your legs on downhills rather than trying to pedal up from 35mph to 40mph, so you won't need too much at the "top" end. They like putting a few challenges in, but having the easier gears was certainly appreciated when you were hitting your millionth 20% Cornish Hill on day 9!!!!

northpole

If you are taking on such a ride, setting aside all macho posturing which can pop up on a thread like this, unless you are a remarkably strong climber, I would have thought it would be a step too far to opt for a standard chainset and I would certainly stick with a 27 or 28 big ring on my cassette. What would be the downside? Don't Boardman offer the option of a compact? Plenty of others do....

Peter

Cheshire Cat

52/36, and as I use Campagnolo, a 12-27 cassette, good for me in the Lakes.