Bigger chain set for boardman 8.8

Bobby39

Hello every one..
Im new and joined here for some much needed help ?
Im looking to buy a new bike. I currently ride an original 2011 team boardman fs. 20 speed full suspention.. dnd its had its day now..
So i was looking at the boardman 8.8..but the issues i have are.. only 10 gears.. small chainring.aint goin to cut it for me.. with that big cassette at the bk..im deffo goin to need. A new crank set up up front...? Whats the biggest chainring teeth wise could it take..how about 50/52t.. i will be using the bike purely.on road and paths..i need more top end speed..
So any help..and advice..would help a lot.. thanks in advance..

larkim

LOL @ “only 10 gears”!!

Are you sure you’re looking at the right type of bike for the riding you’re planning to do? Big ring up front, riding on the road - wouldn’t a Pinarello be a better option ;-) ?

Bobby39

Yea its all about money..pal im on a budget..i dont want a road bike.. i want a mountain bike.not my fault they all only come with either 10/11 gears now.. its stupid..take a look at the bike in question..

monkimark

Boardman do a range of bikes called 8.8, from road bike to fs mountain bike. You might want to be more specific.
https://www.google.com/search?q=boardma ... e&ie=UTF-8

Either way, if you're on a budget then buying a bike that "needs" a new crankset, front mech etc straight away is probably not the way to go.

Bobby39

Well £1000..better than£3000..also aint my fault the mtb world gone stupid..with gears..i like the bike im after just got silly small chainring on it.. i need more teeth..the bike i got now needs new chain ring.but they dont make that size any more

JBA

I answered in your other thread but assumed you were after a hybrid 8.8 as it's the first one that came up when I did a search. From the above though it looks like you want an MTB. Is that correct?

The mtb world hasn't "gone stupid..with gears..". Riders, designers and manufacturers have realised that a decent range of gears rather than a large number with overlapping and duplicate ratios is both simpler and more efficient. Think about how many gears you actually use on your current bike. I doubt you routinely use all 20.
Mountain bikes are designed to be used off-road where relatively low gearing is beneficial. Climbing trails needs low gears and the downs very rarely reach speeds where the rider spins out.
For road riding an MTB, especially a full sus one is the wrong bike. A decent hybrid is much better if you don't want a road bike.

If your current bike still does everything you wan it to then why not simply put a new chain set (and cassette and chain if needed) on it and save a load of cash? A Deore chain set is less than £50.

jamski

Bobby39 wrote:

Well £1000..better than£3000..also aint my fault the mtb world gone stupid..with gears..i like the bike im after just got silly small chainring on it.. i need more teeth..the bike i got now needs new chain ring.but they dont make that size any more

It hasn't 'gone stupid' it's evolved and developed, where you haven't. If you want a mountain bike, ride up (or down) mountains.*

If you want to ride on roads/paths, get a hybrid.

The bike isn't the problem, I think you know who is.

*other activities are available to use a mountain bike to it's full potential, mountains don't always have to be involved.

cougie

£1000 is ample for what you want. But you're barking up the wrong tree if you choose a bike that needs money spent on it straight away.

Bobby39

Well i thought i would you knoe join a furum..and get some help on my issue.. as most forums are very helpfull.but it appears this one aint. facetious bellends comes to mind!!!.my bike is my main form of transportation. Hence i want a decent bike.i dont want a road bike..nore do i want a crappy hybrid..i want a mountain bike..a full suspention one that wont break the bank. But equally make me happy.hence a boardman..as thrre pritty much bullet proof..just the only issue i have is not so much the 10 speed gears.its more the pewny front chain ring it comes with.. as it aint going to be no good to me..and my old boardman is gone beyond splashing a bit of cash on after 7/8years of riding.. im not a sunday rider..so its not worth saving. I merely wanted to knoe how big a chainset i could put on it..so i could go to work and bk fast as possible with less effort. Pedling. Hence again bigger chain ring up front.for the setup it has..i dont mind spending more cash on it. If it pays me bk in achieaving my own personnel time to my self at home. So if you got some good decent advice.on the issue then its very much welcome.if you aint then p..i.s..s...off
Many thsnks in advance

BOBBY

cougie

Why do you need full suspension ? That's just extra weight and complexity.

A gravel/cross bike with whopping great tyres would give you the comfort and they are cheaper, lighter and faster.
So you could easily beat your 'personnel time to work as fast as possible with as little effort'

If you think only a full suspension will survive - check out what road bikes cope with at Paris Roubaix.

The reason why full sus mtb's haven't got the high gears you want is because they're not designed for your purposes.

keef66

Nobody is being facetious and the only one being a bellend is you I'm afraid. That or top trolling, I'm not sure which.

Spending a grand on a bike and immediately changing the chainset is just nuts, and suggests you're buying the wrong bike, but whatever floats your boat.

Have you asked Halfords if they'd change the chainset at the point of purchase? Failing that, asked them what chainring / chainset you could fit?

