Bike parts upgrade

RichW1982

I have had my Giant Dify 5 for about 2-3 years and bits need replacing like the cassette and crank-set and maybe the Derailleur. im wondering if i can go from 2 chain rings to 3 or is this a bad idea?

stormsedge

Believe a change to three chain rings will require you to change brake/shifter handles (do they still say brifters?) to support the three rings. It becomes a pricing/cost and what do you want to do with the bike drill. I found out you have to chart what you want to do carefully as some parts come with the need for something else to work correctly (pronounced "unintended consequence"). Turns out you can do just about whatever you want in terms of drivetrain, seat, stem, wheels, etc... as long as parts are compatible. My frankenbike build cost a little over $1000usd...you can buy a nice bike for that, especially at summer sale time.

Joshgav

There won't be many on here who will recommend a triple crank, they are a fair bit heavier but not much benefit. Doubles with very wide cassettes give most people enough gear range for what they need, e.g. 50/34 with a 32 on the back gives a pretty low road bike gear without having to go down the triple route.

stormsedge

Looked up a 2014 Defy...believe you have a 34/50 compact with an 11-32 8 spd cassette? Those ratios are pretty standard for road bikes in these parts aimed at hilly country (although opinions vary ). Is there something you want to do with your bike that your current drivetrain does not support or are you upgrading because you feel it is time?

For clarity, my frankenbike and MTB are triples. My "real" road bike a 34/50 compact with 11-32 cassette 11 speed...basically the same as yours with three additional closer spaced gears in the mix. The frankenbike has about three gears that are lower/better for really steep stuff than the road bike, but those can be pretty much duplicated with the 34/50 using a 11-40 cassette and derailer link should I feel the need.

What you want to do with the bike and your conditioning level are the real indicators for drivetrain gearing.

ElectronShepherd

Joshgav wrote:

There won't be many on here who will recommend a triple crank, they are a fair bit heavier but not much benefit. Doubles with very wide cassettes give most people enough gear range for what they need, e.g. 50/34 with a 32 on the back gives a pretty low road bike gear without having to go down the triple route.

Ah, the "you don't want a triple cos they're really heavy" thing....

Yes, a triple crank is heaver, but not by "a fair bit". It's about 150g at most, but what most people forget is that the larger cassette that you have at the rear with a compact also weighs more than the cassette that is typically paired with a triple crank. A wide range 11-32 cassette is about 40g heavier than a more old-school 11-25, so you end up saving about 110g.

You add that much weight if you put an extra 2.5cm of water in a standard bike water bottle. You won't notice that weight either way. The advantage of a triple is that you get a broader choice of cadence, which you probably will notice.

simon_masterson

Joshgav wrote:

There won't be many on here who will recommend a triple crank, they are a fair bit heavier but not much benefit. Doubles with very wide cassettes give most people enough gear range for what they need, e.g. 50/34 with a 32 on the back gives a pretty low road bike gear without having to go down the triple route.

Many on here are uninformed. Most of the snobbery about triple chainsets is because they don't 'look pro' - which is ironic given that pro riders have been known to use them occasionally. The weight penalty is nothing to shout about, and they allow for much lower gears. If you want very low gears on a road bike, a triple makes a lot of sense, and you usually get good chainline on the middle ring, meaning you can use the whole cassette.

dj58

If you want to go to a triple set up, you can with 10sp Tiagra 4700 50/39/30 and 12/28 or 11/32
http://productinfo.shimano.com/#/lc/2.1/tiagra/3x10

stormsedge

The cool kids never want to talk to me when I'm on my triple. LoL. Or maybe they're out of breath on the big, long hill?

Joshgav

Simon Masterson wrote:

Joshgav wrote:

There won't be many on here who will recommend a triple crank, they are a fair bit heavier but not much benefit. Doubles with very wide cassettes give most people enough gear range for what they need, e.g. 50/34 with a 32 on the back gives a pretty low road bike gear without having to go down the triple route.

