SRAM Rival1

j_mcd

All the talk of new bikes (over on the bargains thread) has made me think about the Rival1 groupset. I like the thought of a single ring up front for commuting (as who needs two in London) and it would be a good replacement for the tiagra/generic parts set up that's currently on the folding bike.

My bike maintenance skills are pretty low but the only big question I have is what do I need to know about the bottom bracket of my bike before I buy the gear. Do I need radius/diameter, type of bb mech that's in there now etc. I'm a bit clueless on this front.

The Rookie

You need to know what type of BB she'll is fitted, is it threaded (if so English or Italian) or press fit, if it's the latter which press fit standard.

If it's threaded it will be obvious as the BB will have some 'form' for the tool to engage on to unscrew it.

And the bike is......

3 of my four bikes are 1x gearing, my commuter uses a track crankset and small chainguide and a 12-28 cassette which suits me fine for the hills I have on my commute.

bendertherobot

You don't have to change the chainset though. Just the chainring. My SRAM Apex works fine with its new absolute black 42t ring.

If you go down this route you need to know how many bolts you have (count them!) and what BCD the chainset is. Should be equally easy, should be printed on the existing ring. Or just google the setup and find out what BCD it is