Going from 7 speed 3 ring to 11 speed two ring
MiniMalts
Posts: 266
Basically, will I miss the 3rd smaller ring? There are very few instances where I have used it, but where I use it, I need it.
I've gone from a Ridgeback Speed 7 speed 32T (from the specs I can see online as the bike is hundreds of miles away) to a Genesis Croix de Fer 30, 22 speed 32T. I have a feeling I'm going to find this a difficult bike to get used, especially on the few uphill sections I use the smaller front ring on the Speed.
I've gone from a Ridgeback Speed 7 speed 32T (from the specs I can see online as the bike is hundreds of miles away) to a Genesis Croix de Fer 30, 22 speed 32T. I have a feeling I'm going to find this a difficult bike to get used, especially on the few uphill sections I use the smaller front ring on the Speed.
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Chances are the smallest chainring on your Ridgeback's triple will be a little smaller than that on the Genesis, which as far as I can tell has a standard 50/34t compact on the front. That said, 34 front & 32 rear is pretty low - almost 1:1, and on a bike like the Genesis, should be fine for scaling most sheer cliff faces!
You're going from a fairly hefty-looking commuter/hybrid to a much lighter, more efficient "proper" road bike. I suspect the change in gearing will make a lot less difference than you might expect.
Yep, 32T is the teeth count on the largest rear sprocket of both bikes.
According to the specs I can see online of the Ridgeback 2015 the smallest chainring has 28 teeth and Genesis has 34 (4 less than the middle ring of the Speed).
I should have said, I'm kitting the Genesis out with mudguards and rack etc to use as a touring bike so will be carrying an additional 15kg or thereabouts over my own body weight of 133 kg.
You should check the weight limits
Fixed TT 2015-2016
Huh? weight limits for rings?
It all depends how strong you are and how much luggage you are carrying. A 28.7in gear is very low for an unladen road bike and you would be able to ride comfortably up anything with it. Add 15kg of luggage, however, and you will have to stand on the pedals to climb anything above around 10 per cent. Longer hills such as Alpine passes would be a struggle with a laden bike on a 34/32 gear. As peviously said, the big jump between 50 and 34 rings can be annoying and you may have to double shift to maintain cadence. If you only do occasional laden touring in the UK, this gearing would be fine - as long as you are pretty fit. But at your current body weight, I think you may be walking up steeper hills if you are carrying luggage.
Of course I'll try it as it is first and see how it goes. But if I don't get on with it....
I've only carried luggage once and to be honest I had my laptop and a bottle of vodka in it so when I do some real touring I won't be taking those, in fact, I really only will be taking the bare minimum. Without the laptop and vodka I'd probably save 5kg...
I don't understand what you mean, can you elaborate? As I understand it the OP is thinking about buying, or has bought a 22 speed double and as opposed to a his 21 speed triple, is asking if the lowest gear is going to be low enough for how/where he rides.
What weight limits need checking? Limits for the Genesis for fitting mudguards and rack and panniers plus his body weight?
I don't understand what you mean, can you elaborate? As I understand it the OP is thinking about buying, or has bought a 22 speed double and as opposed to a his 21 speed triple, is asking if the lowest gear is going to be low enough for how/where he rides.
What weight limits need checking? Limits for the Genesis for fitting mudguards and rack and panniers plus his body weight
Sorry some sort of cross posting. I was referring to the combined weight of OP and his kit coming to 150kgs
What transmission components does the Genesis come with?
http://www.londonbicycleworkshop.com/94157/products/genesis-croix-de-fer-30-2015-blue.aspx
Just noticed that the bike you linked to has the FC-RS500 5 arm crankset so you could try a 33T inner ring
http://www.spacycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m2b0s113p1964
Probably would like to keep it to 10kg of luggage max.
Yeah, going to ride it a bit (unladen) and compare it to how I get on on the hills I usually ride on the Ridgeback. Then I might add some weight and see how I do. I've been googling images of 10% hills to compare to the hills that I know and 10% doesn't look very steep at all.
Hmmm, lets see how I get on before going to that expense. I will certainly keep it in mind for if I don't get on with it as it is. In the shop I asked the salesman "the lack of third ring on the front will be offset with the extra gears at the back?" Him "Yes, you won't see much of a difference."
Do either of these options involve changing the bottom bracket or will they fit straight on?
I guess all in all, its an incentive to get fitter before the Spring.
"There are a number of RO2 road chain set choices to choose from depending on what ring size you want to run, as well as chain set builds designed for Cyclo X and for use on Touring machines.
The RO2 cranks are designed for use with our bottom bracket or an equivalent 24mm Bottom bracket."
Before you go changing anything I'd do a trial run with all your additional items added to the bike as it is.
I would suggest the OP takes with a pinch of salt the claims of the salesman. There is a big difference in the bottom gears of his current and future bikes. I previously said he would effectively lose his bottom gear. In fact he would lose second gear as well. So the question is: would he feel confident riding uphill with luggage in third gear on his current bike? It's all down to the terrain and personal strength and fitness. A fairly heavy newcomer to cycling would manage touring with a load and a 50/34 chainset in flat and rolling eastern England but would struggle in hilly areas like my home in the Shropshire/Welsh border country.
But, as everyone has said, the best advice is to try out the new bike with its 50/34 chainset which should be fine for only occasional laden touring in non-hilly areas. If OP finds it hard going or wants to do more serious touring in hilly or mountainous areas, getting a new lower super compact chainset would be a better option than going full triple.
10kg? For "real touring"? With tents etc? Good luck with that!
Yeah, seriously going to keep the Middleburg chainsets in mind.
Not sure I'd go as far as tents. :0
TBH, I wouldn't want to tour without a tent! Much more restrictive without a tent.
I did see a bloke in Sweden touring with a CX bike and a trailer. He had crossed over Telemark from Bergen to Oslo. Said the hills were tough but he was a young lad! I didn't envy his gearing. As Simon mentioned, one nice thing about triples is that you rarely need to move out of the middle chainring. I reckon the outer ring was only used for about 5% of the distance and the inner ring 5% of the time. Otherwise it was 36 on the front and 11-34 on the back. That worked pretty well for Scandinavia but might be still a bit tough in parts of the UK. I'll probably re ring the front to 24-34-44 from the current 26-36-48 which at least will give the big ring more work to do.
Yeah, a tent is an option but you get some pretty lightweight tents these days. I would consider carrying one incase I didn't make it to a B&B/Hostel etc.