I'd just buy an old stock 10 speed triple chainset, ditch the 2 small rings and fit the big one inside the spider with shorter chainring bolts. You can get a Deore for less than £50, and ditch the FSA BB for a Shimano one to boot.

larkim

OK, without being facetious - what do you currently have on your current bike? In terms of ratios that support a high speed on roads, broadly the higher up the price bracket you go on MTBs, the less likely you are to get a big ring to drive the 11 or 10 sprocket on the back. And you may find that they have designed out the potential to easily fit a front mech too, assuming you want at least two rings up front (1 for MTB'ing and 1 for commuting)?

I think where you went wrong on here was suggesting a front ring in the 50s. That is truly reserved for road or hybrid bikes as a size surely? IN 10spd I can only see triples going up to 44, but I might be missing some - 48 isn't uncommon on 7/8spd.

Bottom line is that if you are interested in speed to work (and I can understand why you would value time at home by getting there quicker), a full sus MTB is unlikely to deliver that - it's too compromised, by design.

Bobby39

I currently have a full suspention fs boardman 2011/12 never let me down i want full suspention cause i buckle wheels ..my bike is quick but could be quucker.. it has a 42t chainring. What fsa dont make ny more. I thought a 50t would suit me better with only 10 gears.. i only use botoom few on what i have now with 20 gears..ive been riding bikes for years and im 40 this year.. so having a big chainring aint goin to make me struggle. Riding.. and you neefd a bigger chainring than your biggest rear gear and the boardman 8.8 mtb has a stupid whopper on the bk mate.. oh by the way work is 3.2 miles away takes me 25min there 17min bk lol

keef66

Not sure I see the connection between suspension and buckling wheels??

And if you've been 'riding bikes for years' but 3.2 miles is taking you 25 minutes, either it's the full English breakfast, the full sus MTB, or the fact that you work at the top of a bloody great hill that's slowing you down. Or possibly all three?

Bobby39

Lol its up hill.. im 78kg no brekkys..and i chuck the bike about urban riding i guess.. so suspention helps me a lot with out fucking wheels up.. and.. like when i drove cars id blow petrol ones up but deisal lasted me in terms

JBA

Bobby39 wrote:

Well i thought i would you knoe join a furum..and get some help on my issue.. as most forums are very helpfull.but it appears this one aint. facetious bellends comes to mind!!!...

BOBBY

How is offering advice based on the usage you described facetious?
Calling people who are trying to help you bellends is not the best way to win friends.

Full suspension will not stop you buckling wheels. Riding properly will.

You don’t need an FSA chain ring for your chainset. Any compatible brand with the correct PCD for the bolt holes will fit.
If you can find a larger chain ring that fits you will need to check that the front derailleur has enough capacity for it and subsequently reposition the fd and adjust the cable length.

Learn how to maintain a bike properly and it will last a lot longer than 7 years, especially if it is used mainly for commuting on nice smooth roads.

robertpb

If it's 25min up and 17min down that's not much of a hill, it's only an average of 11.3 mph downhill.

I've just checked with a ride I rode this afternoon and on a gentle slope riding easy I was at 22mph without spinning out on a 34 tooth chainring with 11-34 cassette, mud tyres on a full susser and 68 years old.

Bobby39

Good 4 you pal..good on ya.. yea i want more speed out my bike this time round as the bike ive had for 7 years lack just that little bit more at top end..every bike ive had been fast..

Bobby39

Oh look at the boardman 8.8..it has a 40 somethink 11 cassette with a 36 chainring

The Rookie

The smallest sprocket on the Boardman is the same 11t as it’s been for a long time, if you currently use a 42t then the same again will be fine.

My 1x gearing with a 30t chainring will easily cruise at 23mph, taller gears don’t make you faster, more power or less drag makes you faster.

My commuter bike is a gravel bike frame, 1x9 gearing and I use a 44t chainring and a 12:28 cassette and that will easily hit 45mph on downhills. That’s used daily on country lanes and is just coming up to 3000miles.

cougie

You could put Chris Hoys track gear on your full suspension and it's still not going to be as fast as even a hybrid.

Bobby39

Dont like hybrids

jamski

Bobby39 wrote:

Dont like hybrids

Look at a rigid bike packing bike. My mate have one, pretty cool. Would be much better suited to what you’re doing than a full suss.

robertpb

Gravel or CX bike?

But then again I can feel Edvard Grieg's Peer Gynt Suite no.1, in the hall the mountain king, in my head.

Mad_Malx

^very good.

Tyresome

The MTB has a wide range cassette, be aware of the max tooth difference and capacity limits of the drivetrain, if you want to swap the chainset.

JBA

robertpb wrote:

But then again I can feel Edvard Grieg's Peer Gynt Suite no.1, in the hall the mountain king, in my head.

Like.

penguin_of_death

If you simply fit a bigger ring it may catch on the frame at the chainstay as there isnt much clearance.