Many on here are uninformed. Most of the snobbery about triple chainsets is because they don't 'look pro' - which is ironic given that pro riders have been known to use them occasionally. The weight penalty is nothing to shout about, and they allow for much lower gears. If you want very low gears on a road bike, a triple makes a lot of sense, and you usually get good chainline on the middle ring, meaning you can use the whole cassette.

As I said, there's limited benefit. I do have a bike with a triple on, it's for towing the kiddie trailer (approx 40kg with kids in) up steep hills when I really do need a bail out gear.

Triples necessarily existed back before modern 11 speed setups, which can take a cassette with a huge range. The ability to mico manage cadence may be a benefit to some but as I said the modern 11 speed setup doesn't really need closer gear ratios in the middle where the middle of cassette are all in single tooth increments.

Why are many now going to a 1x11 geartrain?

simon_masterson

Joshgav wrote:

Simon Masterson wrote:

Joshgav wrote:

There won't be many on here who will recommend a triple crank, they are a fair bit heavier but not much benefit. Doubles with very wide cassettes give most people enough gear range for what they need, e.g. 50/34 with a 32 on the back gives a pretty low road bike gear without having to go down the triple route.

Many on here are uninformed. Most of the snobbery about triple chainsets is because they don't 'look pro' - which is ironic given that pro riders have been known to use them occasionally. The weight penalty is nothing to shout about, and they allow for much lower gears. If you want very low gears on a road bike, a triple makes a lot of sense, and you usually get good chainline on the middle ring, meaning you can use the whole cassette.

As I said, there's limited benefit. I do have a bike with a triple on, it's for towing the kiddie trailer (approx 40kg with kids in) up steep hills when I really do need a bail out gear.

Triples necessarily existed back before modern 11 speed setups, which can take a cassette with a huge range. The ability to mico manage cadence may be a benefit to some but as I said the modern 11 speed setup doesn't really need closer gear ratios in the middle where the middle of cassette are all in single tooth increments.

Why are many now going to a 1x11 geartrain?

Limited benefit if you don't spend much time <30", but my guess is that if you are considering a triple, you probably want one.

ElectronShepherd

Joshgav wrote:

modern 11 speed setup ... the middle of cassette are all in single tooth increments.

This simply isn't true. An 11-32 CS-R8000 only has 3 one-tooth increments, and they are all at the small end (first four cogs are 11 12 13 14). After that it's two-, three- and four-tooth increments - there's none in the middle.

bonk_king

I have a 2014 scott CR1 PRO with a triple. I live on the yorkshire/lancs border on the pennines so there's plenty of lumpy stuff to get through. I can honestly say i have gone down into the smallest cog maybe 3 or 4 times in 3 years of having the bike. Usually toward the end of a long gruelling ride when i'm shot at and there's a final hill between me and home. Then it's an absolute godsend.

Joshgav

Simon Masterson wrote:

Limited benefit if you don't spend much time <30", but my guess is that if you are considering a triple, you probably want one.

OP didn't say why they were considering a triple.

Most of the bikes on sale with triples are at the entry level end of the market. I would guess that the majority of the people buying entry level bikes don't really understand gear inches, cadence, be able to calculate the speed at which they would spin out etc. and just see "more gears". If you understand gearing and decide you want a triple for your needs then absolutely fine but that isn't what was asked here.

pilot_pete

RichW1982 wrote:

I have had my Giant Dify 5 for about 2-3 years and bits need replacing like the cassette and crank-set and maybe the Derailleur. im wondering if i can go from 2 chain rings to 3 or is this a bad idea?

The obvious question is what have you done to those parts in that short time frame that means they need changing? I understand the cassette is probably worn, but why has the crankset worn out? And why would the derailleur need changing after 2-3 years? Are you sure it doesn't just need a couple of new pulleys?

And to answer your other question, it would seem like an expensive option to change the crank, chainrings, cassette, derailleur(s), shifters and probably chain just to get a few more low gears. Have you considered sorting out the worn parts like for like, selling it on and buying a new bike with the triple set up that you desire? I have always got around 50% of the RRP when selling a bike on, usually older than 2-3years too. Bearing in mind I have never paid RRP for a bike that seems like a possible option...

PP